Nelson Road is a fictional football stadium in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames featured in the Apple TV+ series, Ted Lasso. It is the stadium for AFC Richmond and according to Arlo White, Richmondites simply call it The Dog Track.
The “Dogtrack” or “Dogpound”, as named by the supporters, is the official home ground of AFC Richmond. The supporters have a love-hate relationship with the stadium itself, however, according to many supporters, it's very important with the community.
Ted and Beard arrived at Nelson Road Stadium
The History[]
During World War I, their stadium was used as a field hospital. And then in November 1914, posters went up around Richmond area, soliciting men to try out for a football team.
The men were duped; it wasn't for a football tryout, but there were recruiters waiting to encourage those boys to fight the World War I. There were 400 lads enlisted and they had their physical at the treatment room in Nelson Road Stadium. A lot of those brave soldiers didn't come home from the war, and ever since then, the players always thought that the treatment room is cursed.
The Office[]
When Rebecca Welton takes the ownership of the club from her ex-husband Rupert Mannion, she is removing his expensive decorations from the office with the help of her assistant Leslie Higgins. Her office is overlooking the training field where she can open a window and yell whenever she wants it, and she can watch everyone there.
Her office contains wall-to-wall dark carpet with a big desk and a private bathroom. Higgins spends so much time in the office since he used to work with Rupert. Keeley Jones also spent a lot of time lounging in the huge long couch and using her smartphone, and she also admits that she used Rebecca's office whenever she isn't around because it smells better.
The Grass Metaphor[]
"It's a metaphor."
When two American coaches from USA named Ted Lasso and Coach Beard arrived at the stadium, Beard explains the history of British football but his friend gets distracted by the football field's grass. As Ted touches the grass and say that the grass feel different, Beard claims that it's a metaphor.
Their conversation is cut short when Nathan Shelley yells at them to keep off the grass. However, once he finds out that the two Americans are the new manager and coach, he immediately takes them to see Rebecca and Leslie at her office.
The Pitch and Earl Greyhound Training Facility[]
The pitch behind the stadium
The training pitch is located behind the main field, and Ted with Beard watches the team to get to know more about the players such as Jamie Tartt, Sam Obisanya, Isaac McAdoo, and Colin Hughes. Before the American coaches arrived, George managed the team. But he was mostly lazy, and the training usually being handled by his assistant coaches; Coach Armada and Coach Tony. Coach Armada often yells in Spanish and Coach Tony collects the balls with Nate and Trevor.
When they are having a 'ghost cleansing' ritual ceremony, they are moving the bin from inside to the pitch so they throw items into it that means something to them and pay respect to prospective footballers and soldiers who fought in the war and had sacrificed things close to them, and then burn the items. They surrounds the burning bin and sings "Richmond 'Till We Die" together, making AFC Richmond truly united.
The pitch is a bit smaller than the main field but still big enough to have a helicopter lands there. Edwin Akufo lands his helicopter while the team is practicing their dance choreography, and leave it there for a few days which makes the players unable to train.
The training facility honors their mascot Earl Greyhound who died after accidentally got killed during a match. The stadium decided to renamed their building after the dog.
The Locker Room and The Shower Room[]
The locker room is where the players change their uniforms, and usually Nate collects them after training by wheeling a basket and everyone can throw their sweaty kits. However, the locker room is also a place where players behaving like jerk children as they usually bullied Nate. The shower room is where they take a shower after training or a game, and before Ted's arrival, the players had complain that the water from the showers were slow. When Ted fixed the shower heads, the players can now enjoying their showers.
Beard puts a framed diagram of "Inverting the Pyramid of Success" on the wall, based on the book he also read on the plane. Beard then hands Ted a roll of tape so he can stick a 'BELIEVE' poster on the wall above their office door. The locker room has a simple open wardrobes and benches with numbers and the names of the players on top of their lockers, with a huge bench in the middle of the room.
Unfortunately, a tragic event interrupts the penalty as AFC Richmond's mascot Earl runs after a bird near the goal post. As Dani Rojas kicks the ball, it hit the dog and killed it. The tragedy leaves Dani traumatized as he prays and cries in the shower with water running all over him while he is still wearing the uniform.
The Gym Room[]
The players spends mostly training with weights or even having some casual exercise. Sam usually doing a bicycle routine while reading some books or on his phone. Colin Hughes chokes twice during a bench-press, and goalkeeper Tom O'Brien along with center defender Paul Reynolds usually doing their glutens exercise.
The Treatment Room[]
The Press Room[]
Rebecca takes Ted to a tour around the stadium area and shoves him to a press conference. Ted is overwhelmed by the questions from the journalists and reporters such as Trent Crimm, Marcus, and Lloyd who disapprove with the hiring of American coaches who don't know anything about UK Football.
Lloyd and journalists who sit in front then accidentally get sprayed by Ted when he drinks his fizzy water.
After AFC Richmond's first game of the Championship season ends in tragedy when Dani Rojas accidentally killed the team's mascot Earl during a penalty kick, Trent Crimm asks Ted for a statement. Ted responds with a touching story about when he lost his dog Hank, and how something can make you cry while it exists and even when they're gone.
The Receptionist Area[]
The Trophy Area[]
The Parking Lot[]
Trivia[]
- In real life, the stadium is in fact Selhurst Park, the home of Crystal Palace FC.
- It has 12 rows on the side seats.