Forest Green New Stadium
Encyclopedia
The New Lawn is a football stadium and home to Forest Green Rovers F.C.
, a professional football club based in the town of Nailsworth
in Gloucestershire
. They play their football in the Conference National
and previously played their home matches at The Lawn Ground
. The name of the new stadium is yet to be confirmed, as the club are still looking for a stadium sponsor
. Rovers have played at the stadium since the start of the 2006-07 season.
The stadium was due to cost the club £3 million pounds and was approved in October 2003 by local council members, despite much local opposition due to the controversial siting of the development on school playing fields. Work started on the stadium on the 3 May 2005.
The new ground has facilities to house 230 car parking places, 3 coach parking places, a capacity of 5,147 and two seated stands - the main stand and another seated stand. The stadium also has a leisure club, gym, sauna, conference and meeting facilities as well as a pub and many other facilities. The stadium is used seven days a week for different events as part of the Five Valleys Conference & Leisure Centre.
The stadium was first used in a pre season friendly against Swindon Town in July 2006 and was officially opened in September 2006 when the England C team played a friendly fixture against Forest Green. The largest attendance so far at The New Lawn was in a FA Cup
third round game against Derby County
in January 2009 when 4836 watched Forest Green narrowly lose 3-4.
For the 2007-08 season Gloucester City shared the ground due to serious flooding at their home ground but have since moved to Cheltenham Town ,via a spell at Cirencester Town.
In April 2009 The New Lawn hosted the Conference League Cup
final between Forest Green and AFC Telford United in which Telford won the game 0-3 on penalty kicks following the 90 minutes finishing goalless. The match was shown live on Setanta Sports
.In December 2009 the ground was selected as part of the city of Bristol's 2018 FIFA World Cup
bid to act as a training ground facilitiy.
In June 2011 work began on the pitch at the stadium to make it the first organic football pitch in the world.
Forest Green Rovers F.C.
Forest Green Rovers Football Club is an English football club based in Nailsworth, Gloucestershire, currently the longest-serving members of the Conference National. The club is affiliated to the Gloucestershire County FA.-Early years:...
, a professional football club based in the town of Nailsworth
Nailsworth
Nailsworth is a town in Gloucestershire, England, lying in one of the Stroud Valleys in the Cotswolds. It has a population of around 6,600 people and lies on the A46 road....
in Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn, and the entire Forest of Dean....
. They play their football in the Conference National
Conference National
Conference National is the top division of the Football Conference in England. It is the highest level of the National League System and fifth highest of the overall English football league system...
and previously played their home matches at The Lawn Ground
The Lawn Ground
The Lawn Ground is located in Nailsworth, Gloucestershire, England, and was, from 1890 to 2006, home to the English football club, Forest Green Rovers who currently play in the Conference National...
. The name of the new stadium is yet to be confirmed, as the club are still looking for a stadium sponsor
Naming rights
In the private sector, naming rights are a financial transaction whereby a corporation or other entity purchases the right to name a facility, typically for a defined period of time. For properties like a multi-purpose arena, performing arts venue or an athletic field, the term ranges from three...
. Rovers have played at the stadium since the start of the 2006-07 season.
The stadium was due to cost the club £3 million pounds and was approved in October 2003 by local council members, despite much local opposition due to the controversial siting of the development on school playing fields. Work started on the stadium on the 3 May 2005.
The new ground has facilities to house 230 car parking places, 3 coach parking places, a capacity of 5,147 and two seated stands - the main stand and another seated stand. The stadium also has a leisure club, gym, sauna, conference and meeting facilities as well as a pub and many other facilities. The stadium is used seven days a week for different events as part of the Five Valleys Conference & Leisure Centre.
The stadium was first used in a pre season friendly against Swindon Town in July 2006 and was officially opened in September 2006 when the England C team played a friendly fixture against Forest Green. The largest attendance so far at The New Lawn was in a FA Cup
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, commonly known as the FA Cup, is a knockout cup competition in English football and is the oldest association football competition in the world. The "FA Cup" is run by and named after The Football Association and usually refers to the English men's...
third round game against Derby County
Derby County F.C.
Derby County Football Club is an English football based in Derby. the club play in the Football League Championship and is notable as being one of the twelve founder members of the Football League in 1888 and is, therefore, one of only ten clubs to have competed in every season of the English...
in January 2009 when 4836 watched Forest Green narrowly lose 3-4.
For the 2007-08 season Gloucester City shared the ground due to serious flooding at their home ground but have since moved to Cheltenham Town ,via a spell at Cirencester Town.
In April 2009 The New Lawn hosted the Conference League Cup
Conference League Cup
The Conference League Cup was an English football competition open to clubs playing in levels 5 or 6 of the English football league system , which covers the three Football Conference divisions.The Conference League Cup was formed...
final between Forest Green and AFC Telford United in which Telford won the game 0-3 on penalty kicks following the 90 minutes finishing goalless. The match was shown live on Setanta Sports
Setanta Sports
Setanta Sports is an international sports broadcaster based in Dublin, Ireland. Setanta Sports was formed in 1990 to facilitate the broadcasting of Irish sporting events...
.In December 2009 the ground was selected as part of the city of Bristol's 2018 FIFA World Cup
FIFA World Cup
The FIFA World Cup, often simply the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of Fédération Internationale de Football Association , the sport's global governing body...
bid to act as a training ground facilitiy.
In June 2011 work began on the pitch at the stadium to make it the first organic football pitch in the world.