It is approaching 20 years since Rotherham left Millmoor and was left untouched for most of that time.
Now, however, it has been given a new lease of life with football being played again at the stadium where thousands of people used to roar on the Millers.
Millmoor has not seen any professional football since 2008GettyRotherham played their football at the Millmoor Stadium from 1925 to 2008 when a dispute with former owner Ken Booth forced them away.
That dispute was believed to be over rent being charged to play at the ground.
One of the stands remains half-built as it was undergoing renovation at the time Rotherham moved out of the ground.
Millmoor is decaying,” current Rotherham United owner Tony Stewart told the Athletic in 2023. “It’s falling apart.
“It’s a mystery to Rotherham. It’s a mystery to the man on the street.”
He continued: “There were 18 items (demanded by the Booths) I didn’t agree with.
“It would’ve meant that if there was a scratch to a cabinet, I would’ve had to replace all that. I just felt it wasn’t right.”
The club spent four years playing at the Don Valley Athletics Stadium in Sheffield while their new 12,000 seater stadium was being built.
They moved into the AESSEAL New York Stadium in 2012 and have bounced between the Championship and League One over those years.
They have enjoyed five promotions and four relegations since moving to that new ground, and ended last season 13th in the third tier.
The ground has been left untouched and is in disrepairGettyFor Millmoor itself, recent pictures show how it has virtually been left untouched in the years that followed and was described as a ‘ghost ground’.
The YouTuber SYWFootball recently explored the abandoned stadium and even the old boards advertising food and drink are still up.
It shows just how cheap things used to be, with a pie setting you back £2.20 and a sausage roll a mere £1.20.
Millmoor has undergone a transformation of some sorts over the last 12 months with local teams making use of the pitch.
Changing rooms were kitted out, some rubbish cleared and the pitch renovated to make it fit or use.
Those changes were driven, and financed, by Ken Booth Jr, son of the ex-Millers chairman.
Some of the features remain from 2008YouTube“The place was in a sad state,” said Ken Jr.
“We’ had kids breaking in, trying to rip seats out, climbing the floodlight pylon, kicking a ball about.
“It was time for something to be done.”
“We’ve eradicated all the weeds and the rubbish that had built up over nearly 20 years,” he said.
“We’ve had a company in to drill into the pitch and aerate it. It’s had countless tonnes of grass seed and the water sprinkler system has been refurbished.
“The pitch even has a dedicated groundsman now.”
A number of local teams now use the facilities at the ground that used to host professional football for decades.
Read More Details
Finally We wish PressBee provided you with enough information of ( ‘Ghost ground’ – Abandoned EFL stadium left to rot brought back to life )
Also on site :