Euro 2012 Venues: Truly magnificent and captivating

The countdown to Euro 2012 has begun and football fans from across Europe as well as the rest of the world are eagerly awaiting the most prestigious football spectacle after the World Cup. Euro 2012 matches will take place at eight different venues across joint hosts Poland-Ukraine. Out of these eight, five stadiums have been newly built for the summer extravaganza while the remaining three have undergone major renovations. Let’s have a look at all these engineering and architectural marvels, placed in the decreasing order of their capacity, which has been fixed by UEFA for the tournament.

Olympic Stadium, Kyiv (Ukraine)

UEFA Capacity: 60,000

The largest stadium in Ukraine, the Olympic stadium was opened in October ’11 after major reconstructions, which include a complete roof for the entire seating area, a newly built West Stand with a 13-storey building housing the Sheraton Hotel. It is set to host teams like England and France in Group D apart from a quarter-final. But most importantly, the grand finale of the Euro 2012 will be staged at this marvelous venue.

National Stadium, Warsaw (Poland)

UEFA Capacity: 50,000

A brand new stadium located in the capital city will be witness to the historic opening match between Poland and Greece. It is also scheduled to host a quarter-final and a semi-final. An amazing € 500 million were spent on the construction, which started in 2008 and took a commendable three years to finish. It is set to become the national team’s home ground after the Euro 2012.

Donbass Arena, Donetsk (Ukraine)

UEFA Capacity: 50,000

Home of Ukraine’s second most popular and successful club, Shakhtar Donetsk, the Donbass Arena was designed by the same company which designed the Allianz Arena (Bayern Munich), Etihad Stadium (Manchester City) and the Bird’s Nest (Beijing Olympics). It will host a few Group D matches apart from a quarter-final and a semi-final. It is one of the very few high-profile stadiums in Europe with a natural grass pitch.

Municipal Stadium, Poznan (Poland)

UEFA Capacity: 40,000

Defending champions Spain will stay put at this stadium for their group C encounters alongside Italy, Croatia and Republic of Ireland. Polish top-flight club Lech have called it their home since 1980 while Warta became the stadium’s second tenants more recently. The stadium underwent a complete overhaul for a long seven years from ’03 till ’10.

Municipal Stadium, Wroclaw (Poland)

UEFA Capacity: 40,000

Another Euro 2012-specific venue, the Stadion Miejski was completed in just 2 and half years. After a rapturous opening in September 2011, it became the home ground of local club ?l?sk Wroc?aw, playing in the Polish first division. It is slated to share Group A hosting duties with the National Stadium in Warsaw.

PGE Arena Gda?sk, Gda?sk (Poland)

UEFA Capacity: 40,000

The fourth and the final venue in Poland, the Arena Gdansk reminds you of the Allianz Arena at the first look. Lechia Gda?sk plays its home matches on this ground, which hosted an international when Poland met Germany in a friendly fixture last September. Four matches have been designated to this stadium for Euro 2012, including three Group C contests and a quarterfinal.

Metalist Stadium, Kharkov (Ukraine)

UEFA Capacity: 35,000

One of two stadiums to host the Group of Death (Group B) matches, the Metalist Stadium has been named after local club Metalist Kharkiv. This modern facility boasts of under soil-heating, LED scoreboards and other state-of-the-art amenities and features. The much-improved stadium was officially inaugurated in December ’09.

Arena Lviv, Lviv (Ukraine)

UEFA Capacity: 30,000

Arena Lviv will be the centre of the world’s attention as Netherlands, Portugal, Germany and Denmark will face-off in Group D. The stadium opened its door with an enthralling theatrical show in October ’11, becoming Ukraine’s final showpiece for the summer. Ukrainian Premier League side FC Karpaty Lviv shifted their base here in December ’11.