EFL club were relegated after storm tore roof off stadium and forced them to sell stars

Stoke City were once forced to sell their star players after a storm caused £250,000 of damage to their stadium.

The costs of the repairs left the Potters with a threadbare squad the following season, which ended with relegation from the top-flight.

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Stoke had been in the First Division for 14 years prior to their relegation at the end of the 1976/77 campaign.

Meanwhile, they had won the League Cup just four years prior along with two appearances in the UEFA Cup in recent seasons.

However, a freak storm caused major damage to their Victoria Ground home on January 2, 1976.

Grounds for concern

The roof of the Butler Street Stand was blown off in the storm and had to be rebuilt at a cost of £250,000.

Players even saw the damage as they headed to an FA Cup match against Tottenham Hotspur.

Legendary goalkeeper Peter Shilton said: “Nothing had prepared me for the sight that greeted our eyes as the train passed the Victoria Ground. It looked as if a bomb had hit it.

“Parts of the roof lay scattered even on our training ground, some 300 yards away.”

And they found an unlikely ally in rivals Port Vale too.

With a First Division clash with Middlesbrough coming up, a new venue was needed and Vale Park was duly offered and accepted.

And charmingly it saw a late goal hand Stoke City a 1-0 win.

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Stoke count the cost of stadium storm

Stoke were able to end the season in 12th after back-to-back fifth place finishes, but the effects would be felt during the summer.

In order to cover the costs of the repairs, key players Jimmy Greenhoff, Alan Hudson and Mike Pejic were all sold over the course of the campaign.

Shilton would remain until the end of the season, though, after turning down a move to Manchester United.

Manager Tony Waddington, who guided the club into the First Division in 1963 as well as overseeing their League Cup triumph, was left with a depleted squad as a result.

He would go on to leave the club in March 1977, with his assistant George Eastham taking over.

However, with the deadline for signing new players having passed, Eastham was forced to turn to the youth team for reinforcements.

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Stoke would ultimately finish 21st and be relegated by a single point.

Their fate was sealed with a 1-0 defeat at Aston Villa in their final match, having needed a victory to survive.

They joined Tottenham and Sunderland in dropping into the Second Division.

Although they were promoted two seasons later, their subsequent top-flight stay would last just six years this time.

Following relegation in 1985, the club spent 23 years away before promotion to the Premier League.

Stoke have been back in the second tier since 2018 and currently sit ninth in the Championship.

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Stoke’s Victoria Ground

Meanwhile, the club left their famous home in 1997 after over a century at the Victoria Ground.

Once holding up to 56,000 fans, the stadium had a capacity of 25,000 by the time it closed.

Stoke played at the ground for 119 years after moving in following its construction in 1878.

They now play at the Bet365 Stadium, which holds 30,000 fans following an expansion eight years ago.