The public of Zürich approved the building of this magnificent stadium yesterday: Cost: CHF 420 mio. ($302 mio.) Capacity: 30,000 Clubs: Grasshopper-Club Zürich, FC Zürich Other Info: 2008 Switzerland host stadium
It's, uh, different... There's sure some strange looking stands inside the thing. Obviously, they're trying to make a statement here. But all I hear is mumbling.
Interesting how the opinions vary. The stadium caused a lot of controversy in canton Zürich as well. I guess you either love it or loathe it. One thing can't be denied however, from an architectural viewpoint - it is a masterpiece. The actual stadium is built on top of a shopping center, meaning that the playing field will be about 4 floors above ground. The view should be great at the stadium entrance: The complex will also have restaurants/bars, offices, and a hotel. In fact, Fifa was supposed to move their headquarter there and the stadium was going to be called Fifa Stadion Zürich. Fifa has since decided to stay where they are, but there are still talks about the name. I simply love how huge it looks from the outside - it looks more like 60,000 stadium - and will be seen from far away. About the shape, one of the reasons it is a pentagon is because the city area where it will be built in is called "Kreis 5" (Area Five). The main reason however was to have something unique, something nobody else in the world has, something to feed the arrogance of Zürich (We're Switzerland's New York). And of course to get the upper hand in the Zürich-Basel city rivalry (Take that St. Jakob Park!) PS: Now that we have our own pentagon, does that mean we can take over the footie world?
why does the stand behind the goal look very uneven! It looks like the old Southampton ground! Strange design! I'll believe it when i see it!
Because it is... Check out this view: With the exception of the stand on the left, the other three will have a somewhat triangular seating area...
but it only says 30.000 people, if it would have been at leat 100.000, then it would have been impresive.
Because the shape of the stadium (pentagon) dictates it that way. Try to think three-dimensional and you will get it... Yes, it should be very loud. Hopefully Switzerland gets to play some Euro 2008 games here. 30,000 is plenty for us. Zurich might be Switzerland's largest city (380,000), but we're unfortunately not as soccer crazed as Basel (who average 30,000 for league games.) However, as already stated, the stadium's huge dimensions (47m height) make it look like a 60,000 stadium...
That is the beauty of it. With the exception of the transportation access (roads etc.), everything is funded by Credit Suisse (one of our banks). The stadium itself costs the public a grand total of zero... For those of you not familiar with St. Jakob Park:
That is interesting - the branch of Credit Suisse (First Boston) in the United States has had some really rough times according to the media. This link is a little old, but it gives some insight into the matter. http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/01_44/b3755145.htm The pictures just confirm what I remember about St Jacob Park. It is class.
Future expansion of St. Jakob Park Since St. Jakob Park will be Switzerland's main stadium for 2008 (it gets to host the opener), it will be expanded to a capacity of 40,000. A third level will be added on one of the sides... ...and this how it will look.
Credit Suisse has been having a tough couple of years, but things are picking up again... All of Switzerland's 2008 stadiums are privatley financed. It's the big difference to Austria, where I believe most new stadia are financed with public funds...
That is great. The team-owned/privately owned stadiums in the United States are typically the best facilities and offer the most return on value, because the team/local businesses generally have a better handle on exactly what the team needs (from a financial stewardship standpoint). PAC Bell Park is a great example of this.