The 2024/25 season is well underway as Premier League and Championship teams go into the October international break. Ground redevelopment in English football is more prominent than ever, with 16 Premier League clubs looking at stadium expansion. This includes Manchester United, who are seriously considering building a new 100,000-seater stadium under their new minority owners, INEOS, led by Sir Jim Ratcliffe.
Whatever INEOS decide to do with United's stadium, Old Trafford currently has the biggest capacity in the top flight ahead of the likes of Tottenham Hotspur, Liverpool, and Manchester City. This article won't just focus on the elite clubs in English football, though, with the capacities for all 92 clubs across all four leagues covered.
There is no shortage of clubs with passionate fan bases who sell out their stadiums on a regular basis in the leagues below the Premier League. Notably, Sunderland and Leeds United both play in the Championship with 48,707 and 37,890 capacities, respectively. In September 2024, the San Francisco 49ers, who own the Whites, announced plans to increase Elland Road's capacity to 53,000.
A guide to the biggest stadiums in England
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Plans released by Leeds United would see Elland Road's capacity increase to 53,000 making it the seventh largest club stadium in the country.
It would also bring the ground to ‘UEFA Category 4 status, to be amongst the elite in European stadia'.#LUFC | #BBCFootball | #BBCEFL pic.twitter.com/x5UJwDrf0x
— BBC Sport West Yorkshire (@BBCWYS) September 23, 2024
Here is a complete guide to the biggest stadiums in England, from Old Trafford to St Andrew's.
Premier League Stadium Capacity
| Club name | Ground name | Capacity |
|---|---|---|
| Manchester United |
Old Trafford |
74,310 |
| Tottenham Hotspur |
Tottenham Hotspur Stadium |
62,850 |
| West Ham United |
London Stadium |
62,500 |
| Liverpool |
Anfield |
61,276 |
| Arsenal |
Emirates Stadium |
60,704 |
| Manchester City |
Etihad Stadium |
52,900 |
| Newcastle United |
St James' Park |
52,258 |
| Aston Villa |
Villa Park |
42,918 |
| Chelsea |
Stamford Bridge |
40,173 |
| Everton |
Goodison Park |
39,414 |
| Southampton |
St Mary's Stadium |
32,384 |
| Leicester City |
King Power Stadium |
32,259 |
| Brighton |
American Express Stadium |
31,876 |
| Wolves |
Molineux |
31,750 |
| Nottingham Forest |
The City Ground |
30,404 |
| Ipswich Town |
Portman Road |
29,813 |
| Crystal Palace |
Selhurst Park |
25,194 |
| Fulham |
Craven Cottage |
24,500 |
| Brentford |
Brentford Community Stadium |
17,250 |
| Bournemouth |
Vitality Stadium |
11,307 |
Championship Stadium Capacity
| Club name | Ground name | Capacity |
|---|---|---|
| Sunderland |
Stadium of Light |
48,707 |
| Sheffield Wednesday |
Hillsborough |
39,859 |
| Leeds United |
Elland Road |
37,890 |
| Middlesbrough |
The Riverside Stadium |
33,746 |
| Derby County |
Pride Park |
33,597 |
| Cardiff City |
Cardiff City Stadium |
33,280 |
| Sheffield United |
Bramall Lane |
32,702 |
| Coventry City |
Coventry Building Society Arena |
32,609 |
| Blackburn Rovers |
Ewood Park |
31,367 |
| Stoke City |
Bet365 Stadium |
30,089 |
| Norwich City |
Carrow Road |
27,244 |
| Bristol City |
Ashton Gate |
27,000 |
| West Brom |
Hawthorns |
26,850 |
| Hull City |
MKM Stadium |
25,586 |
| Preston North End |
Deepdale |
23,408 |
| Burnley |
Turf Moor |
21,994 |
| Watford |
Vicarage Road |
21,557 |
| Swansea |
Swansea.com Stadium |
21,088 |
| Portsmouth |
Fratton Park |
20,688 |
| Millwall |
The Den |
20,146 |
| QPR |
Loftus Road |
18.360 |
| Plymouth |
Home Park |
18,173 |
| Oxford United |
Kassam Stadium |
12,500 |
| Luton Town |
Kenilworth Road |
11,850 |
League One Stadium Capacity
| Club name | Ground name | Capacity |
|---|---|---|
| Birmingham City |
St Andrew's |
29,409 |
| Bolton Wanderers |
Toughsheet Community Stadium |
28,723 |
| Charlton Athletic |
The Valley |
26,875 |
| Wigan Athletic |
Brick Community Stadium |
25,133 |
| Huddersfield Town |
John Smith's Stadium |
24,500 |
| Reading |
Select Car Leasing Stadium |
24,161 |
| Barnsley |
Oakwell |
24,009 |
| Blackpool |
Bloomfield Road |
16,220 |
| Peterborough |
Weston Homes Stadium |
15,314 |
| Wrexham |
Racecourse Ground |
12,600 |
| Rotherham |
New York Stadium |
12,000 |
| Bristol Rovers |
Memorial Stadium |
12,000 |
| Stockport County |
Edgeley Park |
10,832 |
| Wycombe Wanderers |
Adams Park |
10,137 |
| Lincoln |
LNER Stadium |
10,130 |
| Shrewsbury Town |
Montgomery Waters Meadow |
9,875 |
| Leyton Orient |
Gaughan Group Stadium |
9,271 |
| Mansfield |
One Call Stadium |
9,186 |
| Exeter |
St James Park |
8,830 |
| Cambridge United |
Cledara Abbey Stadium |
8,127 |
| Northampton Town |
Sixfields Stadium |
7,798 |
| Burton |
Pirelli Stadium |
6,912 |
| Stevenage |
The Lamex Stadium |
6,722 |
| Crawley Town |
Broadfield Stadium |
6,134 |
League Two Stadium Capacity
| Club name | Ground name | Capacity |
|---|---|---|
| MK Dons |
Stadium MK |
30,500 |
| Bradford City |
Northern Commercials Stadium |
25,136 |
| Notts County |
Meadow Lane |
21,388 |
| Port Vale |
Vale Park |
18,947 |
| Carlisle |
Brunton Park |
18,202 |
| Tranmere Rovers |
Prenton Park |
16,789 |
| Swindon |
County Ground |
15,728 |
| Doncaster Rovers |
Keepmoat Stadium |
15,231 |
| Gillingham |
Priestfield Stadium |
11,582 |
| Walsall |
Banks Stadium |
11,300 |
| Chesterfield |
SMH Group Stadium |
10,504 |
| Crewe |
Mornflake Stadium |
10,153 |
| Colchester United |
JobServe Community Stadium |
10,105 |
| Grimsby Town |
Blundell Park |
9,546 |
| AFC Wimbledon |
Plough Lane |
9,215 |
| Newport County |
Rodney Parade |
7,850 |
| Cheltenham Town |
Completely-Suzuki Stadium |
7,066 |
| Morecambe |
Mazuma Stadium |
6,476 |
| Accrington Stanley |
The Wham Stadium |
5,450 |
| Fleetwood Town |
Highbury Stadium |
5,327 |
| Salford City |
The Peninsula Stadium |
5,108 |
| Bromley |
H2T Group Stadium |
5,000 |
| Harrogate Town |
The EnviroVent Stadium |
5,000 |
| Barrow |
Holker Street |
2,829 |
Future stadiums
There are a whole host of stadiums that are either currently in construction or will be in the future and will one day be included in the tables above.
Likely the closest to completion is Everton's new stadium at Bramley-Moore Dock which will become the Toffees' new home ahead of the 2025/26 campaign. The ground will have a capacity of 52,888 – an increase of approximately 13,000 on Goodison Park – making it a larger venue than St James' Park.
An Old Trafford redevelopment has also been heavily reported in recent months and were that to happen, Manchester United's Theatre of Dreams would likely be increased to a 100,000-seater venue. It is a project that would see the ground become the largest stadium in England were it to go ahead.
Other notable stadiums that will be expanded in the future are:
- Stamford Bridge – Chelsea
- Elland Road – Leeds United
- Power Court Stadium – Luton Town
Stadiums by capacity – a brief overview
As you can see from the list of football grounds and their various leagues of English football, there is a rather large range concerning the number of spectators that can fit into different stadiums. Then again, this is part and parcel of the very nature of professional football in this country.
Naturally, the major Premier League stadiums have the necessary financial backing to build such impressive structures, whereas the stadiums that are all the way down in League 2 tend to have a more intimate setting.
The stadium that boasts the largest capacity in English football right now is Old Trafford, home of Manchester United. This stadium just absolutely erupts during competitive home games, making it a true ‘Theatre of Dreams’ given the 74,000+ capacity.
At the other end of the spectrum, the smallest stadium by capacity is Holker Street, home of Barrow, with just a capacity of under 3,000. And as you might imagine, the atmosphere is somewhat less explosive at this ground compared to United’s.
These discrepancies in stadium sizes, atmospheres, and general capacity are what bring true spice to the game we all know and love in this country, however, so we wouldn’t change it for anything! On that note, check out some other cool facts about some of the stadiums listed on this page right here.
Other fun facts relating to these football grounds
Largest-ever attendance in English football
Our first fun fact relating to some of the stadiums on this list is that the largest attendance ever recorded for an English football game is when Tottenham Hotspur played against Bayern Leverkusen in the 2006 Champions League group stage. On this rather chilly winter evening at Wembley Stadium, this game saw 85,512 fans come through the doors – a record that stands to this day.
Smallest-ever attendance in English football
From more than 85,000 fans to less than 15 now, the lowest recorded attendance in English football came all the way back in 1921. Of course, this was way before we witnessed some of the stadiums we see today, but according to official reports, just 13 spectators turned up to watch Leicester City take on Stockport County.
Thankfully, there was no video footage of the events back then, as we’d imagine that this memory could be rather depressing for these two clubs!
Capacity requirements
We must admit, this is something that we didn’t even learn until recently! Did you know, once a team actually participates in League 2, which is the first league in which a team is classed as ‘professional’, there is actually a stipulated stadium capacity that has to be met? We know – we couldn’t believe it either!
The governing body stipulates that a League 2 stadium must have a minimum capacity of 4,000 to meet the conditions of a professional team. Who knows what will happen if the grounds don't meet this stipulation? We’d hate to think!