Wembley Stadium: 100 years of England's national stadium
- Published
It is one hundred years since Wembley first opened in 1923 and since then it has been the destination to a long list of historic moments. More than 200,000 fans were in attendance as Wembley Stadium opened for the first time, as Bolton Wanderers took on West Ham United in the FA Cup final 28 April 1923.
The event became known as the 'White Horse' FA Cup final. That's because of the image of Billie, a white horse that helped clear the crowds before the match kicked off 44 minutes late. Bolton beat West Ham 2-0 to become the first team to lift the cup at the stadium.
The stadium's most eye-catching feature was the Twin Towers, that was before they were knocked down in 2003 as part of a rebuild.
In 2007, the new Wembley Stadium opened its doors. In the place of the Twin Towers, there is now a famous 133-metre tall arch. With a 90,000 seat capacity, it is the largest sports venue in the UK and the second largest stadium in Europe.
Arguably one of the most famous Wembley Stadium moments took place 30 July 1966 as England beat West Germany in the World Cup final.
Over the years the stadium hasn't just hosted football matches. Some of the biggest names in the world of music have played there. The first music concert took place in 1969. 16 years later in 1985, 70,000 fans attended and over one billion people around the world watched Live Aid. A concert starring all the huge acts of the time, which raised £30m for people hit by a famine in Africa.
It's hosted both rugby union and rugby league matches too. Union made its Wembley debut in 1925 as an Army side took on the RAF. Four years later it hosted its first rugby league Challenge Cup final when Wigan beat Dewsbury 13-2.
In 1948 Wembley staged the showpiece events for the first Olympics after World War Two. The Dutch athlete Fanny Elsje Blankers-Koen was the most successful at the games, winning four gold medals.
In 1943 the US and Canadian armies faced off in a baseball match in 1943 -the only time the sport has been played there.
In 1924 it staged its first boxing match, with 50,000 fans there as the American heavyweight Tom Gibbons beat British boxer Jack Bloomfield.
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