FOREST HISTORY · Historic event
City Ground floodlights debut
On this day in 1961 Forest use permanent City Ground floodlights for the first time.
Permanent floodlights changed the feel of the City Ground when Nottingham Forest faced Gillingham in the League Cup.
The match gave Forest supporters their first official use of the new lighting system, bringing a different atmosphere to football beside the Trent. Evening football had its own rhythm: the darker surroundings, the sharper pool of light on the pitch, and the sense of a midweek match becoming an occasion in itself.
Forest marked the night with a 4-1 win over Gillingham. Vowden scored twice, with Addison and Booth also on the scoresheet, making the floodlit debut a successful one on the pitch as well as a notable moment for the stadium.
For the City Ground, the installation of permanent floodlights was more than a technical upgrade. It changed what the ground could host and how matches could feel. The Gillingham game became part of the stadium’s development story: a practical facility improvement, but also a small shift in the matchday experience supporters would come to know.
Sources
City Ground history; 1961–62 English football diary; Smart Travel stadium guide
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