Arena Națională
Arena Națională (Romanian pronunciation: [aˈrena nat͡sjoˈnalə]) is a retractable roof football stadium in Bucharest, Romania, which opened in 2011, on the site of the original Stadionul Național, which was demolished from 2007 to 2008. The stadium hosts major football matches including home matches of the Romania national football team, and the Cupa României Final. The stadium is also the home of Liga I football clubs FCSB and Dinamo București.
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| Location | 37 Basarabia Blvd., Sector 2, Bucharest, Romania |
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| Coordinates | 44°26′13.95″N 26°09′09.03″E |
| Owner | Municipality of Bucharest |
| Executive suites | 42 |
| Capacity | 55,634 (football)[1] |
| Record attendance | 53,329 (Romania v Netherlands, 16 October 2012) |
| Field size | 105 x 68 m[2] |
| Surface | Grass |
| Construction | |
| Broke ground | 20 February 2008 |
| Opened | 6 September 2011 |
| Construction cost | €234 million[3] (€338 million in 2021 euros)[4] |
| Architect | Gerkan, Marg and Partners |
| Main contractors | Max Bögl Astaldi |
| Tenants | |
FCSB (2015-present) Dinamo București (2020-present) | |
| Website | |
| Official website | |
With 55,634 seats, it is the largest football stadium in Romania. Designed by Gerkan, Marg and Partners, the stadium was built by German firm Max Bögl and Italian firm Astaldi. The stadium has a retractable roof.
A UEFA category four stadium, Arena Națională hosted the 2012 UEFA Europa League Final,[5] and will host four games at UEFA Euro 2020 (including the quarter-finals).[6] The stadium also hosts music concerts.
Construction
The old stadium was demolished between 18 December 2007 and 20 February 2008, although a symbolic removal of seats took place on 21 November 2007, after Romania defeated Albania 6–1 in a qualifying match for Euro 2008.
The construction phase generated some controversy over costs and delays, with Bucharest mayor Sorin Oprescu claiming that the works were 20 weeks behind schedule in May 2009.[7] On 8 October 2009, it was decided that the stadium should also include a retractable roof worth €20,000,000.[8]
Construction was temporarily halted in December 2009 due to unfavorable weather conditions.[9]
Facilities
The venue holds 55,634 people. 3,600 VIP seats are available, with another 126 seats allotted for the press (with a possible expansion to 548 seats). The stadium includes some 360 restrooms and a retractable roof, which can be opened or closed in 15 minutes. It is also endowed with a floodlight system and 2100 parking spaces.[10] The roof design is very similar to that of the National Stadium in Warsaw. These two stadiums also have a similar capacity and age.
Usage
The National Stadium is a Category 4 venue and as such, it hosted the UEFA Europa League 2011–12 final, as announced by UEFA at Nyon on 29 January 2009.[11] It was required to host at least two major events beginning in July 2011, one with an attendance of 10,000 and the second with an attendance of at least 40,000.[10]
History
The official inauguration was initially scheduled for 10 August 2011, and was to feature a football match between Romania and Argentina.[12]
However, on 26 July, Argentina officially cancelled the friendly match after their manager Sergio Batista departed the team, so the stadium was instead inaugurated on 6 September 2011, with a UEFA Euro 2012 Group D qualifier match between Romania and France.[13] The game ended 0–0 in front of a crowd of 49,137.
Notable attendances
The highest audience for a football game was achieved at the 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification match between Romania and Netherlands, hosted on 16 October 2012, which brought 53,329 people to the stadium.[13][14]
The 2nd highest audience was achieved at the UEFA Europa League Final hosted on 9 May 2012. The game between the two Spanish teams, Atlético Madrid and Athletic Bilbao, brought 52,347 people to the stadium.[15]
Association Football
- Notes
- ^ The match was played behind closed doors due to punishment by UEFA.
Romania national football team matches
On 6 September 2011, the Romanian national football team, played the opening match against the French team which ended with a goalless draw, after Argentina cancelled the official inauguration, a friendly match between Romania and Argentina on 10 August 2011.
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Euro 2021 matches
Arena Națională is one of the stadiums that will host matches for UEFA Euro 2020. Three Group C matches and a Round of 16 will be played there (the other matches in that group will be played at the Johan Cruyff Arena).
The following matches will be played at the stadium during the UEFA Euro 2020:
| Date | Time (EEST) | Team #1 | Result | Team #2 | Round | Scorers | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 13 June 2021 | 21:00 |  Austria | – |  North Macedonia | Group C | – | – |
| 17 June 2021 | 15:00 |  Ukraine | – | North Macedonia | Group C | – | – |
| 21 June 2021 | 18:00 | Ukraine | – | Austria | Group C | – | – |
| 28 June 2021 | – | Winner Group F | – | 3rd Group A/B/C | Round of 16 | – | – |
Concerts
| Concerts at Arena Națională | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date | Artist | Tour | Attendance |
| 31 August 2012 |  Red Hot Chili Peppers |
I'm with You World Tour | 47,000 |
| 15 May 2013 |  Depeche Mode |
Delta Machine Tour | 34,729 |
| 17 June 2017 | Kings of Leon |
WALLS TOUR | 35,000 |
| 3 July 2019 | Ed Sheeran |
÷ Tour | 48,044 |
| 14 August 2019 | Metallica |
WorldWired Tour | 50,319 |
| 25 July 2021 | .svg.png.webp){kind=small} Celine Dion |
Courage World Tour[16] | N/A |
Transport
The stadium is served by public transport with buses, trolleybuses, trams and the subway system.
| Transport means | Stadium entrance | Routes |
|---|---|---|
| Transport in Bucharest | Strada Pierre de Coubertin / Peluza I NORD | Trolleybuses routes → 86, 90 – 100 metre walk to stadium entrance Bus routes → 104 – 300 metre walk to stadium entrance Trams routes → 46, 55 – 500 metre walk to stadium entrance Bus routes → 101, 335, N102 – 550 metre walk to stadium entrance Trams routes → 14, 36 – 600 metre walk to stadium entrance Trolleybuses routes → 69, 85 – 1400 metre walk to stadium entrance Bus routes → 143, 682 – 1400 metre walk to stadium entrance |
| Bulevardul Basarabia / Peluza II SUD | Trams routes → 40, 56 – 250 metre walk to stadium entrance Bus routes → N109 – 250 metre walk to stadium entrance Trams routes → 36 – 750 metre walk to stadium entrance Bus routes → 101, 102, 335 – 750 metre walk to stadium entrance Trolleybuses routes → 70, 79, 92 – 800 metre walk to stadium entrance Bus routes → N104 – 800 metre walk to stadium entrance Metro routes → M1: Piața Muncii – 1400 metre walk to stadium entrance Trams routes → 1 – 1500 metre walk to stadium entrance Bus routes → 135, 253, 311, 330 – 1500 metre walk to stadium entrance Metro routes → M1: Costin Georgian – 1500 metre walk to stadium entrance Bus routes → 104 – 1500 metre walk to stadium entrance | |
| Strada Maior Ion Coravu / Tribuna I VEST | Trams routes → 40, 56 – 500 metre walk to stadium entrance Bus routes → N109 – 500 metre walk to stadium entrance Trolleybuses routes → 86, 90 – 600 metre walk to stadium entrance Bus routes → 104 – 600 metre walk to stadium entrance Trams routes → 1 – 1100 metre walk to stadium entrance Bus routes → 135, 311, 330 – 1100 metre walk to stadium entrance Metro routes → M1: Piața Muncii – 1500 metre walk to stadium entrance Trolleybuses routes → 70, 79, 92 – 1500 metre walk to stadium entrance | |
| Strada Socului / Tribuna II EST | Trams routes → 36 – 500 metre walk to stadium entrance Bus routes → 101, 335 – 500 metre walk to stadium entrance Trams routes → 14, 46, 55 – 800 metre walk to stadium entrance Bus routes → 104 – 850 metre walk to stadium entrance Bus routes → 102, N109 – 950 metre walk to stadium entrance Trams routes → 40, 56 – 950 metre walk to stadium entrance Bus routes → 253 – 1400 metre walk to stadium entrance Bus routes → N104 – 1500 metre walk to stadium entrance Trolleybuses routes → 70, 79, 92 – 1500 metre walk to stadium entrance |
References
- Am cucerit Europa şi-n tribune! – Steaua – Chelsea a fost urmărit de cei mai mulţi suporteri dintre meciurile din optimile Europa League
- Finalizarea Arenei Naționale Archived 22 January 2012 at the Wayback Machine
- Național Arena costa 119 milioane de euro și a ajuns la 234!
- Harmonized Index of Consumer Prices: All Items for Romania
- "Naţional Arena – primul stadion din România care va găzdui o finală de cupă europeană" (in Romanian). Mediafax. 29 January 2009.
- "Cum poți cumpăra bilete pentru Euro 2020! 4 meciuri se vor juca pe Arena Națională" (in Romanian). Digi Sport. 12 June 2019.
- "Oprescu atacă: "Lucrările la stadionul 'Național' sunt în întârziere cu 20 de săptămâni"" (in Romanian). Prosport. 22 May 2009.
- "Stadionul Național va avea acoperiș retractabil de 20 milioane euro" (in Romanian). Gazeta Sporturilor. 14 October 2009.
- "Oprescu: "Stadionul Național va fi gata în decembrie 2010!"" (in Romanian).
- "TRIMIŞI AI FORULUI DE LA NYON AU FOST ACUM DOUĂ SĂPTĂMÎNI LA BUCUREŞTI – Ultimatum UEFA" (in Romanian). Gazeta Sporturilor. 14 January 2010.
- "2012 final: National Stadium, Bucharest". UEFA.
- "De acum e sigur, România – Argentina se va juca pe 11 august 2011" (in Romanian). GSP TV. 26 October 2010.
- "Mircea Sandu: "Facem inaugurarea stadionului Național cu Franța"" (in Romanian). Evenimentul Zilei. 30 July 2011.
- "Romania vs Netherlands – 16 octombrie 2012 – Soccerway". Ro.soccerway.com. 11 January 2012. Retrieved 24 November 2012.
- Atlético Madrid-Athletic Bilbao
- https://www.celinedion.com/in-concert/
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to National Arena. |
| Preceded by Aviva Stadium Dublin |
UEFA Europa League Final venue 2012 |
Succeeded by Amsterdam Arena Amsterdam |
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