Because I’ll be headed to London in about two weeks, I want to take the opportunity in this blog to research the feasibility of a side quest that I’ve been planning for quite some time. I’ve been a soccer (football) fan for about 10 years, which roughly coincides to when I began playing soccer in elementary school. I continued to play through high school, but dropped the activity when I entered college: my time is more frequently spent on academic and musical endeavors these days, in addition to the Blue Band’s grueling fall practice schedule.
Concurrently, I’ve supported my boys in claret and blue, West Ham United, through it all. When I was younger, I was BIG into FIFA, a popular soccer video game. My favorite YouTuber at the time (SpencerFC) was a West Ham United fan, so naturally, I latched onto them from the get-go. Only later did I come to learn that West Ham, while a popular side, are know for being perpetual underdog favorites of the East London working-class crowd — not necessarily of the same repute as Manchester United or FC Barcelona that soccer fanatics from North America all too often flock towards.
All of this contextual info brings me to the point of this blog: to chart a course that hits every Premier League stadium in Greater London using only public transportation. A final bit of info:
- The journey will start and end at Farringdon Station (about a five-minute walk from my apartment)
- I’ll be visiting every Premier League stadium in Greater London, so all 32 boroughs (and the City of London) are fair game – not just those in and around Central London
- I have to visit Wembley Stadium, even though it’s not a Premier League home ground — rather, it’s the home of the England national football team
- All forms of public transport are valid: tube, Overground, bus, etc.
London Stadium (West Ham United)
Our first stop is coincidentally the new home of my team, West Ham. Situated in East London, their stadium was built to accommodate the opening ceremony and track & field events for the 2012 Olympic Games. An Elizabeth line train from Farringdon to Stratford will take ~25 mins. plus a 10-15 min. walk to the actual stadium grounds.
Tottenham Hotspur Stadium
The next stop on the circuitous route around London is the home of Tottenham Hotspur FC. Completed in 2019, it is one of the newest stadiums in the Premier League. It is also home to yearly NFL games, which will feature the Buffalo Bills and Tennessee Titans sometime during the 2023 NFL season. We’ll take the Overground, London’s suburban rail network, to White Hart Lane, transferring at the eponymously named Hackney Central to Hackney Downs. All told, this is one of the longer legs, clocking in at a total of 50 minutes from stadium to stadium.
Emirates Stadium (Arsenal)
This is where it started to become difficult to chart the most optimal route. Tottenham is the northernmost top flight stadium in London by a decent margin, so we have to retrace our steps a little bit here on our way to North London rival, Arsenal. As a West Ham fan, I’ve always had an understated respect and appreciation for Arsenal, so this is one that I’m really looking forward to. We’ll start again at White Hart Lane station and take the Overground south to Seven Sisters Overground station before transferring to the Seven Sisters tube station on the Victoria line. We’ll then ride this for two stops until reaching Finsbury Park, where we’ll either walk to the stadium (~15 mins.), or transfer to the Piccadilly line and ride one stop to Arsenal tube station, which is only steps away from the Emirates.
Wembley Stadium
Next is a rather straightforward trip on the Underground to Wembley Stadium, probably the most famous stadium in England. We can go back to Arsenal tube station and take the Piccadilly line for three stops to King’s Cross St. Pancras tube station in Central London and transfer to the Metropolitan line and ride another 5 stops to Wembley Park. From here, it’s a 12 minute walk to the stadium.
Gtech Community Stadium (Brentford)
The home of likely the least-known team on this list, Brentford Football Club, Gtech Community Stadium is brand new, having been completed in 2020. It’s also the westernmost stadium on this list, and just a bit south of Wembley Park. It’s about a 20 min. walk from Wembley Stadium to Wembley Central Station, where we’ll board the Bakerloo line for 3 stops before exiting at Willesden Junction and transferring to the Overground. From here, we’ll ride 3 more stops to Gunnersbury, which is about 14 mins. away from the stadium by foot.
Craven Cottage (Fulham)
At this point, we’ve made it to a string of grounds located close together in West London. Craven Cottage, the home of Fulham Football Club, is one of the nation’s oldest stadiums. To get there, we’ll walk back to Gunnersbury and board the District line bound for Upminster and exit at Earl’s Court, and then transfer at Earl’s Court for another District line train, this time bound for Wimbledon (this is all a bit confusing), which we’ll take for 4 stops until arriving Putney Bridge. From here, it’s about 15 mins. to the stadium on foot.
Stamford Bridge (Chelsea)
Possibly the most famous stadium in London (other than Wembley), Stamford Bridge has been host to many nights of top-class soccer. Fulham and Chelsea are also incredibly close together, making this a tough transport decision. The walk is ~30 mins., which may be a nice option depending on the weather conditions. It’s also about 24 mins. and two stops from door to door on the District line, which I’ll tentatively choose for now.
Selhurst Park (Crystal Palace)
I believe this is the furthest journey on the route, and it also happens to be the last. Selhurst Park is a double for the home of AFC Richmond in the Apple TV series Ted Lasso, which many of you may know. It’s also just very far from Central London, meaning we’ll have to take a Southern Railways train from Imperial Wharf, about 15 mins. from Stamford Bridge, south to Selhurst railway station. The stadium is ~10 mins. away on foot.
Return to Farringdon
To finally get back to my apartment, which is in Central London, we can simply board Thameslink at Norwood Junction, a short walk from Selhurst Park, which goes direct to Farringdon station, only a few blocks from where I’ll be staying. And, I’ll have visited every Premier League stadium in a day — goal accomplished!
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