Terraces Vanishing From English Football Grounds: Video

Many of us know that standing terraces are disappearing from English football grounds. Whether it’s new all-seater stands being built, or clubs moving to new grounds, terraces are becoming a thing of the past in England. To illustrate how the terraces are vanishing, watch the above video that begins in 1955 when the ‘new’ Roots Hall was built by Southend. And then continues showing how there were no more new stadiums for 33 years.

The past 20 years have seen a rampant change with nearly a third of all clubs in the English 92-club system relocating.

According to the video creators, “The most dramatic shift away from terracing occurred in 1994, which was the deadline set by the FA for all clubs in the top two divisions to become all-seater. This ruling was a reaction to the Hillsborough disaster of 1989, in which 96 fans were crushed to death in a standing area. There has been much debate about this disaster and its aftermath, but it widely accepted that poor crowd management was to blame rather than standing per se. Indeed, crushes have occurred in poorly managed all-seater grounds, while huge standing areas continue to be used safely to this day in countries like Germany.”

As a footnote, Cardiff this season moved into a brand-new all-seater stadium.