Edgbaston boosts capacity to meet high demand for tickets
To meet an expected increase in demand for its forthcoming fixtures, Warwickshire County Cricket Club is boosting seating capacity at Edgbaston Stadium.
Edgbaston, which is the biggest cricket venue outside of London with a capacity of 24,550, has partnered with Arena Seating to add another tier of seating above its Stanley Barnes stand at the Birmingham End of the ground.
This will provide an additional 850 seats for its seven major match days this summer, which includes England’s only International T20 fixture against Australia, which takes place on June 27.
It will also be place for the first Test of the five-match series against India on August 1-5, and the domestic T20 finals day on September 15.
Gareth Roberts, Commercial Director at Warwickshire County Cricket Club, said: “This will be the third time in the last four years that we have brought in the temporary stand, which is a direct result of the popularity of the fixtures that we’re hosting.
“The Vitality IT20 is now 75% sold out, whilst year-on-year ticket sales for Vitality Blast Finals Day are 170% up on last year and could sell out before the group stages of the tournament get underway.
“We’ve also seen huge demand for day three (Friday) of the Test match against India, which will be a very special occasion as England’s 1,000th Test.”
He added that with more major matches planned for the 2019 season, there was every likelihood that the temporary seating would be retained.
Edgbaston will host five matches, including a semi-final in next year’s ICC Cricket World Cup, which comes to England and Wales for the first time since 1999. It will also host a Test in England’s all-important Ashes series against Australia.
Long-term, the England & Wales Cricket Board (ECB) recently awarded the Birmingham venue the second biggest allocation of major matches that have been scheduled between 2020 to 2024. This includes a Test match in four of the five years, including an Ashes Test in 2023, three one-day internationals, three IT20s and all five Finals Day of the Vitality Blast.
Edgbaston will also host one of the eight teams in the ECB’s new city-based T20 competition, which launches in 2020.
