Ewood Park is a football stadium in the English town of Blackburn.
Indeed, it is the home of Blackburn Rovers Football Club. It’s one of the founder members of the Football League and Premier League. Rovers have played there since they moved from Leamington Road in the summer of 1890. The stadium opened in 1882 and is an all seater multi-sports facility with a capacity of 31,367. I
n fact, it comprises four sections: The Bryan Douglas Darwen End, Riverside Stand and Ronnie Clayton Blackburn End. Finally, the Jack Walker Stand, named after Blackburn industrialist and club supporter, Jack Walker
Football was played at Ewood Park from as early as 1881 when it was known as Ewood Bridge. Back then, though, it was little more than a field and didn’t get officially opened as Ewood Park until 1882. When Blackburn Rovers moved there in 1890 they signed a ten year lease of the land for an annual rent of £60. They bought the freehold for £2500 in 1893 but almost immediately suffered disaster when part of a stand collapsed when Everton were visiting and the fixture attracted a crowd of over 20,000.
When Jack Walker sold Walkersteel to British Steel for £330 million in 1989 he decided he wanted to invest in a football club. Blackburn Rovers was the club for him. He immediately went about completely changing the fortunes of the Lancashire side. He started with the overhaul of their crumbling old stadium. In June of 1992 the local council approved plans for a new 31,000 seat development. Finally, in November of 1995 it was officially opened.
