The City Ground has been the home of Nottingham Forest since it opened in 1898. The club had played at several different grounds since their formation in 1865 including Trent Bridge but moved to the City Ground after the city council ended Forest’s lease of the Town Ground and instead offered them a site on the south side of the River Trent. The new ground was named in celebration of Nottingham’s newly-awarded city status and officially opened on the 3rd September 1898 with a First Division match between Nottingham Forest and Blackburn Rovers in front of a crowd of 15,000.
The ground held four FA Cup semi-finals between 1899 and 1905 as well as an international fixture between England and Wales in 1909. A new East Stand opened in 1957 which saw a new record attendance of 47,804 when Forest played Manchester United’s “Busby Babes” on the 12th October. Ten years later, the ground’s all-time record attendance of 49,946 was set in October 1967 when Forest beat Manchester United 3–1 in a First Division fixture.
A year later, a fire broke out in the Main Stand during a First Division match against Leeds United and despite a crowd of 31,126 there were no casualties. The Executive Stand was opened in August 1980 at a cost of £2.5 millions during the height of Forest’s success, when they won consecutive League Cups, the League title and consecutive European Cups under the guidance of Brian Clough. The stand was later renamed The Brian Clough Stand after his retirement.
The Trent End was most recently renovated in 1996 ahead of the ground hosting three group matches of UEFA Euro 96:
Turkey 0-1 Croatia
Portugal 1-0 Turkey
Croatia 0-3 Portugal
The City Ground also hosted the FA Women’s Cup Final for two successive years in 2007 and 2008 and two semi-finals of the European Rugby Champions Cup, both featuring Leicester Tigers in 2002 and 2016.
Tenants: Nottingham Forest (Premier League)
Opened: 1898
Capacity: 30,332
Address: City Ground, West Bridgford, Nottinghamshire, NG2 5FJ
Tickets at the City Ground
Nottinghamshire Forest Tickets
Nottingham Forest tickets are available to purchase online, at the ticket office at the stadium (opened Monday to Friday: 9am-5pm and Saturday: 9am-4pm) or over the phone on 0115 982 4388.
Ticket prices for the 2022/2023 season were split into three categories depending on the opposition:
Adults (24-64): £35-£40 (Cat A), £33-£38 (Cat B), £28-£34 (Cat C)
Seniors (65+): £30-£32 (Cat A), £27-£29 (Cat B), £23-£26 (Cat C)
Youths (18-23): £17-£19 (Cat A), £16-£18 (Cat B), £15-£17 (Cat C)
Juniors (12-17): £15-£16 (Cat A), £13-£14 (Cat B), £12-£13 (Cat C)
Kids (4-11): £8-£9 (Cat A), £7-£8 (Cat B), £6-£7 (Cat C)
City Ground Stadium Tours
As of May 2023, the club have stated: “Unfortunately, we’re not currently facilitating any stadium tours due to ongoing works in the stadium… we’ll communicate an update at https://www.nottinghamforest.co.uk/ once we are able to go back on sale with stadium tours, however currently we wouldn’t be able to discuss dates.”Â
Location & Travel to the City Ground
The City Ground is located in the town of West Bridgford, 2 miles south of the centre of Nottingham on the banks of the River Trent. The ground is just 270 metres away from Meadow Lane, home of Forest’s neighbouring club Notts County and the two grounds are the closest professional football stadiums in England.
Airport
East Midlands Airport is 13 miles to the south of the ground and serves many European destinations. From the airport, The Skylink bus service stops at County Hall, a short walk from the ground.
Thinking of flying? Search & book your flights through Skyscanner here.
Bus
A number of bus services stop close to the ground including the 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 10, 22 and 90.
Coach
Coaches currently run close to Station Street, next to Nottingham Train Station. Megabus offers cheap travel to Nottingham and offers over 10 routes from Barnstaple, Birmingham, Bristol, Cardiff, Exeter, Leeds, Leicester, London, Plymouth and Sheffield. You can search and book your tickets here.
Driving & Parking
From the North, exit the M1 at Junction 26 and follow the A6514 before reaching the A6011. From the South, exit the M1 at Junction 24 and follow the A453, following signs for the ground. There is no parking at the stadium but nearby options include Nottingham Rugby Club (NG2 5AA), County Hall (NG2 7QP), Cattle Market (NG2 3GY) and Victoria Embankment (NG2 2JY).
Train
Nottingham Train Station is approximately a 20 minute walk away and has services to Birmingham New Street, Cardiff Central, Derby, Leeds, Leicester, Liverpool Lime Street, London St Pancras, Manchester Piccadilly, Norwich, and Sheffield.
Thinking of catching a train to Nottingham? Search and book your journey through the Trainline here.
Tram
The Nottingham Express Transit has stops at Nottingham Train Station, Meadows Embankment and Queens Walk, all of which are about a 20 minute walk away.
Walk
Walking from Nottingham City Centre takes about 15-20 minutes, follow signposts for Trent Bridge Cricket Ground.
Hotels near the City Ground
Use TripAdvisor to find some great places to stay in Nottingham by clicking here.
Further Information & Events
Nottingham Forest Official Website
Last Updated on May 23, 2023 by Sports Tourist