St Mary’s Stadium is the home of Southampton F.C. it has a capacity of 32,689. It is also the largest stadium in the south of England outside of London. Construction started in December 1999 and was completed at the end of July 2001, with work on the stadium itself and improvements to local infrastructure cost a total of £32 million.

The stadium is a complete bowl, with all stands of equal height. There are two large screens at either end that can be seen from any seat. The stadium has four stands, which are named after the areas of Southampton they face, when looking from the center circle. The main, east stand is the Itchen Stand, and faces the River Itchen. The opposite stand is called the Kingsland Stand. Behind the south goal is the Chapel Stand, and to the north is the Northam Stand.

At the rear of the south, west and north Stands, there is a continuous, translucent ‘panel’ that is designed to allow light to access the pitch. A large section of the roof at the southern end of the stadium is also translucent. At the rear of the east stand, there are 42 executive boxes, and a police control room, club’s offices, changing rooms, press facilities and corporate hospitality suites. The north stand is home to the more vocal supporters, as well as visiting fans. Visitors can be given up to 4,250 seats.

2018 World Cup Venue in Southampton

All stands except from the east stand can be built upon and expanded, which would give an approximate capacity of around 50,000. However this would cost a similar amount to how much it cost to build the stadium in the first place. St Marys is not the biggest stadium, nor will it be the newest in 2018, however it has a chance of hosting some games, as it is the biggest stadium south of London, and people will argue that all the world cup venues are all in London or up north. the south of england should host some games as it is full of passionate people and rich in history.