Wembley Stadium - Press Releases

Press Releases

Wembley time capsule pays tribute to a glorious past and an exciting future

4th December 2005

Today, Jermain Defoe, Lord Norman Foster and Sir Trevor Brooking will be among a number of special ambassadors at a ceremony to celebrate the burial of the Wembley Stadium Time Capsule. The capsule, filled with a series of significant mementoes carefully chosen by selected ambassadors, will represent the important and varied role that Wembley Stadium has had on the lives of people in Britain over the last century.

With the stadium on course to stage the 2006 FA Cup Final as its first scheduled match, the event will take place at the centre spot where the one metre diameter sphere capsule will be lowered beneath the pitch.

The burial of the time capsule marks the beginning of the construction of the Wembley pitch - an important milestone in the development of the new Stadium. The pitch, to be made up of an underlying web of heating and drainage pipes, will be completed next year and the hallowed turf, currently being grown in a secret location in England, will then be brought to Wembley. Today is a window of opportunity to bury the time capsule before the pitch area is sealed off.

Time capsule

Other ambassadors to select items to go in the time capsule include 1966 World Cup Final hat-trick hero Sir Geoff Hurst, music promoter Harvey Goldsmith, London 2012 Chairman Sebastian Coe and Richard Lewis Executive Chairman of the Rugby Football League. Lucky prize winners selected by The Sun and Newsround will also contribute items along with representatives of popular football show Soccer AM. Other mementoes have been selected by the Stadium’s family of sponsors - Microsoft, Betfred and npower, as well as the Stadium’s stakeholders – The FA, Sport England, The London Development Agency and the Department of Culture Media and Sport.

In light of the sad loss of George Best last week, Wembley Stadium has chosen to celebrate his legendary football career by including a replica 1968 Manchester United shirt (kindly donated by MUFC museum) in the time capsule. Best’s performance in the win over Benfica in the 1968 European Cup Final is arguably one of his most inspirational performances in a match that is one of the true highlights of Wembley’s rich footballing history.

Time capsule ambassadors

Each memento will be sealed in a special revolutionary air tight anti-oxygen sack to prevent corrosive damage, before being locked into the time capsule. Mementoes have been selected to reflect the following areas:

· Old Wembley

· New Wembley

· 1966 World Cup

· England Football at Wembley

· The FA Cup

· ‘The Best at Wembley’

· Football League

· Rugby League

· Olympics

· Music at the Stadium

· Life in England in 2005

(further information on these items is included within this press pack)

Wembley Stadium Chief Executive, Michael Cunnah said:

“This occasion marks and celebrates all that Wembley Stadium stands for and also marks an exciting milestone in the construction of the new Stadium. It has always been – and will always be – a British institution. By burying these significant items in the capsule, we are paying homage to all the activities that are synonymous with Wembley Stadium. This tribute to what will arguably be the greatest stadium in the world reflects the impact it has had on England’s past and our hopes for it in the future.”

Items going into the time capsule are:

Piece of Twin Towers

Original signed drawings of new Stadium by Lord Foster

Multiplex hard hat

New Wembley Old Magic brochure

Miniature wire frame model of the Stadium

Artist’s impression of the Whitehorse Bridge in Wembley

DVD recording of 1966 World Cup Final signed by Sir Geoff Hurst

125th Anniversary FA Cup ball

Document detailing England football at Wembley and signed current England shirt

London 2012 Back the Bid memorabilia and footage of 1948 London Olympics

Great Britain Rugby League jersey, Laws of the Game booklet and picture of last Challenge Cup Final at Wembley