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Strokestown Road

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
(Redirected from City Calling Stadium)

Bishopsgate
Main stand at the stadium
Map
Interactive map of Bishopsgate
Former names
Strokestown Road, Lissanurlan,[1]
Flancare Park (2001–2012)[2]
City Calling Stadium (2013–2019)[2]
LocationStrokestown Road, Longford, County Longford, Ireland
Coordinates53°43′26″N 7°51′14″W / 53.724°N 7.854°W / 53.724; -7.854
OwnerLongford Town F.C.
Capacity5,097[3] (4,977 seated, 120 standing)[citation needed]
SurfaceGrass
ScoreboardDigital
Public transitLongford railway station
Construction
Built1994[2]
Tenants
Longford Town F.C.

Strokestown Road, known as Bishopsgate for sponsorship purposes since 2019, is a football stadium in Longford, Ireland which is the home of League of Ireland club Longford Town. Originally built in 1994, the stadium was known as Flancare Park from 2001 to 2012, and as City Calling Stadium from 2013 until 2019.[2] It is located on the Strokestown Road (N5 road) to the west of Longford Town.[4]

History

[edit]

Strokestown Road was built in 1994 as the new home ground of Longford Town Football Club. The club moved to the venue from their old ground at Abbeycartron in the summer of 1994.[2] The stadium is owned by the club,[5][6] and it is one of the few League of Ireland grounds to be entirely club-owned.[citation needed]

The stadium underwent a significant redevelopment at the end of 2000–01 season. Prior to this, while containing a good pitch and floodlights, the ground had poor facilities along with two terraced (one uncovered) stands and a single-seater stand. The club's promotion to the Premier Division in 2000 was seen as a catalyst in the redevelopment of the ground to its present-day form. Through the receipt of government and FAI grant aid, it was fully redeveloped into an all-seater stadium by July 2001.[7] The ground's capacity is 5,097.[3]

The ground became known as Flancare Park,[1] after the club's then sponsor Flancare, in early 2001 until the arrangement finished at the end of 2013.[2] During this time the ground held a number of international underage matches, including a 2002 UEFA Under-21 European Championship qualifier against Cyprus.[8] The stadium also hosted three UEFA Cup ties and staged the 2004 League Cup final (which Longford won). It was affectionately referred to by League of Ireland fans as the 'Flan Siro';[9] a play on the name of Flancare Park and on the name of the well-known San Siro stadium in Milan, Italy.

In 2013, the ground was renamed to City Calling Stadium.[2] This name change was related to the club's then newly acquired main sponsor City Calling Group, a recruitment agency.[10] In 2018, the stadium received a 'Pitch of the Year' award from the Football Association of Ireland (FAI).[11] The stadium was selected as a venue for the 2019 UEFA European Under-17 Championship as part of Ireland's hosting of the tournament. Four group stage matches were held at the ground, including a match between England and France on 3 May 2019.[12]

In November 2019, the ground was renamed Bishopsgate after the club's main sponsor.[13] Bishopsgate is a UK-headquartered payroll administration, employment and contractor support services company.[citation needed]

Damage to a stadium wall, which occurred during Storm Éowyn,[14] was the subject of a fundraising campaign in 2025.[15] The damage was repaired by October 2025.[16]

Location

[edit]

Located to the west of Longford town, the ground is situated in the townland of Mullolagher on Strokestown Road (N5) between Longford and Tarmonbarry.[4][17]

References

[edit]
  1. 1 2 "The plane that didn't arrive, the stands that did - The story of Longford Town's maiden European voyage of 2001". extratime.com. 28 March 2020. Retrieved 29 January 2025. Lissanurlan – as it was then known as prior to its name change to Flancare Park – at the turn of the century had little more than four grass embankments [..] Fast forward to 9 August 2001 and an impressive stadium under the new name of Flancare Park had just been built
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "City Calling Stadium". extratime.com. Archived from the original on 12 December 2025. Retrieved 14 July 2026.
  3. 1 2 "Bishopsgate Football Stadium". www.longford.ie. Archived from the original on 15 June 2021. Retrieved 29 April 2021.
  4. 1 2 "Stadium". ltfc.ie. Longford Town Football Club. Archived from the original on 1 January 2012.
  5. ↑ "Longford have faith in future". Irish Independent. 12 May 2001. Retrieved 26 July 2026. [Longford Town] owned its own ground, a 16-acre site just outside Longford on the Strokestown road
  6. ↑ "Longford Town Football Club - Our History". ltfc.ie. Retrieved 26 July 2026. The period [1980s/90s] also saw the club move from their temporary home in Abbeycartron to their new fully owned facility on the Strokestown Road
  7. ↑ "Flancare Park approved to host Euro game". Irish Times. 8 August 2001. Archived from the original on 12 December 2025. Retrieved 25 January 2025.
  8. ↑ "History: Republic of Ireland 3-0 Cyprus | UEFA Under-21 2002". UEFA.com. Retrieved 14 July 2026.
  9. ↑ "Finn Harps 1 - 3 Longford Town". extratime.com. 22 June 2012. Retrieved 29 January 2025.
  10. ↑ O'Flaherty, Deniese. "Longford secure new Stadium sponsor". extratime.com. Retrieved 14 July 2026.
  11. ↑ "Longford Town FC win Pitch of the Year 2018". Longford Leader. 13 November 2018. Retrieved 25 January 2025.
  12. ↑ "Memorable evening as France and England UEFA U17 clash ends in stalemate at pristine City Calling Stadium, Longford". Longford Leader. 4 May 2019. Retrieved 29 January 2025.
  13. ↑ "Bishopsgate Group announced as official club sponsor of Longford Town FC". Longford Leader. 28 November 2019. Retrieved 29 January 2025. The new sponsorship agreement will see Bishopsgate welcomed as the new main sponsor of Longford Town FC, with [..] title rights to the stadium which will now be known as 'Bishopsgate'
  14. ↑ "Longford make fan appeal as storm damage to stadium is assessed". Irish Independent. 27 January 2025. Retrieved 29 January 2025.
  15. ↑ "Longford Town Supporters Club launch fundraiser to repair stadium damage caused by Storm Eowyn". extratime.com. 2 July 2025. Retrieved 4 September 2025. The Red and Black's Strokestown Road venue suffered 'extensive damage' due to the violent winter storm in January [..] But the Longford Town Supporters Club have established a fundraiser to repair the damaged stand
  16. ↑ "Stand Tall – Wall is Built!". ltfc.ie (Press release). 3 October 2025. Retrieved 18 December 2025.
  17. ↑ "Visiting Bishopsgate". ltfc.ie. Longford Town Football Club. Retrieved 29 January 2025.
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