York Road is a football stadium in Maidenhead, Berkshire, England (0ne I played a while back when I could!) The home ground of Maidenhead United it is acknowledged by The FA and FIFA to be the oldest continuously-used senior association football ground in the world by the same club, having been home to the club since 1871. A blue plaque commemorating this is placed just inside the home turnstiles on the York Road side of the ground.
The ground was initially the home of Maidenhead Cricket Club and it was with their permission that, shortly after their foundation in 1870, the football club played their first match at York Road on 16 February 1871 against local club, Marlow. The Magpies have continued to play home matches here, without a break, to the present day.
The current capacity of the ground is 4,500 (550 seated) and holds an "A" grading. The club's record attendance is 7,989 for the 1936 FA Amateur Cup Final quarter-final against Southall. A further 2,000 spectators are estimated to have watched the match from the adjacent railway embankment. The ground record attendance was set on Easter Monday 1947 when 8,277 people paid total receipts of £494 to watch the Berks & Bucks Senior Cup Final between Slough Town and Wycombe Wanderers FC.
The ground facilitates fans in a mixture of covered all-seater stands, covered and uncovered traditional terraces and flat concrete by the side of the pitch. As well as the normal facilities for lower-league football, the ground hosts "Stripes Bar" which can be hired out for functions. The ground is located just a few minutes walk away from the town centre and from the local railway station.
Great Yarmouth Town Football Club is known affectionately as The Bloaters following the town's association with fishing. The club is affiliated to the Norfolk County FA and is currently a member of the Eastern Counties League, Division One North. They play at the Wellesley Recreation Ground, whose grandstand is believed to be the world's oldest football stand still in regular use, having been opened on 11 June 1892. The club's high point might be an attendance at the FA Cup First Rd proper in November 1953, when a crowd of 8,944 attended their 1-0 victory over Crystal Palace. Temporary grandstands were built out of stacked fish boxes. The next round saw a 5-2 defeat at Barrow, another coastal town, diagonally opposite on the map. Floodlights were erected in October 1983 and opened with a game v locals, Ipswich Town. In 1982-3 The Bloaters got to the semi-final of the FA Vase. Mel Blyth was a past player, whom you may know?
Sandygate at Hallam FC, Sheffield is the oldest ground, first competitively played on Boxing Day 1860.https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/3994718670252035536/78560717086921139?hl=en-GB
I'm sure other grounds will crop up with claims to be old! e.g. The Oval that hosted the first international and first FA Cup FInal.
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