Stadium fit for previous champions. (Stamford Bridge (Chelsea FC))

Member Name: Dexter01

Product:	Stamford Bridge (Chelsea FC)
Date:	20/09/09 (172 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Cheap games in the FA Cup. Easy to get to.

Disadvantages: Busy after the game, alot of stairs in the upper tier.

Stamford Bridge, the home of Chelsea FC. I don't support Chelsea, but in recent years I have visited them on a fair few occassions. Mainly due to my dad supporting them and going with him and my nephew to keep the father-son bond alive.

We live in Kent and get the train to Victoria station. The first couple of times we went, we then got on the tube to Fulham Broadway. Upon leaving this station, the Bridge is literally just outside, so very convinient for transport to the stadium. On more recent trips, we have walked from Victoria. It takes around 30 minutes and is 3 different roads to get to it. You can't really miss the stadium, it is pretty big and opposing. From the front, it looks very modern. You are able to walk around the stadium completely. Outside, there are various restaurants, shops and hotels, plus the official Chelsea shop.

To get to your seats, it is very simple. On your ticket will be a gate number. You just walk around the stadium to find your gate number, it is very well signposted, so you can't miss it. It also tells you on your ticket what part of the stadium you are in and this also corresponds with the signposts to narrow your search down even further.

We always get seats in the Upper East stand. The reason for this being as it is quite family friendly, there are normally a few young children (my nephew is 8). Due to this, it is quite a subdued stand, unlike the Matthew Harding stand, which is for the die hard supporters. We have also found the seats here offer excellent views of the whole pitch and you can see clearly both big screens for any replys, scores of other games, etc.

There is a number of stairs to go up to get to this stand though, which can be a drawback to some. Directly at the bottom of the stairs to the actual seating area are toilets and to the right of these is a bar. Avoid this, as not only does it get very busy, it also is very expensive. There are plenty of stewards in all the stairwells and in certai parts of the stand to help direct you. It does amaze me that people can't find their seats.

The seating system is very very simple. You have a letter which corresponds to the row of your seat and then a number which corresponds to your seat. In all corridors between the seats, the letter is painted in bright yellow paint on the floor in alphabetical order. So A starts at the bottom of the area and as you work up, you go through the alphabet. The numbers are on the seats and go from left to right. A simple system and yet people still get confused.

Prices when I last visited were £48 for premiership and Champions League games (you get a flag by your seat at Champions League games for you to keep) and £25 for FA Cup games. In one season, we watched every home FA Cup game right up to and including the Semi Final, compared with around 2-3 Premiership and Champions League games.

I don't remember seeing any disabled access to the upper stand and don't know if there is a specific section for disabled supporters, so this may be worth checking out of you do have a disability.

You can have a great day out at this ground. It has fantastic atmosphere and I don't even mind watching Chelsea play some football here.

After the game, it is very very busy with people. Avoid the tube, as this is rammed. Sometimes, for certain games, they close Fulham Broadway so you can't get the tube after the game from here. Be wary of the big name clashes. After watchign Chelsea Spurs, we left as usual and walked back to Victoria, to find out there had been lots of fan trouble. Some games can be volatile between the fans. A easy way to guage this is by the amount of Police outside the stadium when you arrive. For example, at a Chelsea v Nottingham Forest game, there was around 20 officers outside, where as at the Spurs game, there was at least 100.

Summary: A great place to watch the art that is football.