Middlesbrough FC: Ayresome Park plans on view at Design Museum

Middlesbrough FC played at Ayresome Park from 1903 to 1995

Century-old plans of Middlesbrough FC's former home Ayresome Park are among the highlights of a history of football exhibition.

Designing the Beautiful Game looks at how design has been used to push the sport to new limits.

Three drawings by famed architect Archibald Leitch, who was responsible for the look of Boro's home from 1903 until 1995, have been included.

They are on display at London's Design Museum until Monday.

One of the plans on display is the original drawings for the grand stand elevation

The exhibition features more than 500 objects, films and interviews about sporting performance, kit development and stadium design.

The early-1900s Teesside Archives plans are displayed alongside drawings of other famous football stadiums including Highbury and Villa Park.

Drawings show plans for undersoil drainage

A colourful elevation of the Leitch-designed grandstand of Ayresome Park, a diagram showing undersoil drainage and details of the terrace and roof structures at the club's lost ground, were chosen.

• The Leaving Of Ayresome: Middlesbrough's move to the Riverside

The plans were recently included in the online exhibition 'Art of Ayresome', a collaboration between Heritage Unlocked's Dr Tosh Warwick and Middlesbrough FC.

The plans reveal detail of Boro's early 20th Century state-of-the-art new home

They are among the exhibition's Ten Unmissable Highlights, alongside items including the match ball from the 1930 World Cup Final, Pelé's 1958 World Cup final shirt, and the world's first sports whistle.

Cup ticket queue at Ayresome Park in 1972

Dr Warwick said sharing Leitch's creations online had alerted staff at the Design Museum "to their existence" and they arranged to loan the material from Teesside Archives.

Ruth Hobbins, manager of the archives, said the collaboration "highlights the value" of its collections at an international level.

The plans are on display alongside drawings of Highbury and Villa Park

Boro moved to Ayresome Park in 1903, with Scottish side Celtic the first visitors for a pre-season friendly.

In 1966 it hosted World Cup fixtures, including North Korea's shock 1-0 win against Italy.

In 1995 Boro moved to the 30,000 capacity, all-seater Riverside Stadium, which at the time was the largest football stadium built in the UK for 70 years.

The gates from Ayresome Park - which was demolished in 1996 and is now a housing estate - were relocated to the Riverside's main entrance.

Middlesbrough moved to the Riverside in 1995