Sport Fanatic Weekend

Sport is All Around

When you come to London will dictate what live sporting action you can see, so we strongly suggest some forward-planning if you want to catch an event. That said, sporting events take place in the capital all year round, so the odds of you seeing something special are pretty high.

Hotels

Touch down

Nostalgic footie fans should stay in Hendon Hall, where England players from the 1966 World Cup squad were in residence before they beat West Germany at Wembley. This splendid, listed Georgian house, set in its own grounds, is full of charm.

Others may prefer the swish Royal Garden Hotel in Kensington, host of the Euro 96 Championship, the Cricket World Cup in 1999 and ICC Champions Trophy in 2004.

Those with more specialist sporting tastes can easily be accommodated too, as where there's a sports arena, there's generally a hotel alongside. Simply explore our areas/sports section to find out all you need to know.

Saturday Morning

The church of football

"Wembley Stadium is the church of football, the capital of football – and it is the heart of football", said the great Pelé. If you aren't lucky enough to catch a game at mighty Wembley, you should still take a tour of the totally awesome brand-new £758m complex.

Afterwards, why not head back to the West End, have lunch and flex those golf muscles at Urban Golf? You can tee off on many virtual world-famous courses from this high tech subterranean hideaway in Soho.

Saturday Afternoon

Don Your Whites for Tennis or Cricket

Jump on a train to Wimbledon and take tour of the recently revamped Wimbledon Lawn Tennis Museum located in the grounds of the tennis club. Cricket fans can stay reasonably central with a tour around Lord's ("The Home of Cricket") or a tour around The Brit Oval.

Saturday Night

Pick a Pocket or Two

How about a game of snooker? London is loaded with pool halls but if you want to keep with the urban vibe, we suggest one of the Elbow Rooms. Good food and drink is served at these atmospheric pool halls, but we also love recommending Frankie's Italian Bar and Grill for a great sporting-themed meal. Now a successful restaurant chain, Frankie's is partly owned by champion jockey Frankie Dettori and does big and brash in a totally addictive way.

Sunday Morning

Work it!

Time to run, sweat or walk off the damage of last night's revelries. So how about horse riding? The best central London stables are the Hyde Park Riding Stables.

If your pounding brain is telling you two legs are good and four legs are bad, a speed walk around the park should help your recovery. Afterwards, if you're very brave (or desperate to win a bet), you could take a dip in the Serpentine. Phew!

Sunday Afternoon

Sport on screen

There's a key fixture you're desperate to catch, but it's not happening in the capital. So, make sure you're installed in a prime spot in the Fiamma Sports Bar & Restaurant, at the Hilton on Edgeware Road. Huge flat screens, a great choice of drinks and snacks - all you need now is for your chosen team to thrash the opposition.