Wembley Stadium Hosts FA Cup Final
Chelsea and Manchester United Meet as Ground Opens after Many Delays
May 19, 2007
Wembley Stadium hosts its first major final when Chelsea play the Premiership champions, Manchester United meet in the FA Cup Final. The stadium has taken seven years to build, much longer than had been expected as the original plan had been for it to host the 2003 FA Cup Final. The cost at £760 million has gone way beyond the £326.5 million that had been anticipated and there have been many problems and internal wrangles during that time but now as the two teams meet in the climax of the domestic season, the world will see that the long wait has been well worth it.
The original Wembley Stadium had the famous Twin Towers but today’s new stadium has an arch which dominates the surrounding skyline and is visible for miles around. The stadium is a magnificent sight and today it will resound to the sound of 90,000 spectators for the very first time. The essential safety tests were carried out with controlled spectator numbers at the England Under-21 International against Italy and at last weekend’s first final at the stadium, Stevenage Borough and Kidderminister Harriers meeting in the FA Trophy Final.
The last game in the old Wembley stadium was the 2000 World Cup qualifying game between England and Germany which the visitors won and caused Kevin Keegan to resign as England manager immediately after the match.
It was an Italian who scored the first competitive goal at the stadium when Giampaolo Pazzini scored the first goal of his hat-trick after twenty five seconds in the Under-21 international. With such an array of international talent on display in the FA Cup Final which nationality will go on record as scoring the first Cup Final goal at the new stadium?
The first Wembley final in 1923 between Bolton Wanderers and West Ham United was played after the pitch was cleared by a policeman on a white horse after spectators encroached onto the pitch. How times have changed from those early days when all of the Finals for the next sixty years were contested by teams consisting of players entirely from the home nations. Now the teams are strengthened by international stars from all around the world.
Past Wembley Heroes:
Marcel Desailly, Chelsea’s French defender was the last captain to receive the trophy at Wembley while Ricky Villa, Tottenham Hotspur’s Argentine midfielder scored one of the stadium’s most memorable winning goals in the 1981 final replay against Manchester City. They and many other former stars will be present at the stadium for the stadium’s opening ceremony. A representative of every winning team from 1957 will be presented to the crowd as a mark of the stadium’s and the competition’s proud history.
The guests will also include Peter McParland who scored Aston Villa's goals in 1957 Final, Bobby Smith of Tottenham Hotspur who scored one of his teams goals that won the first ‘double’ of the 20th century in 1961, Lawrie McMenemy, manager of 2nd Division Southampton who defeated Manchester United in 1976and Lawrie Sanchez who scored Wimbledon's winner 1988 against Liverpool.
107 Steps to Glory:
After all the formality of the pre-match presentations, it is only the outcome of the match that will interest the two managers, Jose Mourinho and Sir Alex Ferguson, and their players. The old Wembley required the players to climb 39 steps to receive the trophy but today the winning captain will have to climb 107 steps before he can receive the trophy from Prince William, the President of the Football Association. Neither Ryan Giggs nor John Terry will find those extra steps any problem as long as they’re leading a winning side up to the Royal Box.
The match will be watched live on television in 160 countries and by 450 million people and the whole world will see how wonderful a stadium has finally been produced at Wembley.
