The 2021 European Cup kicked off at 3 a.m. on June 12. This is the first time that the European Cup will be held in stadiums in 11 different cities. The 11 cities are London, Munich, Baku, St. Petersburg, Rome, Copenhagen, Amsterdam, Bilbao, Budapest, Bucharest, and Glasgow. Let’s take a look at these 11 stadiums one by one. Which one is your favorite stadium?
Wembley Stadium: Also known as the England National Football Stadium, it is the final venue for the England national team and the England Cup. The Wembley Stadium was first built in 1923 and was overthrown and rebuilt in 2000. It was completed in 2007. It cost 780 million pounds and can accommodate 90,000 people. It is the largest professional football stadium in Europe.
Allianz Arena: Bayern Munich’s home stadium, which can accommodate 75,000 people, and has also hosted many important international events. The Allianz Stadium is one of the most modern stadiums in Europe. From a distance, the Allianz Stadium is like a huge rubber dinghy, with many airbag-like structures wrapped around a white ellipsoid, which is full of modernity.
Baku National Stadium: Baku is also the easternmost venue of this European Cup. The Baku National Stadium is a retractable roof football field located in Baku, Azerbaijan. It was completed in 2015 and can accommodate 68,700 people. The main user of the Baku National Stadium will be the Azerbaijan National Football Team.
Zenit Stadium: Rebuilt on the Kirov Stadium, it can accommodate nearly 70,000 people. Taking into account the weather conditions in St. Petersburg, the stadium will be designed as a circular dome supported by eight masts, which can also be used for football matches in inclement weather. In order to protect the turf on the stadium, the stadium is designed to be mobile.
Rome Olympic Stadium: Built for the 1960 Olympic Games, it was opened on May 17, 1953 and can accommodate 72,698 spectators. At present, it is the stadium shared by Lazio and Roma. The fans of the two teams occupy the north and south stands of the stadium, forming a unique landscape.
Parken Stadium: The full name is the Parken Stadium in Copenhagen, Denmark. It was built in 1990 and completed two years later. It can now accommodate 42,305 fans. It is the home stadium of the Copenhagen Football Club (FCK) and the Danish national football team.
Cruyff Arena: (Formerly Amsterdam Arena) was built in 1993 with a capital of 140 million euros. With a capacity of 53,500 people, the stadium has been the home of the traditional Dutch powerhouse Ajax since 1996. The stadium is also one of the venues for the 2000 European Football Championship.
Cartuja Olympic Stadium: The original European Cup in Spain was held at the San Mamés Stadium in Bilbao. Due to the Basque government’s epidemic prevention regulations, fans of the European Cup are not allowed to enter the San Mamés Stadium to watch the match. The United selected the Kartuha Olympic Stadium as the European Cup arena. It is a multi-purpose stadium located in Seville, Spain.
Bucharest National Stadium: It is the home stadium of the Romanian National Team and the Bucharest Stars. It can accommodate 55,600 people after being rebuilt in 2005. It is Romania’s first “four-star” stadium to meet UEFA regulations.
Puskas Stadium: Named after the legendary Hungarian superstar Puskas, the new Puskas Stadium has just been completed and can now accommodate 68,000 people. Initially, the budget for the renovation of the stadium was 35 billion forints (approximately 112 million euros). But by the time the project was completed, this number had increased to about 190 billion forints (about 610 million euros), making it one of the most expensive stadiums in Europe.
Hampton Park: Although there are two strong teams of Glasgow Rangers and Celtics in Glasgow, Hampton Park is not the home of these two clubs. Hampton Park is currently owned by the Scottish National Shared by the Glasgow team and the Glasgow Queens Park team.
The stage is set up, but the most important thing is the competition itself. I hope this long overdue European Cup will bring more joy and surprises to fans around the world.