Camp Nou – Built in 1954 in Barcelona. Capacity of 98,700+. This stadium is home to one of the greatest football teams ever to have graced the turf – Barcelona FC. Camp Nou was in for an overhaul during 2009/10, but this plan was dismissed by the newly elected president. The original plan was to sell off the training ground to raise the €250,000,000 required – the proposed sale of the training ground is what caused the disagreement. Even without this refurbishment the stadium remains a most breathtaking sight. It is one of the best known stadiums in the world and the one with the greatest capacity in Europe.
San Siro – Built in 1925 in Milan. Capacity of 80,000+ (originally 100,000 and later altered to avoid over crowding). The San Siro is home to two of the greatest Italian teams in history: AC Milan and Internazionale. AC was formed by immigrants and Inter was subsequently created by those members that disagreed with the British only policy. These teams are famously rivals in their league despite having shared the ground for over 60 years.
Anfield – Built in 1884 in Liverpool. Capacity of 45,000+. Anfield is responsible for the creation of Liverpool FC in vaguely comparable circumstances to Inter Milan. Everton, Liverpool’s derby rivals, used to play from Anfield until problems arose with the owner of the land leading to their eviction in 1892, just 8 years after Everton moved in. This owner took it upon himself to start the team we now know as Liverpool FC. Plans were made in 2002 to replace the stadium with a more up-to-date equivalent. Due to issues with financial investments and disagreements with owners, these plans are certain to continue failing for the foreseeable future.
Wembley – Built in 1923 in London: rebuilt in 2007. Capacity of 90,000. Arguably the most revered football stadium on the face of the planet. This stadium is home to the English national side and makes for our best bet to clinch the world cup in 2018 or 2022. The bid for 2022 carries with it not only a rival competitor for the competition, but several stadiums that could put the English crown jewel to shame.
The bid to hold the world cup carries a lot of weight, and those that take part must dress to impress: the developers in Qatar know this well…
A football stadium, as I knew it, would be made for the team that plays there and the fans that call it home… once upon a time. Sadly it seems a football stadium, as I knew it; is a thing of the past. Innovative designs and modern technology are taking to the fore, and if this concept video turns out to be anything even close to the truth the future is closer than I ever thought possible, and our hopes and dreams are dashed against the cliffs as we couldn’t hope in our wildest dreams to have savings accounts strong enough to enter this competition.
I can tell you first hand that Camp Nou, the San Siro, Anfield and Wembley will not struggle to take your breath away especially on a match day – I just hope that it is the basic capabilities of the stadium that will be considered rather than it’s mod cons. If shiny concepts win the vote of the Fifa board we may well be missing out for a few years to come. With the state of our economy and the Olympic hosting, we may not have the muscles to be making ourselves a decent rival for the bid.
