Rob Crossan is a visually impaired travel journalist who has traveled around the UK visiting his favorite vintage football stands and taking photographs.
He told BBC Sport why, as a visually impaired fan, these stands allow him to experience football in a different way, moving to follow the action.
Old-style stands were phased out at Premier League grounds in 1994, a recommendation of the Taylor Report following the Hillsborough disaster in 1989, when 97 fans died in a crush.
Designated standing areas were introduced in 2022 at some Premier League and Championship grounds.
However, on many smaller plots old terraces can still be found.
Rob Crossan – told to Ciaran Varley
I was born with ocular albinism and nystagmus, which leaves me almost completely blind in my left eye and severely visually impaired in my right eye. Nystagmus worsens with age. I can’t drive a car and have trouble seeing anything more than a couple of feet away with true clarity.
When I started going to watch Wrexham in 1991 there was a terraced paddock area below the main stand. My friends and I used to follow the linesman and run up and down the terrace while the game was being played so we could follow the action and see what was happening.
Nowadays, I hate using seats and standing safely as it means I can’t move at all to follow the action. But, at the higher levels of the game, I have no choice.
