West Ham will have third largest Premier League capacity at Olympic Stadium
By Pete Hall
Thursday 24 March 2016 16:42, UK
Increased seating at the Olympic Stadium means West Ham will have the third largest capacity in the Premier League from next season.
After 112 years at the Boleyn Ground, the Hammers will call the Olympic Stadium in east London their home from 2016/17.
The stadium was originally expected to hold 54,000 people but, due to heightened demand, the capacity has increased by 6,000 seats to 60,000. That's a significant increase on 35,345 capacity of the Boleyn Ground.
Premier League stadium capacity
Club
Stadium
Capacity
Manchester United
Old Trafford
75,653
Arsenal
Emirates Stadium
60,260
West Ham NEW
Olympic Stadium
60,000
Manchester City
Etihad Stadium
55,097
Newcastle United
St James' Park
52,338
Sunderland
Stadium of Light
48,707
Liverpool
Anfield
44,742
Aston Villa
Villa Park
42,660
Chelsea
Stamford Bridge
41,798
Everton
Goodison Park
39,571
Tottenham
White Hart Lane
36,284
West Ham CURRENT
Boleyn Ground
35,345
Southampton
St Mary's Stadium
32,505
Leicester
King Power Stadium
32,312
Stoke
Britannia Stadium
27,740
Norwich
Carrow Road
27,010
West Brom
The Hawthorns
26,850
Crystal Palace
Selhurst Park
25,456
Swansea
Liberty Stadium
20,909
Bournemouth
Vitality Stadium
11,464
The increased capacity means only Old Trafford (75,653) and the Emirates (60,260) can host larger crowds in the Premier League, while only 18 clubs across Europe have larger capacities, according to thestadiumguide.com.
Old Trafford's expansion over the years has propelled Manchester United's famous ground up to the ninth biggest stadium in Europe, while the Emirates and Celtic Park (60,500) are the only other British grounds to make the top 20.
The additional seating at the Olympic Stadium has moved the Hammers' new home above Manchester City's Etihad Stadium, Valencia's Mestalla and Atletico Madrid's Vicente Calderon.
The move was not met with unanimous approval from all fans, who still feel a great deal of affection for their spiritual home in Upton Park, but Tony Gale insisted the move is exactly what the club needs to keep pace in the Premier League.
"It had to be done, you have to move on," Gale told Sky Sports News HQ. "Arsenal had to move out of Highbury into the Emirates Stadium, thinking about the long term.
"The only worry is that it might take a long time to generate the same atmosphere of the Boleyn Ground.
"Hopefully the club will go from strength to strength."