London City Lionesses have held talks with the Mayor of London’s office over the possibility of hosting matches at the National Sports Centre stadium in Crystal Palace Park.
No agreement has yet been reached for football to return to the park, with sources indicating that talks are at a relatively early stage, but conversations are ongoing with Sir Sadiq Khan’s office about moving to the stadium on Sydenham Hill in south London.
It could more than double the capacity of their home ground, as the NSC ground seats around 15,500 as opposed to their current Hayes Lane stadium, the home of Bromley FC, which has a capacity of around 6,000.
Their highest attendance in their maiden Women’s Super League campaign last season was 5,414 for a 2-0 defeat by Arsenal, while their average gate was 3,000, having moved to the stadium before the 2024-25 season.
The club, which is part of businesswoman Michele Kang’s multi-club portfolio, have aspirations to continue growing, however. It was formed in 2019 as a breakaway from Millwall Lionesses and bought out by Kang in December 2023.
London City have not confirmed the talks and say they have no knowledge of them taking place.
The Athletic has contacted the mayor’s office for comment.
The NSC’s sporting heritage
The NSC first opened in 1964, with seating in the Jubilee Stand completed in 1977 but it is now in a state of disrepair, having seen little investment and giving up its place as London’s premier athletics stadium to the London Stadium in Stratford following the 2012 Olympic Games.
It was the first home of the modern-day Crystal Palace Football Club, formed in 1905 but inspired by an amateur team who first played there back in 1861, and Palace have explored on several occasions to return to the park, including as recently as 2020, before eventually settling on the redevelopment of their existing ground, Selhurst Park, which is now underway after years of delays.
In 1971, the NSC hosted the first women’s FA Cup final, with Southampton defeating Stewarton Thistle 4-1 to claim the trophy.
Football was most recently played at the NSC with Croydon FC, of Division One of the Southern Counties East League (step 10 of the English pyramid), briefly relocating there in 2020, having been prevented from using Croydon Arena by the Covid-19 pandemic.
The park is synonymous with sport, and football was the main draw, with the FA Cup final played in the grounds of the Palace each year from 1895 to 1914.
But the NSC stadium has effectively become a white elephant since athletics moved to east London for the Olympics and beyond, and is in desperate need of rejuvenation.
That could soon arrive, however.
Following a May 2023 pledge from Mayor Khan, a planning application was submitted in March this year for the regeneration of this stadium, including the outside sports pitches and the Grade II-listed indoor centre, with its 50 metre Olympic-sized swimming pool.
A decision is expected on the application in the near future.
