Rungrado May Day Stadium

Rungrado May Day Stadium is the largest stadium in the world in terms of seating capacity. The stadium has a total capacity of 114,000 and is situated in Pyongyang, North Korea. The stadium is also known as the Rungrado 1st of May Stadium.

The scalloped roof features 16 arches arranged in a ring and resembles a magnolia blossom. It is situated in between the Taedong rivers.

History

The construction of the stadium was completed on 1st May 1989 and the first event that was hosted at the stadium was the 13th World Festival of Youth and Students. The event took place in 1989 after taking four years of preparation by the government and spent a quarter of the country’s yearly budget on it.

The stadium was a major attraction for all the tourists. The event was attended by around 22,000 people from 177 different countries and was named the largest students and youth meet ever.

Major Matches

On April 28 and 29 in 1995, Korea’s largest professional wrestling pay-per-view event took place over a period of two days at this stadium with an attendance between 150,000 and 190,000 according to local authorities. American journalists claimed that the event had an audience of around 160,000 in two days.

Controversies

This isn’t a controversy but it surely makes a visiting team think twice before visiting the country for any sport. Bengaluru FC was here for a game against Pyongyang's 4.25 SC in which they won the tie 3-0 over the period of two legs.

However, the visitors were in for a shock when a nuclear missile was fired over the team's hotel before it flew over Japan.

The stadium also saw the public execution of generals plotting against dictator Kim Jong Il in 1992.