VICTORIA GROUND (STOKE)
Victoria Ground (Stoke) was a League ground for 110 seasons
from 7 September 1888 to 30 June 1997
The 3rd ground to be used for a League game
Current capacity: 25,000
Opened: 1883 • Closed: 1997
GROUND HISTORY
adapted from "The Ultimate Directory of English & Scottish Football League Grounds"
Stoke FC moved to the Victoria Ground, in a field owned by the local church, from the Athletic Ground in 1883. The pitch was sited within a long oval running track and the facilities included a 1,000 seat stand on the west side and banking around the remainder of the ground. Improvements carried out prior to WWI included the building of a pavilion on the west side and a cover for standing spectators on the east side.
Following the end of WWI a new 2,000 seat main stand was constructed on the west side and, in 1930, the running track was dispensed with to allow for the extension of banking at the south end. This was subsequently covered and a 5,000 seat stand (with curved corners) completed on the east side in 1936. At the same time the terracing was improved with the installation of concrete slabs and the pitch was moved further south allowing for the expansion of terracing at the north end.
Following the end of WWI a new 2,000 seat main stand was constructed on the west side and, in 1930, the running track was dispensed with to allow for the extension of banking at the south end. This was subsequently covered and a 5,000 seat stand (with curved corners) completed on the east side in 1936. At the same time the terracing was improved with the installation of concrete slabs and the pitch was moved further south allowing for the expansion of terracing at the north end.
In 1963 a new main stand was opened on the west side, a new roof installed on the east side following a gale in 1976 and the last major alteration before Stoke City vacated the ground and moved to the Britannia Stadium in 1997 was the building of a two-tier stand at the north end. The stands were subsequently demolished and the site was still awaiting redevelopment as a housing estate in 2008.