Report - Odsal Stadium, Bradford - June 2020

[Pixels]

Exploring a stadium was a first for me - with this being a short drive from myself and @plod we decided it was worth a look. It made for a chilled out wander and it was nice to see the that it was free from any vandalism, it was evident that areas of the site are still being partially maintained. A bit of history of the stadium below.

The Bradford Northern Club; formed in 1907, had played a number of venues until the early 1920s, when they began to search for their own site. In 1933 they were given the opportunity to develop the former landfill tip (previously a quarry) into their home ground. Odsal Stadium was officially opened in 1934. The Stadium eventually closed in September 2019, mainly due to the unmanageable cost of rent and maintenance. Their last game was against Sheffield Eagles. Discussions have taken place about potential sites for a new-build stadium in Bradford.

 

[jtza]

Looked at this a while back, was at the end of the day and had little energy and we didn't feel like heading in. Nice to see it close up and from a different perspective. Nice report!

 

[mookster]

It's not 'really' abandoned, it's still being maintained and looked after because there are serious talks about having stock car & banger racing return to it after about two decades of absence.

 

[Old Git]

It's not 'really' abandoned, it's still being maintained and looked after because there are serious talks about having stock car & banger racing return to it after about two decades of absence.

Yes Mooks, and amen to that!

 

[MarkusCP87]

This is another that keeps popping up on my news feed, seems the tour bus is well on the way, I do agree with Mookster as well as I heard it was getting reopened but then covid 19 happened.

 

[Pixels]

It's not 'really' abandoned, it's still being maintained and looked after because there are serious talks about having stock car & banger racing return to it after about two decades of absence.

I saw some info about this, wasn't sure whether the plans were actually going ahead but that sounds pretty cool if they are!

 

[Calamity Jane]

Nice to see before it gets its reopening done. Would love to see it open

 

[mookster]

I saw some info about this, wasn't sure whether the plans were actually going ahead but that sounds pretty cool if they are!

I believe the plans are being put together by the former stock car promoter at Stoke Speedway and Belle Vue in Manchester as they were looking for a new venue, Bradford is the obvious choice as it used to run them in the past, it was one of the most highly regarded stadiums back then for action.