Top 12 Largest Football Stadiums in the World

For football fans all over the world there is nothing like the electricity of watching a football match. With the ever increasing amounts of football fanatics coming from all corners of the earth, it is no wonder why it is one of the most attended sports events. Here are the 12 largest football stadiums.

1. Rungrado May Day Stadium
Located in the capital of North Korea, Pyongyang is the largest football stadium in the world, the Rungrado May Day Stadium with a sitting capacity of 150,000 and a floor space of more than 2.2 million ft2. It was built in May 1, 1989. It is not only the largest football stadium in the world but also the world’s largest non-auto racing stadium. The Rungrado May Day Stadium is not only used for football events but in other sports and athletics too. In 2002, it was a venue for North Korea’s enormous event called “arirang”, commonly called as ‘mass games”. It involved more than 100,000 participants, more than the amount of spectators and was open to foreigners. It is said that it was North Korea’s bid to race some hard currency while others contend that it was North Koreas way of distracting the 2002 Word Cup co-sponsored by Japan and North Korea.

2. Salt Lake Stadium
Salt Lake Stadium, also called Stadium of the Indian Youth is located in Bidhannagar, Kolkato, West Bengal. Built in 1984, it has a sitting capacity of 120,000. Salt lake Stadium is the largest Stadium in the Indian sub-continent and is the 2nd largest non auto-racing stadium in the world. It has a total area of 76.40 acres filled with many features such as a VIP rest room, synthetic tracks for athletics, elevators, conference hall, press boxes, electronic scoreboard, dormitories, standby generators and practice grounds. Although the Salt Lake Stadium can accommodate a variety of events other than sports, it is mainly used by the biggest football clubs in India such as East Bengal FC, Mohun Bagan AC and Mohammedan SC as a sports stadium. It is also used in national football cups. In 1985, the stadium hosted the Pre-World Cup Tournament, an international event watched all over the world.

3. Estadio Azteca
Located in Mexico City, Mexico the Estadio Azteca is the largest stadium in Mexico and the third largest football stadium in the world with a sitting capacity of 105,000. It is the home of Mexico’s National Football Team and Club America. It hosted its first game on May 26, 1966 and hosted international events after the such as the 1968 Summer Olympics, 1970 & 1986 FIFA World Cup, 1975 Pan American Games, 1983 FIFA World Youth Championships and the 1999 FIFA Confederations Cup. Football legends, Maradona and Pele, played on this stadium too. Aside from football events, the Estadio Azteca also hosted numerous musical performances by Michael Jackson, Elton John, Gloria Estefan, Lenny Kravitz and many more. Mexican-favorite boxer Julio Cesar Chavez fought in this stadium too with Greg Haugen in 1993. It is also where Mexican President Felipe Calderon closed his campaign during the 2006 National Elections.

4. Melbourne Cricket Ground (100,000)
Although called as the Melbourne Cricket Ground it is used by the Australian Rules Football during the winter. With a sitting capacity of 100,000, it is the largest sports stadium in Australia and the fourth largest in world. It is referred by many locals as the “Spiritual Home of Australian Sport” and was also officially listed as one of the 7 wonders of the sporting world in 2009. It is located in Yarra Park, Melbourne and is mainly a home of the Melbourne Cricket Club. It was the showpiece of the 1956 Summer Olympics and the 2006 Common Wealth Games.

5. Azadi Stadium (100,000)
The Azadi Stadium was originally called as the Aryamehr stadium. Built in 1971 it has an original sitting capacity of 100,000. It is located west of the capital city of Iran, Tehran. It is the fifth largest Football Stadium in the world and Iran’s Largest Sports Stadium. It was intended for the 1974 Asian Games that Iran hosted. The national football team of Iran and two other football clubs (the Esteghlal F.C. and Persepolis F.C.) considers the Azadi Stadium as their home.
Azardi Stadium is a part the Azadi Sports Complex which boasts of football training pitches, a rowing river, Olympic size swimming pools, indoor volleyball and a physical fitness gym with weightlifting amenities.
Azardi Stadium also has one of the biggest television screens in the world. A 20m x 7.5m screen called jumbotron replaced a scoreboard in 2004.

6. Bukit Jalil National Stadium
Bukit Jalil National Stadium is located in Bukit Jalil, south of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. It has a sitting capacity of 100,000 and is the 6th largest stadium in the world and is considered by many locals as Malaysia’s best sports stadium. It was intended for the 1998 Commonwealth Games which Malaysia Hosted.
Although the stadium is the home of the Malaysia’s National Football Team, the complex itself can accommodate other sports and cultural events like musical concerts and athletics. The stadium’s facilities include a 9 laned 400m synthetic track, 6m x 60m warming up track, 68m x 106m field and 9m x 400m synthetic track.
The Bukit Jalil National Stadium was recently a venue for the AFC Asian Cup 2007.

7. Camp Nou
Camp Nou is the 7th largest football stadium in the world and Europe’s largest with a sitting capacity of 98,772. It is located in Barcelona, Spain and was built in 1957. Camp Nou was once called Estadi del FC Barcelona until it was changed to its present name in 2000. Its facilities include a chapel, pitches for training and a memorabilia shop. One of the memorable events held in Camp Nou is the 1982 FIFA world cup.
Camp Nou is surrounded by other sports facilities such as the Palau Balugrana and Mini Estadi where indoor sports and ice-based sports are played.
El Museu del Barca, a museum visited by more than 1,200,000 tourist every year is also housed in Camp Nou.
It was also consecrated by FIFA as a 5-star stadium. Like most stadiums in the word, Cam Nou is not only exclusive to football matches but also to other sporting events and musical concerts by famous artists like Frank Sinatra and Michael Jackson.

8. Maracana (96,000)
The Estadio de Maracana, also called as Estadio Jornalista Mario Filho is a world class stadium located in the capital city of Brazil, Rio de Janeiro. An open-air stadium with a capacity of 96,000, it is the 8th largest in the world and the largest in South America. One of the major events that was held in Maracana is the 1950 FIFA World Cup. The football clubs of Rio de Janeiro such as Flamengo, Casco de Gama, Bortafogo and fluminense usually play against each other on the fields of Maracana.
In 2014, the FIFA World Cup will again be held in Maracana.

9. Beijing National Stadium
Beijing National Stadium is the 9th largest Football stadium in the world with a sitting capacity of 91,000. It is also the largest steel structure ever built. It was mainly erected for the 2008 summer Olympics and the 2008 Paralympics. The unique design of the stadium is inspired by the intricacies of a ‘bird’s nest’. The reason why this stadium is part of the list although not single football club is housed in it is that during the 2008 Olympics it was the venue for the Men’s Olympics Soccer Tournament and the Italian Supercoppa thereafter.

10. Wembley Stadium
Wembley Stadium is located in Wembley Park in London, United Kingdom. With a capacity of 90,000 it is the 10th largest football stadium in the world. It is the largest in the world when it comes to the number of seats under cover. Built in March 9, 2007, it is owned by the Football Association (FA). Aside from the football matches, the stadium is also a venue for other sporting events and music concerts.
The UEFA Champions League Final will be held the stadium in 2011 and it will also be a venue of a lot of sporting events on the 2012 Summer Olympics which London will be hosting.

11. Estadio Monumental Banco Pichincha
The Estadio Monumental Baco Pichincha is a stadium located in Ecuador. With a capacity of 90,000 it is ranked as the 11 largest football stadium in the world. It was built though the efforts of Isidro Romero Carbo, a president of the Barcelona Sporting Club. The stadium has many additional facilities like restaurants, souvenir shops and health care centers.

12. Bung Karno Stadium
Bung Karno Stadium is located in Central Jakarta, Indonesia. It was formerly known as the Gelora Senayan. Ranked as the 12th large, it has a capacity of 88, 306. It was built in time to host the Fourth Asian Games in 1962. When Indonesia hosted the 2007 Asian Cup, Bunk Karno Stadium became a venue for the football matches. Bung Karno Stadium is part of a much larger complex which includes a tennis stadium, an indoor gymnasium, a softball field and an aquatic arena.