Stade de France
Stade de France (French pronunciation: [stad də fʁɑ̃s], lit. 'Stadium of France') is the national stadium of France, located just north of Paris in the commune of Saint-Denis. Its seating capacity of 80,698 makes it the largest stadium in France. The stadium is used by the French national football and rugby union teams for international competitions. It is the largest in Europe for track and field events, seating 78,338 in that configuration. During other events, the stadium's running track is mostly hidden under the football pitch.
Not to be confused with Stade Français. For other uses, see Stade de France (disambiguation).Full name
Stade de France
ZAC du Cornillon Nord
Saint-Denis, Île-de-France, France
Consortium Stade de France
Consortium Stade de France
172
81,338 (football, rugby); 77,083 (athletics)[2]
119 m × 75 m (130 yd × 82 yd)
GrassMaster by Tarkett Sports
2 May 1995
28 January 1998
€364 million
Originally built for the 1998 FIFA World Cup, the stadium's name was recommended by Michel Platini, head of the organising committee. On 12 July 1998, France beat Brazil 3–0 in the 1998 FIFA World Cup Final contested at the stadium. It will host the athletics events at the 2024 Summer Olympics. After the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, the 2022 UEFA Champions League Final was moved from the Gazprom Arena to Stade de France.
Stade de France, listed as a Category 4 stadium by UEFA, hosted matches at the 1998 FIFA World Cup, the UEFA Champions League finals in 2000, 2006 and 2022. It has as well hosted the 1999, 2007 and 2023 Rugby World Cups, making it one of only two stadia in the world to have hosted both a Football World Cup final and a rugby union World Cup final (along with Nissan Stadium in Yokohama). It also hosted seven matches at UEFA Euro 2016, including the final, where France lost to Portugal 1–0 after extra-time. The facility also hosted the Race of Champions auto race in 2004, 2005, and 2006. The stadium hosted the 2003 World Championships in Athletics and from 1999 to 2016 it hosted the annual Meeting Areva athletics meet.
Domestically, Stade de France serves as a secondary home facility of Parisian rugby clubs Stade Français and Racing 92, hosting a few of their regular-season fixtures. The stadium also hosts the main French domestic cup finals, which include the Coupe de France (both football and rugby), Coupe de la Ligue, Challenge de France, and the Coupe Gambardella, as well as the Top 14 rugby union championship match.
Major sports matches[edit]
Sporting events held at Stade de France include matches (preliminary contests as well as finals) of the 1998 FIFA World Cup, 2003 FIFA Confederations Cup, 2007 Rugby World Cup and UEFA Euro 2016. The 2023 Rugby World Cup, including the final, and the MLB World Tour in 2025 is also planned for the venue. It also hosted the 2022 UEFA Champions League Final after being moved from the Gazprom Arena in Russia due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.[26]
Noise record[edit]
On 12 May 2012, the French heavy metal band Gojira performed at the stadium as the opening act for Metallica during their European Black Album Tour.[30] Gojira's concert was measured at 120 decibels in the corridors backstage,[30] which broke the record for the loudest sound ever recorded at Stade de France.[41]
On 11 April 2015, the crowd noise produced by the 80,000 people at Stade de France during the 2015 Coupe de la Ligue Final reached 109 decibels, which set the world record for the noisiest stadium recorded during a final match of a football tournament.[42]