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Where do Chelsea academy play?

Chelsea are one of English football's biggest clubs and the west London Blues have brought numerous players through their academy over the years.

Players like Bobby Tambling, Graeme le Saux, Terry Venables, Jimmy Greaves, John Terry and, in more recent years, Mason Mount and Tammy Abraham have all worked their way up and into the first-team squad.

So, for fans wishing to see the next generation of young talent at the nine-time FA Youth Cup winners, where do Chelsea Academy play their matches? Well, while they do occasionally play games at the club's primary ground, Stamford Bridge, you will most likely see the youngsters in Chelsea jerseys playing at either Kingsmeadow or Cobham Training Centre.

Kingsmeadow: Home to Chelsea Academy and Chelsea Women

Kingsmeadow, Chelsea Women and Chelsea Academy stadium | Where do Chelsea Academy play?
Photo by Icon Sport

Home to Chelsea Women, Kingsmeadow is also the primary location for Chelsea's men's Under-21s side. Located in Kingston-upon-Thames in London, the 1989-built stadium has been the home for the club's women's side since 2017 and the Academy teams since 2020.

Kingsmeadow has a 4850-capacity, with 2265 seats and the rest standing. It used to be the home of AFC Wimbledon between 2002 until 2020, while Kingstonian FC played there from 1989 until 2017.

The highest-ever attendance recorded at the stadium was a match played between AFC Wimbledon and Accrington Stanley, which attracted 4870 spectators on 14 May 2016.

The highest attended match involving Chelsea there was a friendly played back in 1995, versus the ground's then-occupiers, Kingstonian, which saw 4582 fans attend.

How to get to Kingsmeadow – Chelsea Academy home stadium

The nearest railway station to Kingsmeadow is Norbiton, a 15-minute walk from the ground. South Western Railways run trains from London Waterloo to Norbiton, via Clapham Junction and Waterloo. The station is in London Zone 5.

The number 131 bus (Fairfield Bus Station to Tooting Broadway) stops directly outside Kingsmeadow Stadium, while the K5 will get you nearby, too.

Cobham Training Facility: Home to Chelsea U18s

Chelsea Academy play many of their games at the club's Cobham Training Ground
Photo by Icon Sport

Built in 2004 but not officially opened until 2007, the Cobham Training Facility is used by the Chelsea first team squad and is home for U18s fixtures.

It has also been used for other sporting events and by other teams. The Chinese Olympic Football team used it as their training base for the 2012 Summer Olympics, while a global U16s tournament known as the Cobham Cup is also hosted there. The Cobham Rugby Football Club also use the facility to train.

Chelsea's U18s play most of their league fixtures at the training ground, but FA Youth Cup fixtures will often be hosted at Kingsmeadow. In general, fans cannot attend games at Cobham Training Ground.


Philip O'Rourke

Philip O Rourke is a Dublin-based journalist and author of Forgotten Football Clubs, 50 Clubs Around the World. He appears on the Forgotten Football Clubs podcast and, in his spare time, travels around Europe to different football stadiums, trying to watch as many different clubs as he can.

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