Welford Road Stadium
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| Location | Aylestone Road Leicester LE2 7TR |
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| Coordinates | 52°37′27″N 1°07′59″W / 52.62417°N 1.13306°WCoordinates: 52°37′27″N 1°07′59″W / 52.62417°N 1.13306°W |
| Owner | Leicester Tigers |
| Operator | Leicester Tigers |
| Capacity | 25,849 |
| Surface | Grass |
| Scoreboard | 2 |
| Construction | |
| Opened | 10 September 1892 |
| Expanded | 1920, 1995, 2009, 2015 |
| Tenants | |
| Leicester Tigers | |
Welford Road is a rugby union stadium in Leicester, England, and is the home ground for Leicester Tigers. The ground was opened on 10 September 1892 and is located between Aylestone Road and Welford Road on the southern edge of the city centre. The ground was developed in two main periods, either side of the First World War stands were built on both sides and then between 1995 and 2016 both ends were developed and the north side redeveloped. The stadium has a capacity of 25,849, making it the largest purpose-built club rugby union ground in England. It hosted five full England national team matches between 1902 and 1923, and staged a single match at each of the 1991 and 1999 Rugby World Cups.
In 1891 Leicester rented a ground in the north of the city, on the Belgrave Road where Roberts Road and Buller Road now stand, called the Belgrave Road Cycle and Cricket Ground, at the end of the 1890/91 season Leicester applied for a renewal of the lease but found the terms unacceptable. A committee was formed to find a suitable new ground and in December 1891 accepted the town corporation's offer of a 10-year lease on the ground between Aylestone Road and Welford Road, at the time this was the edge of the built up town. The lease was signed in March 1892 and £1,100 was spent leveling, draining and preparing the ground.
The ground was opened on 10 September 1892 when Leicester played the first game at the ground against a Leicestershire XV. The first stands accommodated 3,000 spectators and that season saw derby matches produce attendances up to 7,000 whilst 10,000 saw Leicester lose 12-0 to Coventry in the second round of the Midlands Counties Cup. The original club house built in 1909 was located on Aylestone Road, the ground was known as Welford Road rather than Aylestone Road as at this time the cricket club played on another sportsground on the Aylestone Road. The Members' & Crumbie Stands were built just before and just after the First World War respectively.
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