Murrayfield Stadium
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Murrayfield Stadium | |
|---|---|
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| Location | Murrayfield, Edinburgh, Scotland |
| Opened | 1925 |
| Renovated | 1995 |
| Owner | Scottish Rugby Union |
| Surface | Underheated Grass |
| Construction cost | £50 million (reconstruction) |
| Architect | Connor Milligan |
| Tenants | |
| Scottish Rugby Union | |
| Seats | |
| 67,500 | |
Murrayfield Stadium (capacity 67,500) in Scotland's capital, Edinburgh, is the home of Scottish Rugby and a name known throughout the rugby world. Apart from rugby union, it sometimes hosts football games as well as American football. The stadium has also seen performances from major rock artists like David Bowie, U2 and the Red Hot Chili Peppers, and in July 2005 hosted the final Live 8 concert, Edinburgh 50,000 - The Final Push. Murrayfield is located in the west-end of Edinburgh, just off Corstorphine Road and close to the Edinburgh Zoo. Its nearest train station is Edinburgh Haymarket railway station, which is a 20-minute walk from the stadium.
Contents |
[edit] History
The SFU bought some land and built the first Murrayfield Stadium which was opened on 21 March 1925. Previously internationals had been played at Inverleith. The first visitors were England, who Scotland beat to win their first Five Nations Championship Grand Slam.
During the Second World War the ground at Murrayfield was offered to the nation and was taken over by the Royal Army Service Corps and used as a supply depot. During the war years the armed forces sports authorities managed to arrange two Scotland v. England services internationals each year, on a home-and-away basis. Scotland's home matches were played at Inverleith for the first two years with a return to Murrayfield in 1944 after that ground's derequisition.
The ground was home to what was believed to have been the largest ever attendance for a rugby union match, with 104,000 watching Scotland play Wales in 1975; many more (mostly Welsh) fans were not allowed into the stadium on safety grounds.
[edit] Present Time
Currently Murrayfield is used for most Scottish international rugby union matches, with all Scotland's Six Nations home games being played here. Beginning in 2007, Murrayfield will host the Scotland Sevens, the final event in the annual IRB Sevens World Series in rugby sevens. Murrayfield will also host select matches from the 2007 Rugby World Cup and was selected by nearby football club Heart of Midlothian F.C. as the venue for their European campaign in the 2006/2007 season, as Tynecastle does not meet the UEFA criteria for hosting European football.
[edit] Contact details
- The Scottish Rugby Union
- Murrayfield
- Edinburgh, Lothian EH12 5PJ
- Scotland
- Tel: (+44) 0131 346 5000
- Fax: (+44) 0131 346 5001
- E-mail: feedback@sru.org.uk
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
- Murrayfield on the SRU website
- Murrayfield Tours on the SRU website
- Murrayfield Hospitality on the SRU website
- Murrayfield Library on the SRU website
| Preceded by: Twickenham London |
Heineken Cup Final Venue 2004-05 |
Succeeded by: Millennium Stadium Cardiff |
| Six Nations rugby stadiums |
|---|
| England - Twickenham (London) | France - Stade de France (Saint-Denis) | Ireland - Croke Park (Dublin) |
| Italy - Stadio Flaminio (Rome) | Scotland - Murrayfield (Edinburgh) | Wales - Millennium Stadium (Cardiff) |
