Molineux Stadium facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Molineux Stadium

Molineux Stadium in 2022
Full name	Molineux Stadium
Location	Waterloo Road, Wolverhampton
Coordinates	52°35′25″N 2°07′49″W / 52.59028°N 2.13028°W / 52.59028; -2.13028
Public transit	Wolverhampton St. George's (0.6 mi) Wolverhampton (0.7 mi)
Owner	Wolverhampton Wanderers
Operator	Wolverhampton Wanderers
Capacity	31,750
Field size	105 by 68 metres (115 by 74 yd)
Surface	Desso GrassMaster
Construction
Built	1889
Opened	1889
Renovated	1978–1979; 1991–1993; 2011–2012
Architect	Current design - Alan Cotterell Partnership Redevelopment - AFL
Main contractors	Current design - Alfred McAlpine Redevelopment - Buckingham Group
Tenants
Wolverhampton Wanderers (1889–present)

The Billy Wright statue outside Molineux

Molineux Stadium is a famous football stadium in Wolverhampton, England. It has been the home of Premier League team Wolverhampton Wanderers (often called Wolves) since 1889. This stadium was one of the first built just for a Football League club. It also had some of the first floodlights in Britain. Molineux hosted early European club games in the 1950s.

In the early 1990s, Molineux was one of England's biggest and most modern stadiums after a big renovation. It has hosted games for the England national team and the England under-21 team. It also hosted the first UEFA Cup Final in 1972.

Today, Molineux is an all-seater stadium with space for 31,750 fans. In the past, when fans could stand, it held many more people. The record attendance was 61,315! There were plans in 2010 to make the stadium even bigger, aiming for 38,000 seats. The first part of this plan, the Stan Cullis Stand, was finished in 2012. Other parts of the plan were put on hold to focus on the club's youth academy. There are still ideas for the future to make the stadium hold up to 50,000 people.

Exploring Molineux Stadium

The stadium is close to Wolverhampton city centre. It stands out because it's a large building in an area with mostly smaller ones.

The Four Main Stands

Molineux Stadium has four main sections, called stands:

• The Steve Bull Stand: This stand used to be called the John Ireland Stand.
• The Sir Jack Hayward Stand: This stand was known as the Jack Harris Stand or 'The South Bank'. It has a special area where fans can stand safely.
• The Stan Cullis Stand: This is the newest part of the stadium, rebuilt recently.
• The Billy Wright Stand: This stand holds the team's changing rooms, media areas, and a special section for families.

The stadium can seat about 31,500 people. With some temporary seats, the official capacity is currently 32,050. The stadium was rebuilt in the early 1990s. This was to make sure all fans had a seat, following new safety rules for British football stadiums.

Record Crowds and Big Games

Before seating rules, over 60,000 fans could watch games. The biggest crowd ever was 61,315. This was for a game against Liverpool in 1939. In the 1940s and 1950s, over 40,000 fans often came to games. This was when the Wolves team was very successful.

Molineux has hosted six games for the England national team. The first was a 6–1 win against Ireland in 1891. England also played against Wales and Denmark here. In 2022, England played Italy and Hungary at Molineux. The stadium has also hosted four England under-21 games.

Molineux has also been a concert venue. In 2003, the band Bon Jovi played there for 34,000 people.

The outside of Molineux Stadium

Stadium Changes Over Time

Before 2011, the stadium held 29,400 people. Then, the Stan Cullis Stand was taken down for rebuilding. This temporarily lowered the capacity. The new lower part of the Stan Cullis Stand opened in 2011, adding 4,000 seats. The upper part was finished in 2012, bringing the total capacity to 31,700. The club decided to delay rebuilding the Steve Bull Stand.

Molineux Stadium's History

How It All Started

The name Molineux comes from Benjamin Molineux. He was a local businessman who bought the land in 1744. He built Molineux House there, which later became a hotel. In 1860, the land became a public park called Molineux Grounds. It had an ice rink, a cycling track, a boating lake, and a football area.

In 1889, a brewery bought the grounds. They rented it to Wolverhampton Wanderers. Wolves had played at another ground before this. After some work, Molineux became the first stadium used only by a football team. The first league game there was on September 7, 1889. Wolves won 2–0 against Notts County, with 4,000 fans watching.

Wolves bought the stadium in 1923. They then built a large new stand on the Waterloo Road side. In the 1930s, they added another stand and a roof to the South Bank. This gave Molineux its four main stands for the next 50 years.

In 1953, Wolves were one of the first British clubs to install floodlights. This cost about £10,000. The first game under floodlights was on September 30, 1953. Wolves beat South Africa 3–1. The floodlights allowed Molineux to host exciting midweek games against teams from all over the world. These games were very important before big international club competitions started. The BBC even showed some of them on TV. Newer, taller floodlights were added in 1957.

Changes and Challenges

In 1958, there were plans to rebuild Molineux to hold 70,000 people. But these plans were not approved. For 20 years, the stadium stayed mostly the same.

In 1979, a new stand, the John Ireland Stand, was built. It had 9,348 seats and executive boxes. This was meant to be the first step in a full stadium rebuild. The idea was to have a 40,000-capacity stadium by 1984. However, this was the only part of that plan that happened.

The John Ireland Stand cost a lot of money, about £2.5 million. This put Wolves into serious debt. The club almost went out of business in 1982.

Standing areas in 1991

By 1986, Wolves were in a lower league. Only the John Ireland Stand and the South Bank standing area were still in use. New safety laws after a stadium fire meant other parts had to close. Also, fewer fans came to games because the team wasn't doing well.

The club's money problems meant the stadium fell into disrepair. In 1986, Wolverhampton Council bought the ground for £1.12 million. This helped save the club.

Molineux Today

In 1990, Sir Jack Hayward took over the club and stadium. This led to a big redevelopment. New rules after the Taylor Report said that all top-league stadiums had to have seats for everyone.

The North Bank standing area was taken down in 1991. The new Stan Cullis Stand opened in 1992. Then, the Waterloo Road Stand was demolished, and the new Billy Wright Stand opened in 1993. The final part of this rebuild was the new Jack Harris Stand, which opened in December 1993.

The newly rebuilt stadium officially opened on December 7, 1993. A friendly game was played against Honvéd, a Hungarian team.

The Steve Bull Stand at Molineux Stadium

In 2003, the John Ireland Stand was renamed the Steve Bull Stand. This was to honor the club's top goal scorer. Temporary seats were added in a corner, increasing the capacity to 29,400. These seats were removed in 2006 but added again in 2009. In 2015, the Jack Harris Stand was renamed the Sir Jack Hayward Stand. This honored the club's former owner.

The highest number of fans in the current stadium design was 31,746. This happened during a Premier League game against Liverpool in 2020.

Future Plans for Molineux

The Stan Cullis Stand being built in 2011

In 2010, plans were announced to make the stadium bigger and better. The city council approved these plans.

Phase 1 started in 2011. The old Stan Cullis Stand was taken down. A new two-tier stand was built in its place. This new stand has 7,798 seats, a large team store, a museum, a café, and special hospitality areas. This phase cost about £18 million and was finished in 2012. It brought the stadium's capacity to 31,700.

The Wolves team store

Phase 2 involves rebuilding the Steve Bull Stand. This work was planned to start in 2012 but has been postponed. The club decided to focus on improving its youth academy first. If this phase happens, the stadium capacity would reach about 36,000.

Phase 3 would add another level to the Sir Jack Hayward Stand. This would connect it to the new Steve Bull Stand. This could bring the capacity to around 38,000.

Phase 4 is a possible long-term plan. It would completely rebuild the Billy Wright Stand. This could make the stadium hold up to 50,000 people. However, this is just an idea for now, with no set timeline.

Fan Attendance at Molineux

This table shows how many fans, on average, came to Wolves' home games each season:

More to Explore

• Development of stadiums in English football
• Football in England
• Lists of stadiums
• Molineux Hotel

See also

In Spanish: Molineux Stadium para niños