This is an interesting cutting from 1935 talking about the possibility of increasing Maine Road to cope with the huge crowds that wanted to watch Manchester City play. It may seem crazy today but wasn’t such an odd idea in the 1930s. You can find out more on the story here:
Category Archives: Maine Road
Record Average Crowds
I’ve not done one of these for a while but I know they always prompt a bit of debate, so here goes… a feature on Manchester City FC attendances. It is a fact that the Blues have, generation after generation, been one of the English game’s top attractions. Like all – and I do mean all – English clubs there have been some average attendance lows over the years, but when the entire history of Manchester City is reviewed and the club’s average figures are compared with the national average it is clear that the Blues have consistently been one of football’s most attractive draws. Take a look at the following:
- Since the beginning of the Football League in 1888 only nine sides have topped the table for average attendances. In chronological order of their first appearance at the top of the average table they are: Everton (1888-9), Villa (1898-99), Newcastle (1904-05), Chelsea (1907-08), Tottenham (1909-10), City (1910-11), Liverpool (1922-23), Arsenal (1929-30), & Manchester United (1956-57)
- As early as 1895-96 City were the third best supported side in the entire League despite being a Second Division side. Only First Division sides Everton & Aston Villa could better the Blues. Modern day giants Arsenal were 10th; Liverpool were 19th; United were 21st and Chelsea had yet to exist.
- In 1900-01 City were the 2nd best supported side in the entire League with only 400 people separating Villa (1st) and City
- The 1910-11 season saw Manchester’s Blues top the attendance charts for the first time. City’s average was 26,000 and was the 8th highest average of all time at that point (all clubs, all seasons).
- Regularly amongst the best supported sides throughout the inter war period, City’s average exceeded 37,000 for the first time in 1927-28 when the Blues established a record average crowd for the Second Division. This was also the entire League’s highest.
- In 1947-48 City’s average crowd exceeded 42,000 for the first time. Prior to that season only Chelsea (1919-20 & 1946-7), Arsenal (1934-5, 1936-7, 1937-8, & 1946-7) , Newcastle (1946-7), Liverpool (1946-7), United (1946-7), and Wolves (1946-7) had exceeded that figure.
- From 1975 to relegation in 1983 City were always one of the top 4 best supported sides, usually third behind United and Liverpool.
- Since the 1980s whenever City have played outside of the top division, they have tended to be the best supported side in that division.
- Since moving to their current home in 2003, the increased capacity has allowed City to re-establish itself as one of best supported clubs again. Maine Road’s capacity from 1994 onwards was extremely low compared to the club’s entire history and prevented the Blues from staging games in front of attendances of approximateley 35,000 upwards.
In general many people believe success increases support, and while that is undoubtedly true to some extent, for City it is often periods of adversity that prove the loyalty of the Club’s fans. It is highly significant, for example, that the first time City were the best supported side in the entire League (1910-11) Manchester United (6th best supported side) won the League title for the second time in 3 seasons.
Similarly, in 1925-26 when City were the best supported side in Division One and had established a new record average, the Blues were actually relegated. This coupled with significant poverty and hardship in Manchester at the time should have reduced support but loyalty increased! In my book “Manchester A Football History” I explore the relationship between attendances and Manchester’s major sides and it is fair to say that City fans can feel immensely proud of their loyalty throughout the history of the game. Something that cannot be said by all of the League’s biggest names.
In fact, it is worth highlighting that City have never been the worst supported side in their division but, of today’s so-called giants, Arsenal (1912-13 – average = 9,100) and Manchester United (1930-31 – average = 11,685) have. City’s worst average of the Twentieth Century came in the desperate 1964-65 season and was 14,753 (half the average of 1960-61 and a 3rd of the 1957-8 figure). However it is significant that for every League season City’s average has always been above the divisional average and, apart from 17 seasons, has always been in the top 11 nationally. Again, few of today’s giants can’t say that – United’s 20th Century low stands at 4,650 and Chelsea averaged 15,731 as recently as 1988-89. In fact City’s lowest League attendance is more than double United’s lowest League attendance at Old Trafford (United have several crowds of less than 4,000 at Old Trafford, including top flight games; City’s lowest in the League was a little over 8000 in the second tier).
For fans average attendances are often used as an indicator of size of club and so a number of people over the years have tried to produce a definitive ‘all-time’ attendance table. Several years ago analysis by a member of the Association of Football Statisticians claimed that if stadium capacity was not an issue for any club City would be the fourth biggest side in terms of attendance. That analysis compared postwar attendance detail with performance on the pitch.
In 2002 writer Brian Tabner calculated an all-time attendance table based on each club’s average attendance position during seasons 1925-2002. His top ten were: Arsenal, Liverpool, United, Everton, Tottenham, Newcastle, City, Chelsea, Villa and Sunderland. Since 2002 several clubs have increased their capacities of course and this will have a positive impact on each club’s standing in a more up to date analysis.
Figures can be manipulated in many different ways, but City should feel proud that they have many attendance firsts that can never be matched by today’s perceived biggest clubs.
The Seasons City Have Topped the Divisional Charts
The following figures show the seasons when City were the best supported side in their division and the Club’s highest individual crowd that season. Those crowds marked in italics were also the highest individual crowds for the entire division that season (crowds pre-1925 are inconsistently recorded and so have not been highlighted). It is fair to say that when an average crowd is within 4,000 of the highest then the stadium is likely to have been full for the majority of games with the size of away support varying.
Average Season Highest Crowd
10,000 1895-96 30,000 (Liverpool)
10,000 1898-99 25,000 (N. Heath)
16,000 1902-03 30,000 (United)
18,275 1909-10 40,000 (Oldham)
26,000 1910-11 40,000 (Liverpool)
21,000 1914-15 40,000 (Oldham)
32,000 1925-26 62,994 (United)
30,848 1926-27 49,384 (Bradford C)
37,468 1927-28 59,500 (Preston)
31,715 1928-29 61,007 (United)
35,016 1950-51 45,842 (Hull)
27,739 1965-66 47,171 (Huddersfield)
24,220 1984-85 47,285 (Charlton)
23,500 1988-89 40,070 (Chelsea)
26,753 1996-97 30,729 (Oldham)
28,273 1998-99 32,471 (York)
32,001 1999-00 33,027 (Blackburn)
33,059 2001-02 34,657 (Portsmouth)
With the increase in capacity at the Etihad coming this year it will be interesting to see how attendances develop. No doubt I’ll post more on this as the season progresses. Undoubtedly City will establish a new record average attendance in 2026-27.
Maine Road’s Early Football History
Years before Manchester City created the Maine Road stadium and housing filled all sides of the street a field on the road was used for football and other sporting activity. The area was quite rural in the 1860s and 1870s but gradually housing and industry swamped the area. Maine Road itself was originally called Dog Kennel Lane and it used to continue past its current end point with a bend in the road changing its direction south towards the area of Hough End (see below for map etc.).
I’ve talked about Dog Kennel Lane a lot over the years and include its story and why the name of the street changed in Farewell To Maine Road and elsewhere on this site. Here’s an early mention of Dog Kennel Lane in relation to football. Manchester Association were the city’s prominent team in the mid 1870s and early 1880s. They promoted the game extensively and subscribers can read their story here:
And here:
I explain a lot more about them in The Emergence of Footballing Cultures: Manchester 1840-1919.
The brief newspaper cutting from 1882 mentions their Dog Kennel Lane ground. On the following I show where Maine Road was later built but the Manchester ground was probably further up the road/lane towards what became Great Western Street.
If you’d like to read more on the history of Maine Road, take a look at Farewell To Maine Road, which can be downloaded from this page:
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60,332: The Etihad’s Highest
Yesterday Manchester City’s final home game of the season saw the Etihad stage its record crowd for football (any sport actually). It was also City’s highest home attendance for 54 years. The attendance was 60,332 and next year the capacity will increase again as some hospitality areas will then open. The game was also the final emotional match for manager Pep Guardiola, Bernardo Silva and John Stones.
I posted the following the other day, but here is the last home crowd of 60,000+ City attracted at Maine Road (ignoring the Charlton 1985 promotion match which many think was around that figure). There’s also a little bit of history of capacities at City.
The last 60,000+ crowd was for the Manchester Derby on 6/11/1971 and was 63,326. These images are from that game (lots changed since then – the MCFC badge has been redesigned 3 times; Brian Kidd became a Blue, then a Red coach then a Blue coach)
The last 60,000+ home cup attendance was 60,844 v Newcastle on 29/1/1969.
For those wondering about home attendances over 75,000, the last one of those was 76,129 for City ve Everton in the FA Cup on 3/3/1956.
For the first 49 years of its existence the capacity of Maine Road was over 60,000, with the record attendance at the old place being 84,569 (see the story of this elsewhere on this site). Stadium developments, alongside safety changes and legislation, reduced the capacity from that high to about 63,000 by 1967. The Ibrox disaster of 1971 caused a reconsideration of stadium safety and a further reduction and City took the decision to seat the one year old North Stand. That meant the capacity from 1972 was approximately 52,600 (there was an attendance of over 54,000 in 1972-73 which I’ll explain about another day based on an interview – and admission – by the then club secretary Bernard Halford!).
The capacity of Maine Road (based on official records and announcements) over the years is:
1923 – 84,000
1931 – 86,000
1935 – 88,000
1946 – 84,000
1953 – 76,500
1957 – 77,000
1963 – 64,000
1972 – 52,600
1989 – 48,500
1992 – 39,359
1994 – 19,150 (first game of the season; increased gradually throughout the season)
1995 – 31,458
1997 – 32,147
1999 – 34,026
2000 – 34,421
2002 – 35,150
You can read more about Maine Road’s record crowd here:
And watch Maine Road’s opening game in 1923 here:
Highest Attendance For Over Fifty Years
This weekend’s final Manchester City home game of the season will see the Etihad stage its record crowd for football (any sport actually) and the club stage its highest home attendance for over fifty years. The new capacity is expected to be over 60,000 with a further capacity increase at the start of 2026-27. Detailed below are the last home crowd of 60,000+ City have attracted plus a little bit of history of attendances at City.
The last 60,000+ crowd was for the Manchester Derby on 6/11/1971 and was 63,326. These images are from that game (lots changed since then – the MCFC badge has been redesigned 3 times; Brian Kidd became a Blue, then a Red coach then a Blue coach)
The last 60,000+ home cup attendance was 60,844 v Newcastle on 29/1/1969.
For those wondering about home attendances over 75,000, the last one of those was 76,129 for City ve Everton in the FA Cup on 3/3/1956.
For the first 49 years of its existence the capacity of Maine Road was over 60,000, with the record attendance at the old place being 84,569 (see the story of this elsewhere on this site). Stadium developments, alongside safety changes and legislation, reduced the capacity from that high to about 63,000 by 1967. The Ibrox disaster of 1971 caused a reconsideration of stadium safety and a further reduction and City took the decision to seat the one year old North Stand. That meant the capacity from 1972 was approximately 52,600 (there was an attendance of over 54,000 in 1972-73 which I’ll explain about another day based on an interview – and admission – by the then club secretary Bernard Halford!).
The capacity of Maine Road (based on official records and announcements) over the years is:
1923 – 84,000
1931 – 86,000
1935 – 88,000
1946 – 84,000
1953 – 76,500
1957 – 77,000
1963 – 64,000
1972 – 52,600
1989 – 48,500
1992 – 39,359
1994 – 19,150 (first game of the season; increased gradually throughout the season)
1995 – 31,458
1997 – 32,147
1999 – 34,026
2000 – 34,421
2002 – 35,150
You can read more about Maine Road’s record crowd here:
And watch Maine Road’s opening game in 1923 here:
The 1990s: Goater’s First Goal
On this day (4 April) in 1998 Shaun Goater scored his first goal for Manchester City. It came when City defeated near neighbours Stockport County 4-1 at Maine Road. As well as Goater’s first goal Richard Jobson also netted his first City goal while Lee Bradbury scored two.
While you’re here why not read this 9,500 word article on that season. It’s available to subscribers, so why not subscribe and relive this season and an extraordinary decade? As with all these 1990s subscriber features it contains material from interviews I’ve performed with key figures from that time.
Here’s the 9500 word article on that season:
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This series of articles and features will run throughout March with indepth articles some days and smaller ‘on this day’ style posts on others. There will be flashbacks to great games, players and more. Every day in March will offer something to enjoy.
Subscribers will get access to everything, while some on this day material will be free for all to view.
If you want to know more on this incredible decade for Manchester City Football Club then why not subscribe and read it all? If you’d like to know more about subscribing then see:
102 Years of a National Crowd Record for Manchester City!
Today (8 March) marks the 102nd anniversary of a record Manchester City set – the record is the highest attendance on a club ground! The record set in 1924 saw 76,166 attend City v Cardiff. Keep reading all those who think ‘don’t you mean 84,569 in 1934?’ – City already held the record… City had moved to their new Maine Road stadium in August 1923. The capacity of the venue was estimated at around 90,000 but was actually approximately 83,000 when the stadium opened (it was enlarged in 1931 and 1935).
In its first season the capacity was tested and, on this day (8 March) in 1924 the largest attendance for any footballing fixture (including three FA Cup Finals) in Manchester gathered to watch the Blues. This was also, at the time, the record crowd for any game played on an English club ground. It was beaten ten years later when 84,569 watched City v Stoke – so It’s 102 years of this record for the Blues!
You can read about the remarkable day in 1924 below:
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You can read about the attendance that broke this record (again by City at Maine Road) here:
Other record crowd articles can be seen here:
MCFC Away v. NUFC at Maine Rd
Manchester City have drawn Newcastle away in the FA Cup this year and this reminds me of 4 January 1975 when City played ‘away’ at Maine Road against Newcastle United in the FA Cup. The tie should have been played at Newcastle but the FA ordered that the match be played at Maine Road following crowd disorder at St. James’ Park the previous season. City lost the match 2-0.
Were you at this match? If so why not leave your memory as a comment or email it to me for possible future use on this website?
You can read a 1500 article on the 1974-75 season here:
The Story of 1974-75
Mr Grimsdale!
The entertainer Norman Wisdom was born on this day (4 feb) in 1915 so a good excuse to remember the day when he larked around on the Maine Rd pitch (and some claimed they thought it was Peter Reid). It’s always worth reminding ourselves of the days when he’d come out on to the pitch, fall over while taking a penalty and similar antics. Often supported by musician Rick Wakeman too! On one of the days in the 90many of us stood on the Kippax saw the elderly entertainer take to the field but didn’t recognise him at first. In fact many of us thought it was Peter Reid wearing a flat cap!
There were lots of odd prematch activities over the decades and you can read about them in this 2000 word article on the history of pre-match entertainment at Manchester City. There are mentions of the St Joseph’s Industrial School and Beswick Prize Bands, various DJs, athletic challenges, Norman Wisdom, Frank Sidebottom & more. Enjoy:
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Manchester City v River Plate at Maine Road
On 2 February 1952 Manchester City were defeated 4-3 by Argentinian football club River Plate in a friendly at Maine Road, watched by a crowd of 34,974. Here are some interesting images from an official record book showing details of entertainment tax paid by City and turnstile records. I’m not certain if anyone has ever researched how much money football clubs paid in entertainment tax over the years but if anyone’s interested then hopefully the following will help.
You can see from the above photo a few match details such as HT/FT scores, weather and referee details. In addition the various admission prices can be seen (not all shown on this image) and the record book also includes details of how many fans attended within these prices per turnstile. A summary of the attendance per price and the amount of tax paid can be seen in the next image:
For the record City’s goals were scored by Don Revie, Jimmy Meadows and Roy Clarke. The two images below show the name of the turnstile operator and the admissions via that turnstile and the second image shows the total attendance and income details.
The series on the 1950s includes some free articles and some subscriber only features. If you’d like to know more on this period then why not subscriber and enjoy the following article on the 1951-52 season.
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Gary James' Football Archive 