135-year-old stadium set on fire in early hours in suspected arson attack

Mar 3, 2026 - 09:45

Macclesfield have warned locals to stay away from their stadium after it was set on fire.

The National League North side confirmed there had been a suspected arson attempt at Moss Rose in a statement released in the early hours of Tuesday morning.

Macclesfield’s 5,300-capacity ground Moss Rose was subject to a worrying incident

Macclesfield fire — Images of the non league ground engulfed in flames emerged in the early hours of Tuesday morning

In the press release, the club said that emergency services arrived at the scene to tackle the blaze, which had started either on Monday evening or early Tuesday morning.

Footage had emerged on social media of flames coming from the ground, known as the Leasing.com Stadium for sponsorship reasons.

Macclesfield assured fans that the situation was being handled, with no casualties and investigations underway into the cause of the fire.

Fans were urged to avoid the area and locals were told to keep windows shut and not to approach the stadium while emergency services were working.

The club statement read: “Macclesfield FC are aware of a suspected arson attempt at the Leasing.com Stadium in the late hours of yesterday evening/early hours of this morning.

“Emergency services have responded immediately and are on site tackling the blaze in the affected areas.

“Despite understandable concern, we urge everyone to please avoid the area. Anyone nearby to keep windows shut and not to approach the stadium or disrupt the progress of the emergency services.

“We would like to reassure everyone that the situation is under control.

“There are no casualties and investigations are already underway into the cause of the fire.

“We would like to thank everyone for their concern and the timely response of those who alerted emergency services so quickly.

Macclesfield’s home ground was built in 1891, making it one of the oldest in England[/caption]

“Macclesfield FC will be making no further comment at this stage whilst the investigation develops.”

Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service revealed two engines from Macclesfield had attended at the scene, after flames were seen over a wall of the Moss Rose stadium.

They confirmed an outbuilding next to the club’s shop had caught fire.

The service said two firefighters wearing breathing apparatus tackled the blaze using hose reel water jets, and remained at the scene until 4:30am.

Moss Rose is one of the oldest football stadiums in England, being the long-term home of Macclesfield Town from 1891 to 2020 when the club was wound up.

It then became the home of Macclesfield FC.

Macclesfield last played at their home ground a fortnight ago, suffering a 4-1 defeat at home to Fylde on February 24.

Prior to this, the sixth-tier side had captured the nation with their incredible FA Cup run.

They hosted Premier League sides Crystal Palace and Brentford in the competition, beating the holders before being knocked out by the Bees in a spirited 1-0 defeat on February 16.