There is something quietly charming about the idea of supporters — those who have queued in the rain for a pie, crammed into ageing seats, and navigated labyrinthine one-way systems — stopping to leave a star rating for a football ground as though it were a boutique hotel. Yet, as it turns out, enough of them do exactly that to generate a rather revealing picture of English football's bricks and mortar.

The question was first posed by the Guardian's Will Unwin, who noted that Hull City's MKM Stadium carries a 4.3-star rating from more than 3,600 Google reviews and wondered, quite reasonably, which ground sits at either extreme. Step forward Pete Tomlin, who took it upon himself to search every Football League home ground individually, recording each rating and review count in what may be the most dedicated piece of football research conducted outside of a scouting department.

Anfield leads the way

The headline finding is unlikely to surprise anyone who has made the pilgrimage to Merseyside: Anfield tops the overall rankings with a rating of 4.7 stars from a remarkable 54,546 votes. Only two other grounds have matched that 4.7 figure — the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, with 26,545 votes, and Nottingham Forest's City Ground, which achieves the same mark from a considerably more modest 2,245 reviews.

Where ratings are tied, Tomlin sensibly used the volume of votes as a tiebreaker, reasoning that a larger sample carries more statistical weight. On that basis, Spurs pip Forest to second place, though the East Midlands club's presence in the elite tier is a reminder that Forest's resurgence on the pitch has been accompanied by genuine warmth from visiting supporters.

Just behind on 4.6 stars sits a cluster of the game's grandest venues: Old Trafford, the Emirates, the City of Manchester Stadium, Stamford Bridge, St James' Park, and Elland Road. All nine of the top-rated grounds in the study are Premier League clubs, which will surprise nobody — bigger crowds, more international visitors, and more opportunities to leave a glowing review after a bucket-list experience.

The Championship and below

Lower down the pyramid, the picture becomes more nuanced. The highest-rated Championship ground is Wolverhampton Wanderers' Molineux, placed 11th overall with a 4.6 rating from 7,408 votes. Interestingly, League One contributes the 10th-best ground in the entire study: Leicester City's King Power Stadium, which retains its 4.6-star average from 7,573 reviews despite the Foxes dropping into the second tier. The rating reflects years of accumulated reviews during Leicester's Premier League and European adventures rather than any immediate judgement on life in the Championship.

In League Two, Exeter City's St James' Park — a ground that shares its name with Newcastle's famous home — claims the division's top spot, sitting 31st overall on 4.5 stars, albeit from just 246 votes.

The grounds at the other end

At the lower end, the range is narrower than one might expect. Tomlin notes that no ground scores below 4.0, which suggests that even the most functional, wind-battered stadiums inspire at least a degree of affection. Hull City's MKM Stadium is the lowest-ranked Premier League ground on 4.3 stars. QPR's Loftus Road fares worst among Championship sides, sitting 85th in the overall table with a 4.1 rating.

Only two grounds across the entire Football League sit at the 4.0 floor: Oxford United's Kassam Stadium and Stevenage's SPORTA Arena, the latter of which Tomlin identifies, with evident self-deprecation, as his own club's home. That Stevenage's ground accumulates just 350 votes compared to Anfield's 54,546 speaks in spades to the difference in footfall — and perhaps in expectations — between the top flight and League Two.

What does a Google rating actually tell us?

It would be unwise to read too much into any of this. Google ratings are skewed by tourist traffic, recency bias, and the simple fact that a 5-0 home win tends to make a stadium feel rather more palatial than the architecture warrants. That said, as a rough barometer of how grounds are perceived by those who visit them — whether regular season-ticket holders or first-time travellers — the data is a genuinely enjoyable snapshot of English football's landscape in 2026.

Anfield at the summit. Stevenage at the foot. In its own peculiar way, that feels about right.

FAQs

  • Which English football stadium has the highest Google rating? Anfield, home of Liverpool, tops the list with a 4.7-star rating from over 54,000 Google reviews, making it the highest-rated Football League ground in the study.
  • Which football ground has the lowest Google rating in the Football League? Two grounds share the lowest rating of 4.0: Oxford United's Kassam Stadium and Stevenage's SPORTA Arena, placing them joint-last across all 92 Football League clubs.
  • How were the stadium Google ratings compiled? Supporter Pete Tomlin manually searched every Football League home ground on Google, recording each club's star rating and total number of reviews, using review volume as a tiebreaker where ratings were level.

Frequently asked

Which English football stadium has the highest Google rating?
Anfield, home of Liverpool, tops the list with a 4.7-star rating from over 54,000 Google reviews, making it the highest-rated Football League ground in the study.
Which football ground has the lowest Google rating in the Football League?
Two grounds share the lowest rating of 4.0: Oxford United's Kassam Stadium and Stevenage's SPORTA Arena, placing them joint-last across all 92 Football League clubs.
How were the stadium Google ratings compiled?
Supporter Pete Tomlin manually searched every Football League home ground on Google, recording each club's star rating and total number of reviews, using review volume as a tiebreaker where ratings were level.