---
title: "Everything You Need To Know About the Emirates Stadium"
description: "A complete visitor guide to Arsenal's Emirates Stadium — capacity, history, transit, the four stands, hospitality tiers, banned items, family stand and away end."
canonical: "https://anyseats.net/blog/everything-you-need-to-know-about-the-emirates-stadium"
type: "blog-post"
topic: "Emirates Stadium visitor guide"
---

# Everything You Need To Know About the Emirates Stadium

The Emirates Stadium has been Arsenal's home since 22 July 2006 and is, with a confirmed capacity of 60,704, the third-largest club stadium in England behind Old Trafford and the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium and the largest of any London Premier League ground other than Wembley. The site sits at Hornsey Road in Holloway, north London, on the redeveloped Ashburton Grove industrial land that the club acquired from Islington Council in the late 1990s as the long-term replacement for Highbury — the ground that had been Arsenal's home since 1913 and which, despite repeated proposals for expansion, was constrained by its surrounding residential streets at a maximum capacity of just under 39,000 in its final all-seater configuration. The Emirates was designed by HOK Sport (now Populous) and built at a published cost of approximately £390 million, opened with a testimonial fixture for Dennis Bergkamp on 22 July 2006, and has hosted Arsenal's home Premier League, Champions League and FA Cup fixtures continuously since. This guide covers the practical detail that a visitor — first-time supporter, travelling away fan or hospitality buyer — actually needs: the four stands, the hospitality tiers from Diamond Club downwards, transit options into Holloway, the family stand, the away end, the banned-items policy, the seat map and the matchday rhythm.

## History — from Highbury to Ashburton Grove
_Why Arsenal moved, and what the move cost_

Arsenal had played at Highbury, formally Arsenal Stadium, since 6 September 1913, when the club moved north of the river from its original Plumstead home. Highbury's capacity peaked above 70,000 in the standing era and was reduced to 38,419 all-seater in the post-Hillsborough conversion of the early 1990s. The mid-1990s success under Arsène Wenger — the doubles of 1997/98 and 2001/02, regular Champions League qualification — meant home fixtures were routinely sold out, and the gap between Highbury's matchday revenue and that of the larger English and continental clubs widened year on year. Proposals to expand Highbury were considered and ruled out by the club because the surrounding residential streets and the listed Art Deco East and West Stand facades effectively prevented any meaningful capacity increase. The club briefly considered taking up residence at Wembley before settling on the Ashburton Grove site in Holloway, around half a mile from Highbury, with planning permission granted by Islington Council in 2001 and ground broken in February 2002. Construction completed in early 2006 with the published total cost at approximately £390 million, financed largely through a long-term debt package that constrained Arsenal's transfer activity for several seasons after opening — a frequently cited factor in the club's transition out of regular Premier League title contention through the late 2000s. The ground was named Emirates Stadium under a 15-year sponsorship arrangement with the Dubai-based airline announced in October 2004; the deal was extended in November 2012 and again in subsequent renewals.

## Capacity and seat layout — the four stands
_60,704 seats across North, East, South and West_

The Emirates Stadium has a confirmed capacity of 60,704, divided across four stands: the North Bank (the home end behind the north goal, traditionally the loudest section of home support and the modern equivalent of the old Highbury North Bank terrace), the Clock End (the south goal end, named after the famous clock that was preserved from Highbury and reinstalled at the new ground), the East Stand (the long stand on the eastern side of the pitch, containing the directors' box and the players' tunnel), and the West Stand (the long stand on the western side). The lower tier and upper tier are separated by the Club Level — the middle tier, sold under multi-year licence to Club Level members — and a thin band of executive boxes above. The lower tier holds approximately 24,000 seats, the Club Level holds approximately 7,000 seats with the directors' box at the East Stand mid-line, and the upper tier holds approximately 26,000 seats. Sightlines across the bowl are uniformly excellent — the design was specifically tuned to ensure that no seat sits more than 50 metres from the touchline at the closest point, and the upper tier rises at a steep gradient that keeps even the back rows close enough to follow play without binoculars. The retained Highbury features include the clock at the south end and the cannon motif worked into the white seats of the lower tier in selected sections, both legacy elements of the 2009 Arsenalisation programme that aimed to restore visible heritage to what had been criticised in the early years as a corporate-feeling bowl.

## Getting to the Emirates — transit options into Holloway
_Holloway Road tube, Arsenal tube, and the surrounding network_

The Emirates Stadium is well-served by the London Underground network with three stations within walking distance. Arsenal station on the Piccadilly Line, formerly Gillespie Road and renamed in 1932 at the request of the club's then-manager Herbert Chapman (the only Tube station in London named after a football club), is around three minutes' walk from the Clock End and is the closest single station; the platforms are constrained by the original 1906 Edwardian design and matchday queueing for the up-platform escalator can be substantial post-match. Holloway Road station, also on the Piccadilly Line, is around five minutes' walk from the West Stand and the East Stand entrance, and is generally the more efficient outbound option after the final whistle because of its higher platform throughput. Finsbury Park station on the Piccadilly and Victoria Lines and the Great Northern mainline is around ten minutes' walk from the West Stand and is the recommended option for supporters travelling from outside London via King's Cross or those preferring the Victoria Line. Drayton Park (London Overground) and Highbury & Islington (Victoria Line and London Overground) are alternative options at ten to fifteen minutes' walk. The 4, 19, 29, 153, 253 and 254 buses all stop on Holloway Road within walking distance. There is no general parking around the stadium; the surrounding residential streets are part of the Islington Council Match Day Parking Zone with bay restrictions enforced through to two hours after the final whistle. Cyclists can lock up at the cycle racks adjacent to the West Stand entrance.

## Hospitality tiers — Club Level, Box Holders, Diamond Club and Tunnel Club
_What you actually get at each price point_

Hospitality at the Emirates Stadium runs across several distinct tiers, from the long-running Club Level membership downwards. The Club Level, the middle tier of seating across all four stands, is sold under multi-year licence (typically four years) and includes a guaranteed seat for every home Premier League, FA Cup, EFL Cup and Champions League fixture, access to dedicated Club Level concourse bars and restaurants pre-match and at half-time, and a higher class of in-seat service. The Executive Box Holder tier — 150 boxes ringing the upper edge of the Club Level concourse, with capacities of 10, 12 or 15 seats — is sold under multi-year licence to corporate buyers and high-net-worth individuals and includes private dining, a dedicated bar, a private balcony for the box, and seats with the box assigned in the bowl. The Tunnel Club, opened in 2017 in response to the success of the equivalent product at Manchester City and Tottenham, is the chef-led tasting-menu hospitality package with views into the players' tunnel through one-way glass and a dedicated lower-tier seating allocation. The Diamond Club, the highest tier of Emirates hospitality, is a small invitation-only members club with the most exclusive in-stadium dining, a dedicated lounge with the most senior club access, and a fixed seat allocation in the East Stand on the directors' box mid-line; membership is multi-year, allocated by waiting list, and the most exclusive single hospitality product on offer at the ground. Single-match hospitality packages including pre-match dining, drinks and a seat allocation are available for most fixtures through the club's hospitality department; pricing for category-A fixtures (Tottenham, Chelsea, Manchester United, Manchester City, Liverpool, Champions League knockout legs) sits at the premium end of the Premier League hospitality market.

## Family stand and accessible seating
_The Family Enclosure, Junior Gunner pricing, and disabled supporter access_

The Emirates Stadium operates a designated Family Enclosure across blocks 25, 26 and 27 in the lower tier of the East Stand, with tickets sold only to confirmed Junior Gunners (Arsenal's under-16 supporter scheme) and an accompanying parent or guardian. Junior Gunner ticket pricing is significantly reduced from the adult equivalent, with prices for under-16s starting from the low £20s and adult-with-junior tickets typically priced at the lower end of the home-end adult band. The Family Enclosure is alcohol-free and stewards enforce a behaviour code suitable for accompanied children. Accessible seating is available across all four stands at the Emirates with wheelchair-bay positions in both the lower and upper tiers, dedicated lifts to all levels, hearing-loop technology in selected sections, audio-description headsets available on request through the Disabled Supporters Association, and a dedicated quiet room for supporters with sensory or autism-spectrum needs. The Arsenal Disabled Supporters Association is the club-recognised organisation representing accessible-supporter interests and operates a year-round consultation route into the club's matchday operations team. Personal-assistant tickets are available free of charge for accompanying carers under Premier League rules. The accessible-supporter parking allocation is limited and must be booked in advance through the ticket office.

## Banned items, security and the gate-entry experience
_What you can and cannot bring, and how the gate process works_

Arsenal operates a published banned-items policy at the Emirates Stadium that is broadly aligned with Premier League and UEFA standards. Items banned from the ground include glass bottles and containers of any kind, alcohol brought from outside the ground, large bags above an A4 footprint (a small handbag or A4-sized bag is generally permitted but is subject to search), professional cameras with detachable lenses, drones of any kind, flares, smoke bombs and pyrotechnics (carrying these into a designated football match is a criminal offence under the Sporting Events (Control of Alcohol etc.) Act 1985), fireworks, knives or weapons of any description, large flags or banners with poles or sticks (cloth flags up to a published size are permitted), and offensive or political-content displays. Bag searches are conducted at every gate by stewards as standard, and security wands are used on a sample basis at higher-category fixtures and on intelligence-led screening. The mobile-entry ticketing system uses rotating QR codes through the Arsenal app or Apple Wallet for most fixtures, with paper tickets retained for some category-A fixtures and away-supporter allocations; the gate scanner reads the live token at the moment of entry, and a static screenshot of an old QR code will fail. Photo ID matching the named ticket holder may be requested at any gate, particularly for tickets that have been transferred via the Ticket Exchange or any unofficial route. Entry opens approximately 90 minutes before kick-off; arrive at least 30 minutes before kick-off to avoid the late-arrival queue at the gate.

## Away end, away supporters and visiting-fan logistics
_Where away fans sit, the dedicated entry, and the post-match exit_

Visiting supporters at the Emirates Stadium are housed in the south-east corner of the lower tier, in blocks 25 to 27 of the Clock End wrapping into the East Stand corner, with around 3,000 seats allocated under Premier League visiting-supporter rules. The away allocation has dedicated turnstile entry separate from home supporters, dedicated concourse bars and food outlets, dedicated toilets, and a managed exit route after the final whistle that filters away supporters out via Drayton Park toward Finsbury Park station rather than through the home-supporter zones around Arsenal and Holloway Road tube. The Champions League and FA Cup allocation can lift to 5,000 or 6,000 seats for higher-category visits depending on the away club's official allocation and the club's hospitality use of the lower-tier corner; visiting clubs receive official Premier League and UEFA allocation entitlements that are confirmed in advance and published by the away club's own ticket office. The pre-match drinking pattern for away supporters at the Emirates differs from that at most grounds because of the residential nature of the surrounding streets — the recommended away-supporter pubs are clustered around Drayton Park and Finsbury Park stations rather than directly adjacent to the ground, and a managed police escort operates for some category-A visiting supporter groups from designated meeting points.

## Food, drink and the in-stadium concourse experience
_Concourse offer, on-site bars, and Arsène's heritage features_

Concourse food at the Emirates runs a range of Arsenal-branded outlets including the Drogba Burger Bar (named in tribute to the long-running Arsenal versus Chelsea fixture context), wood-fired pizza counters, fish-and-chips traditional outlets, vegetarian and vegan options across all four stands, and dedicated coffee outlets pre-match and at half-time. Pricing is broadly in line with central-London matchday venues. The Highbury House restaurant in the West Stand offers a sit-down dining experience for hospitality buyers and is themed around Arsenal's history with selected memorabilia from Highbury on display. The Diamond Club restaurant — the highest hospitality tier — operates a chef-led menu that changes through the season. The various Club Level concourses are open from approximately three hours before kick-off and remain open for around an hour after the final whistle. The general-admission concourses open approximately 90 minutes before kick-off; the queues for the most popular outlets back up significantly in the final 30 minutes before kick-off and through the early stages of half-time. Heritage features visible on the concourses include the Highbury memorial wall, the founding-fathers display in the East Stand entrance hall, and the Arsenalisation art commissioned through the 2009 programme. The Armoury — Arsenal's main retail store — is housed adjacent to the West Stand and is the largest single Premier League club retail outlet in London by floor area.

## Records, memorable matches and notable events
_What has happened at the Emirates since 2006_

The first competitive fixture at the Emirates Stadium was the 2006/07 Premier League opener against Aston Villa on 19 August 2006, which finished 1-1; Olof Mellberg of Aston Villa scored the first competitive goal at the ground after 53 minutes, and Gilberto Silva became the first Arsenal player to score a competitive goal at the ground in the same fixture. The highest attendance for a competitive Arsenal home fixture at the Emirates is 60,383, for the 1-1 Premier League draw with Wolves on 2 November 2019. The lowest recorded competitive attendance for an Arsenal first-team fixture is in the lower 40,000s for a Football League Cup tie against lower-tier opposition. The ground has hosted multiple Champions League knockout fixtures including the famous 2-0 second-leg quarter-final defeat of Bayern Munich in 2017, several FA Cup ties, England under-21 fixtures, and Brazil senior international friendlies. The 2021 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier between South Africa and Nigeria was hosted there during the COVID-19 protocols. Major non-football events have included Bruce Springsteen, Coldplay, Green Day, Muse and Foo Fighters concerts during the close-season summer schedule. The stadium has not hosted an FA Cup final or a major UEFA final, which remain reserved for Wembley.

The Emirates Stadium is a thoroughly modern Premier League home ground with a confirmed capacity of 60,704, an excellent matchday infrastructure across the four stands, a deep hospitality offering from the Club Level membership through the Tunnel Club to the Diamond Club, and a transit pattern that revolves around three Underground stations within close walking distance. The 2009 Arsenalisation programme has restored a meaningful connection to the Highbury heritage that the early bowl design had been criticised for missing, and the matchday experience for both home and visiting supporters is consistently among the most reliable in the Premier League. For first-time visitors the practical advice is to allow an hour from central London door to seat, book through verified channels for any resale ticket, arrive at least 30 minutes before kick-off to clear the gate, and take time before kick-off to walk the concourse — the heritage features are worth the visit on their own.

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