York Road: Maidenhead United

There are many reasons why York Road might be somewhere you would want to visit, but surely close to the top of the list is the fact that the Football Association acknowledges that it is the oldest continuously-used senior association football ground by the same club anywhere in the world. That is because Maidenhead United have called the stadium their home since the club’s formation, with a blue plaque placed just inside the home turnstiles to commemorate the fact. It began life in 1870 as the home of Maidenhead Cricket Club, with the first football match being played in February of the following year.

Maidenhead United was formed in the October of 1870 in order to give the members of the cricket club something to do in the winter months to keep them fit. The club’s first game was played in December when they took on Windsor Home Park at Bond’s Meadow. Being such an old club, Maidenhead United also have the claim to fame that they were one of the 15 teams that played in the inaugural version of the FA Cup. They reached the competition’s quarter-final stage three times during the 1870s. In 1894 they were one of the founder members of the Southern League, playing in numerous lower league competitions in the years that followed.

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York Road Photos

York Road Stadium Entrance

York Road Stadium Pitch

York Road Stadium Maidenhead Stands
Credit: Uxbridge Gazette

York Road Seating Plan and Where to Sit

Despite its place in the record books as the oldest football ground used by one team continuously, York Road is far from the most glamorous place in the world. In fact, there’s a solid argument that not much has changed since 1871, such is the basic nature of the facilities. That being said, a new covered seating area was opened on one side of the ground in 2014, offering a slightly more modern look. That is the Railway Stand, whilst the Bell Street End is a covered terrace in two sections, whilst the East Terrace is covered in the middle.

Maidenhead United Ticket Prices

The cheapest way to get tickets is to buy a Membership for Maidenhead, which come in different forms and cost an initial outlay but then reduce your ticket price per game. Of course, most people are only going to want to go to an occasional match and a Membership simply won’t be worth it, so here is how much match tickets cost for the 2023-2024 campaign:

• Adult: £20
• Concession: £15
• Next Generation: £10
• Under-17: £5

How To Get Maidenhead United Tickets

If you’re after tickets for a Maidenhead United match then the best thing that you can do is to head to the club’s website. It is a little confusing, but you can find your way around it and order yourself some tickets in order to get to the game. If the website seems a little too complex then you don’t need to worry, with tickets also available on the turnstiles.

Where to Buy

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Getting To York Road

Train – Maidenhead Railway Station is about half a mile away from the ground, which means it’s around ten minutes to the main entrance of the ground. You can get trains there from Paddington, Reading and Oxford.

Bus – If your plan is to get a bus to the ground then you’ll be well-served, with all of the 8, 9, 16, 53, 63 and 127 bus services stopping close to the stadium.

Car – For those who would like to drive to York Road, you’ll want to get onto the M4 and then leave at Junction 8 onto the A404(M). When that ends you’ll get yourself onto the A4 towards Maidenhead itself, continuing on the A4 once you’ve hit the town itself. At that point you’ll be able to keep your eye out for some signs towards the stadium.

By Air – Maidenhead being something of a commuter town means that you won’t be badly served if you aim for any of the London airports, but Heathrow is the closest at just 12.1 miles away. Still, London Luton, London City, Stansted and Gatwick will all more than suffice for most visitors hoping to head to York Road.

Taxi – The fact that the train station is so close to the ground means that you’ll be unlucky if you get charged more than £5 for a journey between the two venues. That being said, the traffic will often dictate what you end up paying and match days tend to be busier than none match days.

Parking Near York Road

As with most football grounds, there is no parking at York Road itself and there are parking restrictions in place on the nearby roads, so the best thing you can do is look out for an official car park. There is one at Nicholsons Shopping Centre that you can park in for not too much money, as well as a few other sites around the town centre.

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Useful Resources

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Pubs and Bars Near York Road

About Maidenhead United

Maidenhead Football Club isn’t the oldest football team in the world, but it has a history that outstrips the likes of Liverpool and Arsenal in terms of when the club was formed. The team was established in the October of 1870, largely in order to give the members of the cricket club something to do in the winter months that would allow them to maintain some form of fitness. The first match was played in the December and the club has barely looked back since. They defeated Marlow in the first round of the inaugural FA Cup, losing to Crystal Palace in the second round. In the years that followed, several quarter-final appearances mean that they didn’t do too badly all things considered; albeit at a time when there weren’t many teams playing in it.

In spite of being such a relatively old team, Maidenhead’s existence has mostly been spent in the lower divisions of the English Football League pyramid. They helped to create the Southern League, for example, and then left it eight years later, dropping further down the pecking order in the years that followed. In 1919, Maidenhead Norfolkians merged into the club, with the colours that they played in changing from black and red stripes to black and white. There were further league changes in the decades that came after, with Maidenhead slowly climbing through the ranks until they reached the National League in 2017.

York Road History

There are football grounds that are older than York Road, but none have the honour of being confirmed by the Football Association as being the only ground in the world to have been continuously used by the same club for a longer period of time than Maidenhead have played at the stadium. They moved there in 1870, having called Bond’s Meadow their home before that. It started life in the late 18th century as a cricket ground, but turned into a football pitch when it was clear that that was going to be the dominant sport in the area. In 1936, a record turnout of 7,920 people turned up to see the club defeat Southall 1-0 in the quarter-final of the FA Amateur Cup.

Officially known as the Desborough Sports Ground in honour of William Grenfell, the 1st Baron Desborough, who is the patron of sport in the town, most people refer to the ground as York Road. The facilities are basic and always have been, but in many ways that just adds to the charm of the place. In 1947, the attendance record was broken thanks to 8,277 people turning up to watch Slough Town play Wycombe Wanderers in the Berks & Bucks Senior Cup final. The fact that it is located so close to the train station that is served by London Paddington means that many football fans in the capital often make the trip out to watch matches here.