Photo: UEFA
DUESSELDORF, Germany, Sunday (10 June ) The European Championship in Germany is all about tried and tested stadiums with a rich football history. Unlike recent World Cups, there's been no rush to finish stadiums on time. All but one of Germany's 10 venues hosted games at the 2006 World Cup and none have undergone major changes. All capacities are given in the all-seated configuration used for Euro 2024, meaning the figure is typically lower than for club games where many fans can stand.
Here is a brief of the 10 stadiums and all of the games taking place at each:
OLYMPIASTADION
City: Berlin
Capacity for Euro 2024: 71,000
Games: Spain vs. Croatia (June 15), Poland vs. Austria (June 21), Netherlands vs. Austria (June 25), one game in the round of 16 (June 29), one quarterfinal game (July 6), the final (July 14).
Built for the 1936 Olympics under Nazi rule, the Olympiastadion was renovated to host the 2006 World Cup final and also held the Champions League final in 2015.
At club level, it's the home of the German Cup final each season and also hosts home games for second-division Hertha Berlin.
The Olympiastadion had a cameo appearance in this season's Champions League when Union Berlin trekked westward from its home in East Berlin to host games. The idea was for more fans to be able to watch, though not all of them were happy about playing at the home of their cross-town rival.
MUNICH FOOTBALL ARENA
City: Munich
Capacity for Euro 2024: 66,000
Games: Germany vs. Scotland (June 14), Romania vs. Ukraine (June 17), Slovenia vs. Serbia (June 20), Denmark vs. Serbia (June 25), one game in the round of 16 (July 2), one semifinal game (July 9).
Better known as the Allianz Arena for Bayern Munich games — stadium sponsorships are banished for the tournament — this stadium will host the opening game of Euro 2024 as Germany takes on Scotland on June 14.
It was home to the German league champion 11 years running until Bayer Leverkusen finally ended Bayern Munich's reign this season. The stadium opened in 2005 and was originally shared by Bayern and its local rival 1860 Munich, but 1860 sold its share due to financial problems, moved out and now plays in the third division. The stadium's location on the outskirts of Munich can mean long queues for trains back into town.
The arena branched out when it hosted Germany's first regular-season NFL game in 2022 when the Tampa Bay Buccaneers beat the Seattle Seahawks 21-16. It's due to host a Carolina Panthers game later this year.
BVB STADION DORTMUND
City: Dortmund
Capacity for Euro 2024: 62,000
Games: Italy vs. Albania (June 15), Turkey vs. Georgia (June 18), Turkey vs. Portugal (June 21), France vs. Poland (June 25), one game in the round of 16 (June 29), one semifinal game (July 10).
The fans of Borussia Dortmund — BVB for short — know it as the Westfalenstadion, the cavernous beating heart of their club for over 50 years, but it's also called Signal Iduna Park due to a long-running sponsorship deal, which doesn't apply during the European Championship.
Dortmund, which lost this year's Champions League final to Real Madrid, is famed for its loud “Yellow Wall” of fans in a standing section, but the stadium is going all-seater for Euro 2024, as part of changes that bring down its capacity by nearly 20,000 from the 81,365 who can pack in for club games. Having one of Europe's biggest and loudest stadiums is a point of pride in Dortmund, an industrial city in western Germany's Ruhr region.
STUTTGART ARENA
City: Stuttgart
Capacity for Euro 2024: 51,000
Games: Slovenia vs. Denmark (June 16), Germany vs. Hungary (June 19), Scotland vs. Hungary (June 23), Ukraine vs. Belgium (June 26), one game in the quarterfinals (July 5).
The venue's historic name is the Neckarstadion after the river that flows through Stuttgart. Under that name, it hosted the 1988 European Cup final as Dutch club PSV Eindhoven beat Benfica of Portugal on penalties.
Since then, it's had a string of different names due to sponsorship details, most recently as the MHPArena for this season as host club Stuttgart finished second in the Bundesliga to qualify for the Champions League.
VOLKSPARKSTADION
City: Hamburg
Capacity for Euro 2024: 49,000
Games: Poland vs. Netherlands (June 16), Croatia vs. Albania (June 19), Georgia vs. Czech Republic (June 22), Czech Republic vs. Turkey (June 26), one quarterfinal game (July 5).
The stadium sits in a large park and dates back nearly a century to 1925, though it was fully rebuilt in the 1950s and then again from 1998 through 2000.
Hamburger SV plays at the stadium and has been in the second division this season. Ukrainian club Shakhtar Donetsk moved in earlier this season for three home Champions League games since it was unable to play at home because of the Russian invasion. That was the first time the Volksparkstadion had hosted European games since 2010 and a useful practice run for Euro 2024.
DUESSELDORF ARENA
City: Duesseldorf
Capacity for Euro 2024: 47,000
Games: Austria vs. France (June 17), Slovakia vs. Ukraine (June 21), Albania vs. Spain (June 24), one game in the round of 16 (July 1), one quarterfinal game (July 6).
The only Euro 2024 venue which wasn't also used when Germany hosted the 2006 World Cup, this gray, boxy venue last year hosted the Invictus Games, a sports event for wounded, injured and ill service personnel and veterans which was founded by Britain's Prince Harry.
The stadium was an unsuccessful candidate for the NFL's expansion into Germany and was briefly converted into a vaccination center for the local area during the COVID-19 pandemic. The last club game at the stadium this season brought heartbreak for local fans as Fortuna Duesseldorf threw away a 3-0 lead and missed out on promotion to the Bundesliga.
COLOGNE STADIUM
City: Cologne
Capacity for Euro 2024: 43,000
Games: Hungary vs. Switzerland (June 15), Scotland vs. Switzerland (June 19), Belgium vs. Romania (June 22), England vs. Slovenia (June 25), one game in the round of 16 (June 30).
Historically, it's been known as Muengersdorfer Stadion after the district of Cologne where it's located. The local crowds are known for their passionate support of Cologne in league games, though this season ended with relegation from the Bundesliga. The stadium stepped in at short notice in 2020 to host the Europa League final during the COVID-19 pandemic as Spain's Sevilla beat Italian club Inter Milan 3-2 without a crowd.
Messenger/Sourov
