Fulham FC has unveiled a first look at the luxury matchday experiences inside its redeveloped ‘New Riverside Stand’.
The Premier League club has showcased new matchday experiences, which will be on offer to guests as part of its re-development of its Riverside Stand, with the experiences available to purchase from the 9 April.
Shahid Khan, Chairman of Fulham FC, commented: “My vision for the New Riverside Stand was to provide our fans, and our neighbourhood, with a destination that would continue to honour our history and tradition at Craven Cottage every day of the year, but especially so on match days with a premium experience that will be unlike anything in football, here in London or elsewhere.”
The new stand will offer seven different premium experiences, with its most notable being the ‘Sky Deck’, which makes up the top three floors of the Riverside with views across the River Thames and London’s skyline.
Other experiences include two fine dining experiences, ‘The Gourmet’ and ‘The Brassiere’ as well as ‘The Dugout’, an intimate football experience at Craven Cottage where guests are seated directly behind the coaching staff.
Khan added: “In short, today isn’t about finally being able to offer a higher standard of hospitality options that have essentially been unavailable to Fulham supporters until now. It’s about offering the ultimate match day hospitality experience in the world that will also benefit the long-term promise and future of Fulham Football Club. The New Riverside Stand at Craven Cottage will make it possible.”
The design of the new stand was led by Populous, a local company that is renowned for stadium architecture. The project was undertaken in collaboration with an engineering team from WSP.
Additionally, the London-based club partnered with designers from firms such as Lazaro Rosa Volan, Dion & Arles and Stuart Forbes Association to ensure the inside of the stand is as ‘spectacular’ as the outside.
Fulham has emphasised supporting the local community through employment, supporting 2,750 jobs in constructing the outside, while internal spaces remain in progress, Fulham employs, on average, 100 people every day, due to rise to 200 as the project nears completion.
Philip Johnson, Senior Principal and Lead Architect for New Riverside Stand project at Populous, said: ”Our vision for the New Riverside Stand at Craven Cottage was to create a unique experience that has not been seen before, whether in the context of football or beyond.
“It’s a privilege to bring this innovative design to life, with amazing spaces set to house incredible experiences for fans and guests and a world-class terrace that will drive the atmosphere in the ground, all set in a unique location on the banks of the Thames. This project demonstrates new ways of designing individual stands, and we are proud to be part of the Club’s next chapter.”
Fulham isn’t the only Premier League club, looking to revitalise its local area through stadium upgrades.
Earlier this month, Manchester United formed a collaborative task force to explore options for revitalising the Old Trafford area, with a special focus on constructing a new world class football stadium.
