London: Arsenal's 93-year-old Highbury stadium has been featured in two movies. Muhammad Ali fought Henry Cooper there 40 years ago, and its Art Deco East Stand is a registered historic building.
Highbury even survived a bomb in World War II.
Now it's time to say goodbye to the 38,500-seat north London landmark, which closes after Sunday's game against Wigan. About 700 luxury apartments will be woven into the stadium's old facades, and a garden square replaces the soccer pitch.
"It's terrible, it's heartbreaking," said June Gosnell, standing at Gillespie Road and Avenell Road the spiritual heart of a neighbourhood, which has surrounded the stadium since it opened in 1913.
A fish and chips shop stands on one corner, 100 meters from the stadium, while 100 meters in the other direction is a London Underground stop named, of course - "Arsenal."
"It's a lovely building, but now we have more followers than you can get in there," Gosnell added. "I think the atmosphere will change. Here it's more for family and friends."
"Some will claim Highbury is a cold, old-fashioned relic of a lost empire with no place in the modern world," Hart said. "There may be some truth in that, but it is also the finest stadium in the Premiership."
The move from Highbury coincides with the finest moment in the club's history - facing FC Barcelona on May 17 in the Champions League final in Paris.
The Gunners will begin playing in the new stadium next season.
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