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Stožice Stadium

Zmajevo gnezdo (The Dragon's Nest)
Stožice Stadium in 2016
Location	Ljubljana, Slovenia
Coordinates	46°4′49.6″N 14°31′27.5″E / 46.080444°N 14.524306°E / 46.080444; 14.524306
Owner	City Municipality of Ljubljana
Operator	Javni zavod Šport Ljubljana
Capacity	16,038 (football)
Record attendance	16,432 Slovenia vs Kazakhstan (20 November 2023) Slovenia vs Portugal (26 March 2024)
Field size	105 by 68 metres (115 by 74 yards)
Surface	Natural grass
Construction
Broke ground	2009
Built	2010
Opened	11 August 2010
Architect	Sadar + Vuga d.o.o
General contractor	GREP d.o.o.
Tenants
NK Olimpija Ljubljana (2010–present) Bravo (2024–present) Slovenia national football team (2010–present)

Stožice Stadium (Slovene: Stadion Stožice) is a multi-purpose stadium located in Ljubljana, Slovenia. It was designed by Slovenian Sadar + Vuga architects and is the biggest football stadium in the country. It is one of two main stadiums in the city and lies in the Bežigrad district, north of the city centre. The stadium is part of the Stožice Sports Park sports complex.

The stadium is the home ground of the football club Olimpija Ljubljana and is the main venue of the Slovenia national football team. In addition to football, the stadium is also intended for cultural events.

History

The stadium was named after the area in which it is located, and a change of the name is possible in the future due to sponsorship rights. Together with an indoor arena, it is a part of the Stožice Sports Park. The stadium's built-up area measures 24.614 square metres. It was constructed in 14 months and was opened on 11 August 2010 in a football friendly match between the national teams of Slovenia and Australia, won by Slovenia 2–0.

The stadium has a capacity of 16,038 spectators and is laid out under the plateau of the park. The stadium also has 558 VIP seats and 97 spots for people with disabilities. The stadium's press area can accommodate 210 journalists. As a structure, the stadium is 'sunk' into the park. Only the roof over the stands rises above the plane of the park as a monolithic crater.

For cultural purposes such as music concerts, the stadium capacity is increased to over 20,000.

Football

The stadium is mainly used for football and is the home ground of football club Olimpija Ljubljana. In addition, the stadium is also the home venue of the Slovenia national football team, and has hosted 54 national team matches as of 14 November 2024. In 2021, the stadium was one of the eight hosts of the 2021 UEFA European Under-21 Championship, and also hosted the final between Germany and Portugal.

Culture

Although the stadium was primarily built for football, it is also intended to host a number of cultural events. The first was a joint project of two comedians, Lado Bizovičar and Jurij Zrnec, entitled Notpadu lajv?!, on 20 September 2010. Over 20,000 people gathered at this event.

Records

On 20 November 2023, 16,432 spectators gathered for the UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying match between Slovenia and Kazakhstan, which is the highest attendance of any football match in Slovenia since the country's independence in 1991. The attendance record was later tied on 26 March 2024, when Slovenia hosted Portugal in a friendly match.

See also

• List of football stadiums in Slovenia

References

1. ^ "Stadion Stožice". sport-ljubljana.si (in Slovenian). Retrieved 10 March 2016.
2. ^ "Stadion" (in Slovenian). NK Olimpija Ljubljana. Retrieved 10 March 2016.
3. "Kekova četa navdušila 16.135 gledalcev" (in Slovenian). Siol. 10 August 2010. Retrieved 14 November 2023.
4. "Stadion Stožice, Ljubljana, football venue". eu-football.info. Retrieved 14 November 2024.
5. "V Stožicah še zadnje dejanje EP do 21 let". Delo (in Slovenian). 6 June 2021. Retrieved 7 June 2021.
6. "Slovenija, lahko si ponosna! V Stožicah padel nov rekord, glejte in se čudite!". Ekipa24.si (in Slovenian). 21 November 2023. Retrieved 21 November 2023.
7. "Podatek, ki je ob silnem slavju morda ostal spregledan: Stožice so zdaj reprezentančna trdnjava, padel je rekord" (in Slovenian). Nogomania. 21 November 2023. Retrieved 21 November 2023.
8. "Stožice več gledalcev niso mogle sprejeti! Na tribunah ponovljen sijajen obisk s tekme proti Kazahstanu" (in Slovenian). Nogomania. 26 March 2024. Retrieved 27 March 2024.

External links

• Media related to Stožice Stadium at Wikimedia Commons

• Football venues in Slovenia
• NK Olimpija Ljubljana (2005)
• Music venues in Slovenia
• Sports venues in Ljubljana
• Multi-purpose stadiums in Slovenia
• Music venues completed in 2010
• Sports venues completed in 2010
• Bežigrad District
• 2010 establishments in Slovenia
• 21st-century architecture in Slovenia