The Den (previously The New Den) is a
football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...
stadium in
New Cross
New Cross is an area in south east London, England, south-east of Charing Cross in the London Borough of Lewisham and the SE14 postcode district. New Cross is near St Johns, Telegraph Hill, Nunhead, Peckham, Brockley, Deptford and Greenwich, ...
, south-east
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
, and the home of
Millwall Football Club
Millwall is a district on the western and southern side of the Isle of Dogs, in east London, England, in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It lies to the immediate south of Canary Wharf and Limehouse, north of Greenwich and Deptford, east o ...
.
The Den is adjacent to the
South London railway originating at , and a quarter of a mile from
the Old Den
The Old Den (known while in use as the Den) was the fifth football stadium occupied by Millwall F.C. in Cold Blow Lane, New Cross, London since their formation in Millwall on the Isle of Dogs in 1885 before moving to the New Den (now called th ...
, which it replaced in 1993.
Built on a previous site of housing, a church and the Senegal Fields playgrounds, the Den has an all-seated capacity of 20,146, although that is restricted to approximately 18,100 to allow for visiting fans' segregation and crowd safety measures. The highest match attendance in the
2018–19 season was 17,195.
The Den is the sixth stadium that Millwall have occupied since their formation in the
Millwall
Millwall is a district on the western and southern side of the Isle of Dogs, in east London, England, in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It lies to the immediate south of Canary Wharf and Limehouse, north of Greenwich and Deptford, east ...
area of the
Isle of Dogs
The Isle of Dogs is a large peninsula bounded on three sides by a large meander in the River Thames in East London, England, which includes the Cubitt Town, Millwall and Canary Wharf districts. The area was historically part of the Manor, Ham ...
in 1885. Previous grounds include Glengall Road (1885–1886),
Lord Nelson Ground
The Lord Nelson Ground was a football ground and the home of Millwall Rovers Football Club from 1886–1890, the team who went on to become Millwall. The ground was situated behind the Lord Nelson pub on East Ferry Road on the Isle of Dogs, East ...
(1886–1890),
The Athletic Grounds
The Athletic Grounds (sometimes called the Athletic Ground) was a football ground and the home of Millwall Athletic Football Club from 1890–1901, the team who went on to become Millwall. It was situated on the Isle of Dogs, East London. It wa ...
(1890–1901),
North Greenwich (1901–1910) and
The Old Den
The Old Den (known while in use as the Den) was the fifth football stadium occupied by Millwall F.C. in Cold Blow Lane, New Cross, London since their formation in Millwall on the Isle of Dogs in 1885 before moving to the New Den (now called th ...
(1910–1993).
History
The New Den, as it was initially known to distinguish it from its predecessor, was the first new
all-seater stadium
An all-seater stadium is a sports stadium in which every spectator has a seat. This is commonplace in professional association football stadiums in nations such as the United Kingdom, Spain, and the Netherlands. Most association football and Ame ...
in England to be completed after the
Taylor Report
The Hillsborough Stadium Disaster Inquiry report is the report of an inquiry which was overseen by Lord Justice Taylor, into the causes of the Hillsborough disaster in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England, on 15 April 1989, as a result of which, ...
on the
Hillsborough disaster
The Hillsborough disaster was a fatal human crush during a football match at Hillsborough Stadium in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England, on 15 April 1989. It occurred during an FA Cup semi-final between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest in the ...
of 1989. It was designed with effective crowd management in mind (particularly given Millwall's crowd problems at The Old Den), with the escape routes being short and direct. After chairman Reg Burr decided that it would not be viable to redevelop The Old Den as an all-seater stadium, he announced in 1990 that the club would relocate to a new stadium in the Senegal Fields area in south Bermondsey. Originally, it was planned to have a seating capacity of between 25,000 and 30,000, however, the club opted to wait so the capacity was kept to just over 20,000.
![Millwall vs Charlton 2016](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/bd/Millwall_vs_Charlton_2016.JPG)
Millwall played their final game at The Old Den on 8 May 1993 after 83 years and then moved to the new stadium a quarter-of-a-mile away from Cold Blow Lane. The £16 million New Den was opened by
John Smith, the leader of the
Labour Party and of
the Opposition at the time, on 4 August 1993 prior to a prestigious friendly against
Sporting CP
Sporting Clube de Portugal, founded Sporting Club de Portugal (), otherwise referred to as Sporting CP, often known abroad as Sporting Lisbon , is a Portuguese professional sports club based in Lisbon. It is best known for the professional foot ...
, which Sporting won 2–1. The Den was the first new stadium constructed for a professional football team in London since 1937.
Millwall have experienced mixed fortunes since relocating to The Den. Their first season at the stadium (
1993–94) saw them finish third in Division One – their highest finish since relegation from the top flight four years earlier. However, their dreams of
Premier League
The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Foo ...
football were ended by a defeat in the playoffs and they were relegated to Division Two in 1996, not winning promotion from that level until 2001. They again came close to reaching the Premier League in 2002, finishing fourth, but once again losing in the playoffs. The Lions reached the
FA Cup final
The FA Cup Final, commonly referred to in England as just the Cup Final, is the last match in the FA Cup, Football Association Challenge Cup. It has regularly been one of the List of sports attendance figures, most attended domestic football ev ...
for the first time in 2004, and despite a 3–0 defeat by
Manchester United
Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of City of Salford, Salford to ...
they qualified for European competition for the first time in their history. Millwall has been relegated twice since then; going down in 2006 and 2015, but have also won promotion in 2010 and 2017. However, the stadium has yet to host Premier League football - Millwall had played in the old First Division for two seasons from 1988 during their final few years at their previous stadium.
In September 2016
Lewisham Council
Lewisham London Borough Council is the local authority for the London Borough of Lewisham in Greater London, England. It is a London borough council, one of 32 in the United Kingdom capital of London. The council is unusual in that its executi ...
approved a
compulsory purchase order
A compulsory purchase order (CPO; , ) is a legal function in the United Kingdom and Ireland that allows certain bodies to obtain land or property without the consent of the owner. It may be enforced if a proposed development is considered one for p ...
of land surrounding The Den rented by Millwall, as part of a major redevelopment of the "New Bermondsey" area. The plans are controversial because the developer, Renewal, is controlled by
offshore companies
The term "offshore company" or “offshore corporation” is used in at least two distinct and different ways. An offshore company may be a reference to:
* a company, group or sometimes a division thereof, which engages in offshoring business pro ...
with unclear ownership, and is seen by the club and local community to be profiteering by demolishing existing homes and businesses as well as Millwall's car-park and the highly acclaimed and well recognised Millwall Community Trust - to build up to 2,400 new private homes, with no council housing and less than 15% of 'affordable housing'. Millwall had submitted their own plans for regeneration centred around the football club itself, but the council voted in favour of Renewal's plans.
Original plans submitted in 2012 would have seen the stadium demolished for redevelopment.
In December 2016 ''
Private Eye
''Private Eye'' is a British fortnightly satire, satirical and current affairs (news format), current affairs news magazine, founded in 1961. It is published in London and has been edited by Ian Hislop since 1986. The publication is widely r ...
'' reported how Renewal had been founded by a former Lewisham Council leader and senior officer, suggesting potential bias, and that the decision to approve Renewal's plans may have been made as long ago as 2013 despite the fact that no due diligence had been able to be carried out by
PricewaterhouseCoopers
PricewaterhouseCoopers is an international professional services brand of firms, operating as partnerships under the PwC brand. It is the second-largest professional services network in the world and is considered one of the Big Four accounting ...
due to "poor" and "limited" access to information and management at Renewal, which is registered in the
Isle of Man
)
, anthem = "O Land of Our Birth"
, image = Isle of Man by Sentinel-2.jpg
, image_map = Europe-Isle_of_Man.svg
, mapsize =
, map_alt = Location of the Isle of Man in Europe
, map_caption = Location of the Isle of Man (green)
in Europe ...
.
In October 2019 Lewisham Council terminated the conditional land sale agreement with Renewal, ensuring the stadium's future. This allowed Millwall to prepare their own development plans,
and in February 2020, Millwall announced plans for a phased expansion, adding upper tiers behind existing seating to gradually expand the Den to 34,000 seats.
In June 2021, Renewal submitted new plans for its housing development by the Den, with 3,500 new homes in towers of up to 44 storeys over a 15 year period. The first phase, behind Surrey Canal Road, would see 600 new flats in three 31-storey blocks, with 35% meeting an "affordable" requirement.
New Bermondsey railway station
Surrey Canal railway station (formerly New Bermondsey and Surrey Canal Road) is a proposed station on the South London Line of the London Overground network. It is on its main line (from to which opened in December 2012).
The site is on Sur ...
is planned to service the area.
Stands
On 20 January 2011 the east stand of The Den was renamed as the Dockers Stand, paying tribute to Millwall's earlier history and supporter-base of
Thames
The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after the R ...
dockers. The south stand is known as the Cold Blow Lane stand, which was the name of the road which led into The Old Den. The north stand is for visiting supporters and the west stand was renamed the Barry Kitchener Stand, named after Millwall's longest-serving player. It houses Millwall's family enclosure, press box and executive seats.
Average attendances
International matches and other events
In 1994, a
boxing
Boxing (also known as "Western boxing" or "pugilism") is a combat sport in which two people, usually wearing protective gloves and other protective equipment such as hand wraps and mouthguards, throw punches at each other for a predetermined ...
match was held at The Den. Local boy
Michael Bentt
Michael Bentt (born September 4, 1965) is a British-born American film and television actor, and retired professional boxer who competed from 1989 to 1994. Of Jamaican heritage, he was born in East Dulwich, London, but raised in the Cambria Hei ...
lost his
WBO World Heavyweight Championship
This is a list of WBO world champions, showing every world champion certified by the World Boxing Organization (WBO). The WBO is one of the four major governing bodies in professional boxing, and has awarded world championships in 17 different we ...
to
Herbie Hide
Herbie Hide (born Herbert Okechukwu Maduagwu; 27 August 1971) is a British former professional boxer who competed from 1989 to 2010. He held the WBO heavyweight title twice between 1994 and 1999, as well as the British heavyweight title in 19 ...
. The fight was Bentt's last after being rushed to the hospital and told he could never fight again, after suffering brain injuries in the loss. On 1 May 2006, The Den hosted the
FA Women's Cup
The Women's FA Challenge Cup Competition is the top annual cup tournament for women's clubs in English football. Founded in 1970, it has been named the WFA Cup, FA Women's Cup and now Women's FA Cup (Vitality Women's FA Cup for sponsorship reas ...
Final between
Arsenal L.F.C. and
Leeds United L.F.C.
Leeds United Women are an English women's football (soccer), women's football club based in Leeds, West Yorkshire. They are currently members of the .
Club information
The club play their home matches at Thorp Arch (training ground), Thorp Arch ...
Arsenal Ladies won the Cup 5–0. Three international matches have been hosted at The Den.
Ghana
Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in the west, Burkina Faso in the north, and To ...
1–1
Senegal
Senegal,; Wolof: ''Senegaal''; Pulaar: 𞤅𞤫𞤲𞤫𞤺𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭 (Senegaali); Arabic: السنغال ''As-Sinighal'') officially the Republic of Senegal,; Wolof: ''Réewum Senegaal''; Pulaar : 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 ...
(21 August 2007),
Jamaica
Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of His ...
0–0
Nigeria
Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...
(11 February 2009) and
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
3–4
Ecuador
Ecuador ( ; ; Quechua: ''Ikwayur''; Shuar: ''Ecuador'' or ''Ekuatur''), officially the Republic of Ecuador ( es, República del Ecuador, which literally translates as "Republic of the Equator"; Quechua: ''Ikwadur Ripuwlika''; Shuar: ''Eku ...
(5 March 2014). Former Millwall player
Tim Cahill
Timothy Filiga Cahill (; born 6 December 1979) is an Australian former professional footballer who played as an attacking midfielder but also played as a striker on many occasions. A box-to-box midfielder, Cahill became recognised for "his ag ...
scored two of Australia's goals, becoming the country's
all-time top scorer. On 5 September 2015, the ground hosted
Rugby league
Rugby league football, commonly known as just rugby league and sometimes football, footy, rugby or league, is a full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular field measuring 68 metres (75 yards) wide and 112 ...
as
Wigan Warriors
The Wigan Warriors are a professional rugby league club in Wigan, Greater Manchester, England, which competes in the Super League.
Formed in 1872 as Wigan Football Club, Wigan was a founding member of the Rugby Football League, Northern Rugby ...
defeated the
Catalans Dragons
The Catalans Dragons ( French: ''Dragons Catalans'', Catalan: ''Dracs Catalans'') are a professional rugby league club from Perpignan, Pyrénées-Orientales department, France. The team competes in the Super League and are the only team from ...
42–16 in a
Super League
The Super League (officially known as the Betfred Super League due to sponsorship from Betfred and legally known as Super League Europe), is the top-level of the British rugby league system. At present the league consists of twelve teams, of wh ...
Super 8s match in front of a crowd of 8,101.
Celebrity Soccer Sixes
The Den hosted the
Samaritans
Samaritans (; ; he, שומרונים, translit=Šōmrōnīm, lit=; ar, السامريون, translit=as-Sāmiriyyūn) are an ethnoreligious group who originate from the ancient Israelites. They are native to the Levant and adhere to Samarit ...
Celebrity Soccer Sixes on 18 May 2008. Film and Television stars played at The Den, the first time the event has not been hosted by a Premier League Club.
Babyshambles
Babyshambles were an English rock music, rock band established in London. The band was formed by Pete Doherty (lead vocals, rhythm guitar) during a hiatus from the Libertines. As of 2013 the band includes Mick Whitnall (lead guitar), Drew McCo ...
failed to retain the trophy, losing 3–2 to dance act
Faithless
Faithless are an English band that formed in 1995, with its core members being Rollo, Sister Bliss and Maxi Jazz. Their first album, '' Reverence'', was released in 1996 and their most recent, ''All Blessed'', in 2020. They have sold millions ...
. The winners of the women's trophy were
Cansei de Ser Sexy
''Cansei de Ser Sexy'' is the first full-length album by Brazilian indie rock band CSS. It was released on October 9, 2005 by Trama in Brazil, where it reportedly sold 5,000 copies and failed to chart. It was released in the United States on July ...
. Around 150 celebrities took part including
McFly
McFly are an English pop rock band formed in London in 2003. The band took their name from the '' Back to the Future'' character Marty McFly. The band consists of Tom Fletcher (lead vocals, guitar, and piano), Danny Jones (lead vocals, har ...
,
Tony Hadley
Anthony Patrick Hadley (born 2 June 1960) is an English pop singer. He rose to fame in the 1980s as the lead singer of the new wave band Spandau Ballet and launched a solo career following the group's split in 1990. Hadley returned to the ban ...
,
Amy Winehouse
Amy Jade Winehouse (14 September 1983 – 23 July 2011) was an English singer and songwriter. She was known for her deep, expressive contralto vocals and her eclectic mix of musical genres, including soul, rhythm and blues and jazz.
A membe ...
and ex-Millwall fan favourite
Terry Hurlock
Terence Alan Hurlock (born 22 September 1958) is an English former professional footballer who played as a central midfielder. Over the course of a 15-year career in the Football League, he had notable spells with Brentford and Millwall. He won ...
to raise money for the charity.
In drama
The Den doubles as The Dragon's Lair, home ground of
Harchester United
''Dream Team'' is a British sports drama television series produced by Hewland International which aired on Sky One from 1997 to 2007; it chronicled the on-field and off-field affairs of the fictional Premier League football club, Harchester U ...
in the TV series ''
Dream Team
Dream Team may refer to:
Sport
Basketball
* Dream Team, the 1992 United States men's Olympic basketball team in Barcelona
* Dream Team II, the 1994 U.S. men's national basketball team at the FIBA World Championship
* Dream Team III, the 1996 ...
''. It also appeared in an episode of the
ITV
ITV or iTV may refer to:
ITV
*Independent Television (ITV), a British television network, consisting of:
** ITV (TV network), a free-to-air national commercial television network covering the United Kingdom, the Isle of Man, and the Channel Islan ...
show ''
Primeval
Primeval may refer to:
* Primeval forest, an area of forest that has attained great age
* Primeval number, a positive integer satisfying certain conditions
* Primeval history, name given by biblical scholars to the first eleven chapters of the Bo ...
''. The Base is often used by the TV and film industries. It was used to film ''
The Bill
''The Bill'' is a British police procedural television series, first broadcast on ITV from 16 August 1983 until 31 August 2010. The programme originated from a one-off drama, '' Woodentop'', broadcast in August 1983.
The programme focused on ...
'' episode of ''Gun Runner: Kick Off'' featuring their home game against
Leyton Orient
Leyton Orient Football Club is a professional football club based in Leyton, East London, England, who compete in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. They are the second oldest football club in London to play at a professio ...
in March 2008 (aired on ITV in June 2008). Sportswear giant
Nike
Nike often refers to:
* Nike (mythology), a Greek goddess who personifies victory
* Nike, Inc., a major American producer of athletic shoes, apparel, and sports equipment
Nike may also refer to:
People
* Nike (name), a surname and feminine given ...
filmed their ''Take It to the Next Level'' advertistment over a period of three days and nights at The Den, also in March 2008. In 2010,
Kit Kat
Kit Kat (stylised as KitKat in various countries) is a chocolate-covered wafer bar confection created by Rowntree's of York, United Kingdom, and is now produced globally by Nestlé (which acquired Rowntree's in 1988), except in the United Stat ...
made their own 'Cross your Fingers' advert using clips from
Arsenal
An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...
,
West Ham
West Ham is an area in East London, located east of Charing Cross in the west of the modern London Borough of Newham.
The area, which lies immediately to the north of the River Thames and east of the River Lea, was originally an ancien ...
,
Oxford United
Oxford United Football Club is a professional football club in the city of Oxford, England. The team plays in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. The chairman is Grant Ferguson, the manager is Karl Robinson and th ...
and also Millwall's Den.
Transport and access
![South Bermondsey stn look east to Millwall FC](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/42/South_Bermondsey_stn_look_east_to_Millwall_FC.JPG)
The Den is served by the
National Rail
National Rail (NR) is the trading name licensed for use by the Rail Delivery Group, an unincorporated association whose membership consists of the passenger train operating companies (TOCs) of England, Scotland, and Wales. The TOCs run the p ...
station
South Bermondsey
South Bermondsey is a ward in the London Borough of Southwark created in 2010 out of Burgess Ward in southeast London, England.
The area is served by South Bermondsey railway station, with a future station at Surrey Canal Road. Nearby neighbor ...
, which is a five-minute walk away from the ground. Away supporters have their own walkway link, which is available to them on match days. There are no official car parking facilities for supporters. The
P12 bus stops closest to the ground in Ilderton Road, just a two-minute walk away. The
21,
53 and
172
Year 172 ( CLXXII) was a leap year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Scipio and Maximus (or, less frequently, year 925 '' Ab urbe condita ...
buses all stop on the
Old Kent Road
Old Kent Road is a major thoroughfare in South East London, England, passing through the London Borough of Southwark. It was originally part of an ancient trackway that was paved by the Romans and used by the Anglo-Saxons who named it Wæceli ...
, a ten-minute walk away from the ground. The closest tube station to The Den is
Canada Water
Canada Water is an area of the Docklands in south-east London. It is named after a freshwater lake and wildlife refuge. Canada Water tube, Overground and bus station is immediately north of the lake, along with Canada Water Library which ov ...
(on the
Jubilee line
The Jubilee line is a London Underground line that runs between in east London and in the suburban north-west, via the Docklands, South Bank and West End. Opened in 1979, it is the newest line on the Underground network, although some secti ...
), which is a 20-minute walk away. The former East London Line stations of and (now part of
London Overground
London Overground (also known simply as the Overground) is a Urban rail in the United Kingdom, suburban rail network serving London and its environs. Established in 2007 to take over Silverlink Metro routes, (via archive.org). it now serves a ...
) both are a 15-minute walk from the stadium.
Construction of
New Bermondsey railway station
Surrey Canal railway station (formerly New Bermondsey and Surrey Canal Road) is a proposed station on the South London Line of the London Overground network. It is on its main line (from to which opened in December 2012).
The site is on Sur ...
, a London Overground line adjacent to the Den, began in 2012 but then stalled as plans for a major development were delayed. The June 2021 Renewal plans for its housing development included completion of New Bermondsey station.
The
Quietway 1 cycle route runs around South Bermondsey station and past the Den. However, the route is closed and diverted in the vicinity of the stadium on Millwall match days.
[Sustrans, http://www.sustrans.org.uk/news/millwall-quietway-cycle-path-connects-waterloo-greenwich]
Notes
External links
Millwall's official siteThe Denat Football Ground Guide
Picture Gallery Denon londonfootballguide.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Den
Millwall F.C.
Football venues in London
Sports venues in London
Sport in the London Borough of Lewisham
Buildings and structures in the London Borough of Lewisham
Sports venues completed in 1993
Boxing venues in the United Kingdom
Bermondsey
English Football League venues