Nottingham Forest Football Club and The City Ground:
In 1865, a group of fifteen shinney players from Nottingham met at the Clinton Arms and JS Scrimshaw proposed that they should play football instead of shinney. His proposal was agreed and the club’s founding members decided to purchase a dozen ‘Garibaldi red’ tasselled caps, thereby establishing the club’s colours.
The club’s first official match took place on 22nd March 1866, against neighbours Notts County.
Forest’s application to join the Football League, founded in 1888, was rejected and the club remained in the Football Alliance until 1892, when winning the league enabled Forest to join the Football League.
In the club’s early years, Forest played at a number of different grounds. Forest started out at the Forest Racecourse before relocating to the Castle Ground and the Meadows in 1879. Between 1873 and 1885, matches were also played at Trent Bridge, the Parkside Ground and the Gregory Ground before the club occupied the Town Ground more regularly from 1890 to 1895.
In 1898, the club moved to The City Ground after securing the £3,000 required through fundraising and the ground has been home to the club ever since.
From its humble beginnings, Nottingham Forest Football Club became of the the most successful teams in England, winning a host of domestic and European honours.
Nowadays, The City Ground, which sits on the banks of the River Trent, is an all-seater stadium with a capacity of 30,602. Up to 4,750 away fans can be seated in the lower tier of the Bridgford End, where facilities are decent and the acoustics allow travelling fans to generate plenty of noise.
How to get there:
By car:
Depending on traffic, a journey from Birmingham to Nottingham by car should take approximately one hour and fifteen minutes.
For directions, click here.
Use postcode NG2 5FJ for sat navs.
On-street parking is available free of charge around the ground and it is recommended that you park in the West Bridgford area if possible.
Parking is available at Victoria Embankment, NG2 2JY, which is adjacent to Trent Bridge, at a cost of £5 per car and you can also park at Meadow Lane for £4, which is handy if you are using the Sports Bar there.
By train:
Crosscountry services run on a half-hourly timetable between Birmingham New Street and Nottingham and the journey takes just over an hour.
When you arrive at the station, it is advised that you do not walk through the Meadows estate but instead leave the station from the front exit, head left and you’ll see a traffic light crossroads. Turn left here and walk down Queen Street alongside the station with a large car park to your left. At the end of this road you reach London Road. Take a right and head directly towards Trent Bridge, from where you’ll clearly see The City Ground.
Where to drink:
Due to police policy, there is very limited choice for away fans around The City Ground.
Away fans (only) are welcome to use the facilities at Notts County’s Meadow Lane Sports Bar, which is the official away pub for Nottingham Forest matches and is located ten minutes’ walk from the City Ground. The Sports Bar opens at 11a.m. Parking is available at a cost of £4 and food is served. Use postcode NG2 3HJ for sat navs.
For some, a visit to Nottingham is not complete without a visit to the famous Hooters on London Road, which also opens at 11a.m. Booking is advisable.
Nottingham’s Riverside Festival runs from July 31st to August 2nd and there will be plenty of free entertainment provided along the banks of the River Trent, next to Trent Bridge, from 12p.m. to 11.30p.m. on Saturday. You will also be able to purchase a range of food and drink at the festival site.
Should you be staying in Nottingham, there will be a large fireworks display at the festival at 10.30p.m. on Saturday.