Key information about St. Mary’s Stadium

St. Mary’s Stadium was built in 2001 and it now houses the Premier League side Southampton FC. The ground is located in the heart of the city of Southampton and has replaced the club’s iconic ‘The Dell’ stadium.

Its current capacity stands at 32,384 with a pitch that measures 105m by 68m. The surface is covered with natural grass, has undersoil heating installed and is not surrounded by a running track.

The record attendance at St. Mary’s Stadium was set 28 April 2012 when Southampton hosted Coventry City in front of 32,363 fans.

A history of St. Mary’s Stadium

For the vast majority of long-lasting Southampton fans, The Dell will always be synonymous with the Saints. However, even though they have been playing their football there for ages, the early ideas of a relocation were conceived in the 1980s when the club’s ambition began to outgrow their stadium.

The Dell’s location was quite cramped, which meant there was no efficient way to expand it and following the Taylor Report which converted it into an all-seater in 1993, the capacity dipped and the idea to vacate the ground springed up again.

Despite all the far from ideal circumstances, Southampton pushed on until they finally decided to move. However, there was another problem on the horizon and after a lengthy and unsuccessful attempt to construct and move into a new 25,000-seater stadium and leisure complex at Stoneham, the Saints were offered the chance to build a new stadium on the disused gas work site in the centre of the city, a bit less than two miles from old ground.

Construction started in December 1999 and St. Mary’s Stadium was finished by July 2001. The total cost was around £32m but it was worth it since Southampton finally had the stadium they wanted and more importantly, the stadium they needed. The club moved in in August and haven’t looked back ever since.

The first game to be played at the new ground was a clash against RCD Espanyol on 1 August 2001 and unfortunately for the hosts, the Spanish side would end up winning 4–3 on the night.

Interestingly, at first, the stadium was officially named 'The Friends Provident St. Mary's Stadium' but following fan pressure, the club opted against naming it purely after the sponsors and in 2006, the new sponsors, Flybe.com, decided against buying the naming rights, meaning the name reverted back to St. Mary’s Stadium.

The current highest attendance was actually set for the Football League Championship clash between Southampton and Coventry City on 28 April 2012 with 32,363 fans flocking in to watch the game. On the other hand, the lowest league record was Southampton’s bout against Sheffield United, which could only attract the crowd of 13,257 people.

Tickets to watch Southampton at St. Mary’s Stadium

All tickets to watch Southampton play at St. Mary’s Stadium can be found and purchased on the club’s official website. The price will vary depending on the age group and the location you choose to be seated in. The cheapest adult ticket costs £40.

The Saints also have season tickets and memberships on offer that can get you discounts throughout the season.

https://www.southamptonfc.com/ - Official website of Southampton FC

https://www.southamptonfc.com/season-tickets - Southampton FC Ticket Office