Leasing.com Stadium

Moss Rose, known as The Leasing.com Stadium for sponsorship reasons, is a football stadium in Macclesfield, Cheshire, England, which is the home ground of Macclesfield F.C., and the former home of Macclesfield Town, a club wound up in September 2020. The stadium, 1 mile (1.6 km) south of the town centre, is on the west side of the A523 London Road. The current capacity is currently restricted to 3,512 by Cheshire East Council. It was built in 1891, making it one of the oldest grounds in England.

History

Moss Rose first hosted Football League action when Chester City played home games at the stadium, between moving from Sealand Road to the Deva Stadium, from 1990 to 1992. The first such match was a 2–1 win for Exeter City on 1 September 1990. Later in the month, Arsenal played at Moss Rose in a Football League Cup tie, winning 1–0. Macclesfield Town was a non-league side at the time and fixtures were arranged so Chester were at home when Macclesfield Town were away and vice versa. The Moss Rose pitch was having to contend with more than 50 first-team matches a season from the two sides.

Despite hosting Football League matches in this period, Macclesfield Town were denied entry to the Football League in 1995 after winning the Football Conference after the stadium requirements were tightened. A reciprocal offer by Chester to allow Macclesfield Town to play at the Deva Stadium while the necessary improvements were made was also rejected by the league. Macclesfield Town were champions again two years later, and the ground was now up to the required standards. Macclesfield Town beat Torquay United in their first home league match on 9 August 1997.