Salford City Stadium
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AJ Bell Stadium
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| Full name | AJ Bell Stadium |
|---|---|
| Former names | Salford City Stadium |
| Location |
1 Stadium Way, Barton-upon-Irwell,M30 7EY England |
| Coordinates | 53°28′10″N 2°22′30″W / 53.46944°N 2.37500°WCoordinates: 53°28′10″N 2°22′30″W / 53.46944°N 2.37500°W |
| Owner | Peel Group and Salford City Council |
| Executive suites | 12 20-person hospitality boxes and 1 banqueting suite (up to 750) |
| Capacity | 12,000 |
| Record attendance | 11,247 (Sale Sharks v Leicester Tigers) 27 December 2014 |
| Field size | 122m x 86m |
| Surface | Grass |
| Scoreboard | Electronic |
| Construction | |
| Built | 2010–11 |
| Opened | 2012 |
| Construction cost | £26 million |
| Architect | AFL Architects |
| Structural engineer | SKM |
| Main contractors | Buckingham Group |
| Tenants | |
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Salford Red Devils (2012–) Sale Sharks (2012–) Manchester United FC Reserves (2013–14) |
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| Website | |
| www.ajbellstadium.co.uk | |
1 Stadium Way,
The Salford City Stadium (referred to as the AJ Bell Stadium for sponsorship purposes) is a rugby stadium in Barton-upon-Irwell, Greater Manchester, England. It was built to replace Salford rugby league club's ground The Willows for the 2012 season. Sale Sharks rugby union club have also played at the stadium since the 2012–13 season.
In 2005, Salford City Council approved plans for the Reds to move from the Willows to the brownfield site at Barton.
The stadium was originally to be developed by Red City Developments, with construction to be complete for the start of the 2009 season. However, RCD went into administration in July 2008.
Salford City Council formed a joint venture company with Peel Group to develop and deliver the £16 million stadium, which is part of the a £26 million development close to the Manchester Ship Canal and the M60 motorway.
Planning permission was granted in March 2010 for a 15,000-capacity stadium.
Sale Sharks confirmed their move to the stadium in April 2012, signing a 25-year lease.
In 2013, Peel Group and Salford City Council each lent £600,000 in emergency funding to the stadium. The council is still owed £20 million for building the stadium, and is already owed £1.5m by the Salford City Reds who play at the stadium.
In 2014, SCC and Peel lent a further £410,724 to the Stadium.
On 13 September 2013, it was announced that investment platform AJ Bell had secured a nine-year stadium naming rights partnership with Sale Sharks Rugby Club. The deal saw Salford City Stadium re-branded and renamed AJ Bell Stadium.
Initially, the stadium can accommodate a 12,000 crowd, but could be extended to hold up to 20,000 spectators. The stadium has areas designated for standing supporters. This partial-standing design is similar to the Halliwell Jones Stadium, home of Warrington Wolves.
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