Lancaster Park was a historic sports venue with a rich history.
Opened in 1881, it became a prominent site for rugby, cricket, and various other sporting events including tennis, swimming, horse racing, hockey, rugby league, football, Australian rules, softball and baseball. It also played host to royal visits, concerts, ballooning, marching and jamborees. The ground had a cinder track to allow athletics and cycling to take place.
The very first New Zealand cricket team played against New South Wales there in 1894.
During World War I, in an effort to keep the grounds open it was turned into a potato farm.
In the 1920, Lancaster Park First World War memorial gates were erected with a plaque that reads: `To Commemorate the Glorious Deeds of the Athletes of this Province in the Great War Aug. 1914-Nov. 1918'. These gates were retained throughout later development of the park.
Many years later with the growth of professional sports and sponsorships, the park become known as Jade Stadium then AMI Stadium. It was the home of the local Canterbury Crusaders rugby team.
The park hosted the All Blacks 48 times in test matches between 1913 and 2010. Other internationals included rugby matches during the 1987 Rugby World Cup.
Throughout the 1980's to early 2000's, the park was a venue for concerts - the largest one being when a crowd of 64,000 fans turned out to see Dire Straits perform in 1986.
However, the park faced significant damage due to the 2011 Christchurch earthquake, which led to its closure. After years of deliberation, the decision was made to demolish the damaged stadium in 2019.
https://my.christchurchcitylibraries.com/the-origins-of-lancaster-park/