Monday, October 22, 2007

Top 20 Biggest Pitches in the Premier League


EPL Talk has researched the sizes of football pitches in the Premier League and ranked them according to the largest pitches to smallest. Some of the findings may surprise you.

For example, Tottenham's White Hart Lane has always been renowned for its small pitch, but did you know that fellow London club West Ham's pitch is the smallest in the league?

Here are the top 20 pitches ranked in order of size. The large number after the size of the pitch is calculated by multiplying the length and width of the pitch (in yards):

1. Manchester City, City of Manchester Stadium, 116 x 77 yards, 8932
2. Manchester United, Old Trafford, 116 x 76 yards, 8816
3. Blackburn Rovers, Ewood Park, 115 x 76 yards, 8740
4. Everton, Goodison Park, 112 x 78 yards, 8736
5. Aston Villa, Villa Park, 114 x 75 yards, 8550
6. Middlesbrough, Riverside, 114 x 75 yards, 8550
7. Arsenal, Emirates Stadium, 114 x 74 yards, 8436
8. Derby County, Pride Park, 114 x 74 yards, 8436
9. Reading, Madjeski Stadium, 111 x 76 yards, 8436
10. Sunderland, Stadium of Light, 114 x 74 yards, 8436
11. Wigan Athletic, JJB Stadium, 114 x 74 yards, 8436
12. Portsmouth, Fratton Park, 115 x 73 yards, 8395
13. Chelsea, Stamford Bridge, 110 x 75 yards, 8250
14. Fulham, Craven Cottage, 110 x 75 yards, 8250
15. Liverpool, Anfield, 110 x 75 yards, 8250
16. Birmingham City, St. Andrews, 110 x 74 yards, 8140
17. Newcastle United, St. James's Park, 110 x 73 yards, 8030
18. Tottenham Hotspur, White Hart Lane, 110 x 73 yards, 8030
19. Bolton Wanderers, Reebok Stadium, 110 x 72 yards, 7920
20. West Ham United, Boleyn Ground, 110 x 70 yards, 7700

Looking at the stadiums, the difference in size between West Ham's pitch and Manchester City's one is quite dramatic. West Ham's Boleyn Ground is seven yards narrower (21 feet) and six yards shorter (18 feet).

Many questions can be drawn from the facts above. For example, what sort of impact does West Ham's narrow pitch have on their playing style? Despite the narrow pitch, past players such as Martin Peters, Joe Cole and Alan Devonshire didn't seem to have too many challenges.

Parting fact: Out of the 20 pitches in the Premier League, the average size is 112.4 x 74.4 yards, measuring an average size of 8373.4.

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Comments:
Interesting stuff.

Good work,
 
I can't believe Fratton Park and Craven Cottage aren't the two smallest pitches in the Premier League. Watching games from those stadiums on TV, those fields look relatively tiny.

Just out of curiosity, does anyone know the old dimensions at Highbury? I'd be interested to know what they were; my high school field seemed bigger to be honest.
 
I had no clue that the pitch at PP was that big.
 
MJ:

I'm wondering whether Fratton Park and Craven Cottage look smaller because the stadiums themselves are some of the smallest in the league (and antiquated)?

Cheers,
The Gaffer
 
That's a good point, that probably is the reason now that I think about it. Good work on the research, Gaffer, it's stuff like this that can help explain why teams go out and get the players they do, because some are better suited to some fields than others.
 
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Name: The Gaffer
Location: Florida, United States

The Gaffer has been following football/soccer for more than 30 years. Born in Wales, he is a former journalist who now lives in Florida and spends his time analyzing the influence of the Premier League worldwide. In 2005, he founded EPL Talk.