Edgeley Park facts for kids
View from the Cheadle End in November 2021
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| Full name | Edgeley Park Stadium |
|---|---|
| Location | Hardcastle Road Stockport SK3 9DD |
| Coordinates | 53°23′59″N 2°9′59″W / 53.39972°N 2.16639°W |
| Capacity | 10,852 |
| Field size | 111 x 71 yards |
| Surface | SISGrass hybrid |
| Construction | |
| Built | 1891 |
| Opened | 1891 |
| Tenants | |
| Stockport RFC (1891–1903) Stockport County (1902–present) Sale Sharks (2003–2012) |
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Edgeley Park is a famous football stadium located in Edgeley, Stockport, England. It was first built in 1891 for a rugby league team called Stockport RFC. After that rugby club closed down in 1903, the Stockport County Football Club made Edgeley Park their home. Another rugby team, Sale Sharks Rugby Union Club, also played here from 2003 to 2012.
Today, Edgeley Park is a stadium where everyone has a seat. It can hold 10,900 fans. There are plans to make it even bigger, with space for about 18,000 people, and this project is set to begin in 2025.
In 2015, the local government, Stockport Council, bought the stadium for about £2 million. They then rented it back to the football club. This was done to make sure the stadium would not be torn down and replaced with other buildings.
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Edgeley Park's Story: A Look Back
The land where Edgeley Park stands was given to Stockport by the Sykes Family in the late 1800s. They wanted it used for sports. The stadium was built in 1891 for the rugby league team, Stockport RFC.
Stockport County FC moved to Edgeley Park in 1902. They needed a larger stadium after joining the Football League two years earlier. Stockport County's first game at Edgeley Park was a 1–1 draw against Gainsborough Trinity.
The Sykes family sold the stadium site to Stockport County in 1932 for £1,600.
Fires and Records
The Main Stand, which was made of wood, burned down in 1935. This fire sadly destroyed all of Stockport County's old records. The club had to rebuild a big part of the stadium. They also had to work hard to find information about past games and players.
The most people ever to watch a game at Edgeley Park was 27,833. This happened in 1950 when Liverpool played Stockport in the FA Cup.
The stadium got its first floodlights in 1956. They were used for a friendly match against Fortuna '54 Geleen from Holland.
England Team Visits
Edgeley Park once hosted two England international football team matches on the same day! On January 14, 1958, the England squad was supposed to play at Manchester City's Maine Road. But that pitch was frozen. Edgeley Park's pitch was fine, so the games were moved there.
In the first game, England drew 2–2 with a Manchester City team. In the second, the main England team beat the England Under-23 team 1–0.
Edgeley Park was also the place for the final of the 1978 World Lacrosse Championship.
Safety Upgrades
After a sad stadium fire in Bradford in 1985, work began to make Edgeley Park safer. All wooden parts and standing areas were removed. This made the stadium safer and followed new rules, but it also meant fewer people could attend. This work was finished by 2001. The Railway End was the last part to change from a standing area to seats. Fans often call the stadium "EP" for short.
Chester City played a home game against Manchester City at Edgeley Park in 1991. This was because of safety worries at their own temporary stadium.
Stockport County has made many changes to the stadium over the years. This includes building the Cheadle End, which opened in 1995.
Edgeley Park is very close to the River Mersey, only 924 meters away. It's even closer than some other famous stadiums like Liverpool's Anfield.
On July 31, 2015, Stockport Council became the owner of Edgeley Park. In February 2022, the club signed a 250-year lease for the stadium from the council.
In July 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, stadiums had to limit how many people could come. Edgeley Park's capacity was cut to 2,700. However, no fans were allowed in at the start of the 2020–21 season. Even so, the stadium still got new seats in the Railway End and new outside coverings on the Cheadle End.
Danny Bergara Stand: The Main Stand
The first big change at Edgeley Park was building the original Main Stand. It was a wooden structure with about 500 seats. This stand was completely destroyed by fire in 1935. A year later, the current stand was built using brick and steel. Many people see it as a classic, old-style football stand.
The roof of the Main Stand is held up by three steel poles at the front. These poles can block the view from some seats. This stand is about 75 yards long, covering the middle part of the pitch. Other club buildings are in the spaces at each end.
The Main Stand has 2,020 seats, with 405 of them being special executive seats. It also has changing rooms, club offices, restrooms, a boardroom, and bars for snacks. The team dugouts, where the coaches and players sit, are at the front of this stand.
On May 23, 2012, the club announced that the Main Stand would be renamed the Danny Bergara Stand. This was to honor their former manager, Danny Bergara.
Cheadle End: The Biggest Stand
The Cheadle End is behind the goal at the west side of the stadium. It is the largest and most modern stand at Edgeley Park. It's also one of the biggest stands outside of the Premier League.
The first Cheadle End, built in 1923, was a small, covered area for about 3,000 people. It was changed to all-seater in 1967, holding 1,100 people. This stand was taken down in 1985 after the Bradford City stadium fire. It was replaced with a small standing area. However, fans liked this traditional standing area for ten years. Netting was put in front of it in the late 1980s but removed after the Hillsborough disaster in 1989.
In 1995, Stockport County's chairman, Brendan Elwood, built a new stand. The new Cheadle End has two levels and can hold 5,044 fans. This makes it almost as big as the other three stands combined. It opened in 1995 with a friendly game against Manchester City. The letters "SCFC" are spelled out in white seats in the stand. From the 2025/26 season, the upper rows of the Cheadle End will have a special 'safe-standing' area.
This stand also has the Insider Suite, which is a place for meetings and parties. You can find the ticket office, restrooms, food areas, and the club shops here. The club shop is quite large.
Family Stand: The Pop Side
Across from the Main Stand, running along the entire length of the pitch, is the Family Stand. It's also known as the Pop Side, Barlow Stand, or Vernon Stand. This last name comes from a past sponsor, the Vernon Building Society.
The first structure on this side was a small, covered area for 1,400 people. In 1927, a much larger standing stand replaced it. During an FA Cup match against Liverpool in 1965, this stand held 16,000 people. In 1978, the back part of the stand was flattened, cutting its capacity in half. Finally, in late 1993, the Pop Side was changed to all-seater.
It now holds 2,411 people. Sometimes, if there are many visiting fans, this stand is used for them. There are restrooms and food areas behind the stand, next to a small reservoir. Like the Main Stand, its roof is held up by steel poles at the front.
This stand also has the media gantry. This is where club footage is recorded and where commentators describe the games.
Railway End: For Away Fans
The Railway End is at the east side of the stadium. It used to be an uncovered standing area that could hold up to 6,000 people. In 2001, it was the last part of Edgeley Park to get seats, making the whole stadium all-seated. It is usually where visiting team supporters sit. It's open to the weather and can hold about 1,366 people, making it the smallest stand. The stadium scoreboard is at the back of the Railway End.
In the late 1990s, after the Cheadle End was rebuilt, the club chairman, Brendan Elwood, had plans to rebuild the Railway End. This plan involved buying a building behind it and building a hotel that would look over the stadium. However, these plans never happened.
The seats in the Railway End were replaced in 2020. The word "COUNTY" is spelled out in white letters on the blue seats.
Future Plans for Edgeley Park
There are plans to increase the stadium's capacity from 10,841 to 20,000 seats. How quickly this happens depends on how well the club does in the league.
- Phase One: This phase will replace the East Stand (Railway End). It will change from an uncovered stand with 1,366 seats to a covered stand with about 4,500 seats. This new stand will be similar to the Cheadle End, but a bit smaller. Plans for construction to start in 2023 were delayed. The club applied in July 2025 for permission to add temporary roofing to the Railway End.
- Phase Two: This phase will rebuild the South Stand (Pop Side, Family Stand, or Barlow Stand). Its capacity will increase from 2,411 to 6,500 seats.
- Phase Three: This phase involves the Main Stand (Danny Bergara Stand). It would be made longer to cover the full length of the pitch. This would increase its capacity from just over 2,000 to about 3,500 seats.
Edgeley Park in Video Games
Edgeley Park appears in the video game Rugby Challenge 2 as one of five official English stadiums. It also shows up in EA Sports Rugby 08.
Edgeley Park was seen in the trailer for the football video game FIFA 22. However, it is not a stadium you can play in within the game itself.
