The Withdean Stadium has been the temporary home of the Albion since 1999. After two season of exile ground sharing with Gillingham following the sale of the Goldstone Group the clubs new board identified the Athletics stadium as the best temporary option for the Seagulls while a new permanent home was looked for.

The temporary nature of the stadium is obvious - the stadium is primarily used for athletics,  there is a single permanent stand along one side, with the other stands assembled from scaffolding and are located some distance from the pitch, due to the running track. Only the North Stand has a roof.

As part of the terms of the agreement with Brighton and Hove council for the club to use the ground there are many restrictions in place on a match day.

For instance the club are only allowed to play 15 minutes of pre match music, while parking around the stadium has been banned altogether. Park and Ride site provide the main access to the stadium with local train and bus travel also included in the price of the match day ticket.

Voted the 4th worst ground in the UK in October 2004 by the Guardian newspaper (Gillingham, Luton and Rotherham coming above the Albion) the Withdean is far from a perfect venue for watching football. But until permission for a new stadium at Falmer is granted Albion fans have to make do with it as do the many thousand visiting fans who have to put up with one of the worst views from an away end in English football.

Facts

Full name	Withdean Stadium
Nickname	Withdean
Capacity	8,850
Pitch size	110 x 75 yards

North Stand Capacity: 1,396

Family Stand (North East) Capacity: 1,068

East Stand Capacity: 600

South East Stand Capacity: 210

South Stand Capacity: 4,676

West Stand (Away end) Capacity: 900

 

Ticket prices

North Stand Centre
Adult: £27.00
Senior Citizens: £18.50
Under-16s: £17.00

North Stand Singing & East Wing
Adult: £25.50
Senior Citizens: £18.00
Under-16s: £16.50

South Stand Centre & Singing
Adult: £24.50
Senior Citizens: £16.00
Under-16: £15.00

South Stand Wings, South East Stand, East Stand
Adult: £23.50
Senior Citizens: £15.50
Under-16: £14.00
Student: 17.00

North East Stand Family
Family Ticket 1+1 (U16): £28.00
Family Ticket 1+1 (U10): £24.50
Additional member of family
Adult: £23.50
Under-16: £14.00
Under-10: £1.00

Away ticket prices

£22.50 Adults
£14.50 Senior Citizens
£16.00 Students (with a valid NUS card)
£13.00 Juniors under 16
£ 1.00 Juniors under 10*
*Juniors under the age of 10 must each be accompanied by a full paying adult in order to purchase a ticket at £1.00. For each full paying adult, a maximum of one under 10 ticket may be purchased.

Tickets are available to purchase in person from the Ticket Office at 5 Queens Road, Brighton; by calling the Ticketline on 01273 776992 or online.

Getting there

By Car: With no parking allowed around the ground all supporters must use the two park and ride sites set up by the club. All tickets will include a travel voucher which entitles you to free use of this service. It’s also gives you free train or bus travel to the ground from the local area.

Mill Road park and ride:

The Mill Road park and ride can be accessed from the A23/A27 turn-off at Patcham and can not be entered from the Hove turn-off of the A27. When you get to the park and ride please hand in all the travel vouchers for everyone in your car to one of the steward.

Mithras house, Lewes Road park and ride:

The Mithras house park and ride is used by fans coming into Brighton from Lewes and can be found on the A270 Lewes Road off the A27. When you get to the park and ride please hand in all the travel vouchers for everyone in your car to one of the steward.

Park and Ride after the match:

You should return to London road which is just through the railway bridge where the buses will ferry you back to your cars. Buses will pick up for 30 minuets after the game and start at 1:00 for Saturdays matched and 6:00 for weekday matches.

By Train: The stadium is 15 minutes walk from Preston Park station which is one stop away from Brighton station. A lot of away supporters go straight into Brighton to use the many pubs and restaurants around the main station and use their travel voucher to get to the ground via Preston Park.

By Bus: Buses number 5 and 5a (every 20 minutes) all stop within walking distance of the ground and again your fare will be covered by the travel voucher on your ticket.

Pubs

The Sportsman

This pub is located at the back of the North Stand. It quite a large pub, but it get very busy on matchdays. A typical chain food pub, but your best bet for pint near the ground.

The Preston Brewery Tap
 

This pub is located on the A23, one mile south of the stadium. The pub is very friendly, but also get crowded on match days. Food is served on matchdays, and there is also a good variety of beers.

In The City Centre
 

This is the best bet for away fans looking to make a day of it. Within walking distance of Brighton’s main train station are loads of great pubs including the Real Ale Evening Star (http://www.eveningstarbrighton.co.uk) with a massive range of beers. Under the station you will also find the Prince Albert another good pub. Stay away from the chain pubs at the bottom of the main road down from the station unless you like Wetherspoons and Yates chav filled establishments.

And to get to the game just head back to Brighton station for the 5 minute train journey to Preston Park and the ground is about a 15 minute walk.