Sport is one of the main reasons tourists visit Britain. After the royal family it’s Britain’s greatest pop culture export with nearly a million football tourists alone visiting the UK every year.
4 must-see destinations in the UK for travelling sports fans
Fans come from all over the world to see everything from the Premier League’s top teams to cricket at Lords, the NFL’s international tour at Wembley, tennis at Wimbledon and the Grand National at Aintree. As sports tourism grows, the UK has become a hotspot all year round.
Aintree
Whether you like betting on horses or not, the Grand National sees everyone reaching for platforms like Unibet (https://www.unibet.com.au/) for a punt on a horse. You might have checked the form guides, the pundits’ predictions, or just stuck some money on a horse with a funny name, but Aintree hosts one of the world’s greatest races taking place across 2½ furlongs and over 30 imposing fences. Its history dates back to 1839 so even if you’re not in the UK on Grand National day, there’s plenty to excite the senses and lots of other races throughout the year.
Lords
This very special venue is almost certainly on the to-do list for any Australian cricket fan visiting the UK. During the summer every four years the Ashes takes place here with the fierce cricketing battle between England and Australia arriving at London’s iconic ground for one of the five matches. Over 200 years of history has been created in this “home of cricket”. The first test was played here in 1884 with the ground used by county championship team Middlesex during the domestic season.
Old Trafford
There are a number of great football stadiums to visit in the UK, from the modern to the 100-year-old. The BBC reported on https://www.bbc.co.uk/ that Arsenal’s Emirates Stadium was one of the most popular in London. However, football has a great history behind it and that’s why you must head up north to experience Manchester United’s Old Trafford. On game day it boasts the Premier League’s biggest crowd by seating over 75,000. On non-match days there’s a brilliant stadium tour to enjoy.
Wimbledon
The All England Club hosts the grass court season’s premier event when Wimbledon rolls round in June. Roger Federer loves it here; he’s won the title a record 8 times (check out his top 5 matches at https://lastwordontennis.com/). It’s where plenty of the sport’s greatest games have been played including where wildcard winner Goran Ivanišević shocked everyone to win in 2001, where Andy Roddick lost an epic battle with Federer in 2009, and where Venus Williams and Lindsay Davenport competed in one of the longest women’s Grand Slam finals ever.
Whether you want to sample a piece of history by visiting the home of Cricket at Lords in London during the summer, or enjoy the action at Old Trafford as Manchester United play in the Premier League in the winter, the UK offers sports tourists year-round entertainment. The rich and diverse nature of professional competition in Britain attracts some of the world’s most talented stars. It’s therefore unsurprising to see it become a hotspot for those who want to expand their sporting experiences.
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