Bodymoor Heath | |
Former names | Recon Training Complex |
---|---|
Location | Bodymoor Heath Warwickshire |
Coordinates | 52°34′7″N 01°43′14″W / 52.56861°N 1.72056°W |
Owner | Aston Villa F.C. |
Type | Sports training facility |
Surface | Grass pitches (9) Synthetic turf (2) |
Construction | |
Built | 1970s |
Expanded | 2007 (complete redevelopment) 2020 (academy & performance centre) |
Construction cost | Total: £27+ million |
Tenants | |
Aston Villa F.C. |
Bodymoor Heath Training Ground is Aston Villa Football Club's training ground, located at Bodymoor Heath in the North Warwickshire district of Warwickshire, England. The site was purchased from a farmer by then Aston Villa Chairman Doug Ellis in the early 1970s. The ground is situated near Fazeley, in the Tame Valley, by the side of the Birmingham and Fazeley Canal, a short distance from Drayton Manor Theme Park and Middleton Hall. It lies close to The Belfry Golf Club, Middleton Lakes RSPB reserve and Kingsbury Water Park, just a few hundred metres from the M42 link to Tamworth and Birmingham.
Many of the past and present Aston Villa players have taken up residence in the area, one of the more rural parts of the Midlands, enabling them speedy travel to training sessions. The training ground houses both the first-team and the youth academy.
The facilities at Bodymoor Heath are also used as the home ground for the academy teams using provided pitches and changing rooms. The Under-23s previously played at Villa Park, although the construction of a 500-seater match complex in 2019 allowed for all of the academy teams to play within the training ground.[1]