15 football stadiums that every fan should visit

When you are an avid follower of the beautiful game, all it means when you are visiting a new country, perhaps the likes of England, Germany or Spain,is that you would be much closer to at least one of the holy grailof stadiums. Honestly, that is somewhat the only reason most of us would want to visit a country in the first place to be among the crowd who arecheering for Borussia Dortmund players, or to take a stadium tour of the iconic Santiago Bernabeu trophy roomIn this slideshow, we take a look at the 15 mostsurreal football stadiums in the world, in no particular order:Shout-out toSuyashSinghfor some of his inputs.

#1 Olympiastadion Mnchen

The Olympiastadion München is a stadium located in Spiridon-Louis-Ring of northern Munich, Germany, and since its opening in 1972, the stadium has been a legendary venue for sporting events, concerts and many more open air events. It was home to the current Bundesliga champions Bayern Munich till 2005 before they moved to their current stadium, Allianz Arena. The stadium was built over a pit that was created from bombings during the second World War since it was easier to construct.

With a capacity to hold 69,250 visitors, the Olympiastadion was the ground where Nottingham Forest and Borussia Dortmund had won their respective Champions League finals, and was also one of the venues for the 1974 FIFA World Cup, even hosting the final between West Germany and Netherlands.

Late Michael Jackson has performed at the Olympiastadion on five occasions, with all sets sold out with the maximum capacity of the stadium. Apart from Jackson, the stadium has even been used as venues for concert performances by Bon Jovi, Madonna, Coldplay, Nickleback, Bruce Springsteen, Diana Ross, U2, AC/DC and Metallica among other acts.

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#2 Signal Iduna Park

Westfalenstadion, or as Signal Iduna Park, an official name the stadium was given after signing a deal with an insurance company, is one of the most popular stadiums of the modern era. Located in Dortmund, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, it is the home stadium for Borussia Dortmund.

The stadium was opened for the first time in 1974, and was one of the venues for the 2006 FIFA World Cup.

Westfalenstadion was elected best football stadium by The Times for its surreal atmosphere, and that should be enough reasons for you to visit this stadium. It can hold up to 81,264 fans, and due to its cheap ticket prices, the stadium is always filled with supporters, setting up a European record of fielding an average of 76,500 spectators per match a decade ago. It doesn’t matter if you support Dortmund personally as this is one stadium you should definitely visit for the show that the fans put on.

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#3 Camp Nou

Home to Barcelona since 1957, Camp Nou is located in the city of Barcelona in Catalonia, Spain, with the capacity to hold nearly 100,000 passionate fans, this stadium is the largest in Europe. Housing one of the best teams in the world, defeating Barcelona at Camp Nou has always been the dream. With tiers of rows stacked up, the Camp Nou engulfs and overpowers you. One of the must see places if you are on a football pilgrimage.

In 1989, Camp Nou had the privilege to host the European Cup final between AC Milan and FC Steau and then 10 years from that, it hosted the Champions League final between Manchester United and Bayern Munich which is considered to be one of the most dramatic finals of all time.

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#4 La Bombonera

Home to one of South America’s most successful clubs, La Bombonera is located in the city of Buenos Aries. South Americans are passionate about their football and the Boca Junior fans are no less. Although it has a comparatively modest capacity, its unusual shape (due to which it is called the ‘Chocolate Box’) causes it to have excellent acoustics which leads to a fearsome atmosphere.

Boca Juniors almost moved to new 140,000 capacity stadium in 1970s before the construction was stopped due to political clashes. Boca Juniors had already played here in 1924 when it was just a wooden stadium. But it was renovated when Boca bought the land in 1931 and it officially opened in 1941 with a friendly between Boca Juniors and San Lorenzo.

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#5 Wembley

“Oh Wembley! You beauty!” have been the words of various commentators and football fans. Built in 2007 on the grounds of the Old Wembley, this ground can hold around 90,000 spectators. There is something extraordinary about this ground which makes playing on it even more special. Home to the English National squad, Wembley has been the dream destination for all football fans.

The stadium has a sliding roof that sits 52 metres above the pitch. Even though the roof does not completely close, it does cover every seat in the stadium, which makes Wembley the largest fully covered stadium in the world. The stadium hosted the 2011 Champions League final between Barcelona and Manchester United (3-1) and also held the 2013 final between Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund to mark the 150th anniversary of FA.

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#6 Olympiastadion Berlin

The Olympiastadion in Berlin, Germany is the country’s biggest ground, and has been home to Hertha Berlin since 1963. Originally built for the 1936 Summer Olympics, the stadium has been venue for the 1974 FIFA World Cup, the 2006 FIFA World Cup, and will soon be hosting the 2015 UEFA Champions League Final making it one of the must-visit stadiums in our list.

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#7 Estdio Municipal de Braga

The Estádio Municipal de Braga isn’t the largest, or the most happening stadiums out there, but what separates it from the other grounds is the way it is constructed. Carved into the face of the adjacent Monte Castro quarry which runs on both side of the pitch.

With an all-seated capacity of 30,286, the Estádio Municipal de Braga was constructed in 2003 as a home ground for Sporting Clube de Braga, is considered to one of most beautiful stadiums in the world.

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#8 Emirates

The Emirates Stadium is the home to Arsenal, and is one of the league’s most iconic stadiums. With a capacity of 60,338, it is England’s third largest stadium, and has been a host to several international matches. The ground was opened in 2006 after they were denied permission for the renovation of expanding their old stadium – Highbury by the Islington Council.

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#9 Maracana Stadium

The Maracanã Stadium located in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil was opened in 1950 to host matches for the World Cup, and recorded an attendance of 199,854, making it the stadium with the highest capacity when it was opened.

The stadium now holds a total of 78,838 spectators, making it the largest stadium in South America, underwent major renovations for the 2014 World Cup and 2016 Olympics and Paralympics.

Besides, it hosted the recent 2014 FIFA World Cup final between Germany and Argentina.

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#10 Anfield

Anfield has been the home ground for Liverpool since their formation in 1892, and despite its small capacity of just 45,000 seats, Anfield has been the crux of Liverpool. Known for its lively atmosphere, Anfield is perhaps the toughest stadium to play in England, probably after Stoke City’s ground. Well, not really.

Built in 1884, it was originally rented to Everton FC who played the first match ever on Anfield, but Liverpool later started renting the ground after Everton moved on to Goodison Park following dispute over rent.

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#11 Estadio Azteca

Estadio Azteca is home to the national football team of Mexico as well as Mexican club América, and is famous for being the venue where Argentina legend Diego Maradona had scored the ‘Hand of God,’ and the ‘Goal of the Century.’ Opened in 1966, Azteca is the only stadium to have ever held two World Cup finals.

Located in the suburb of Santa Ursula in Mexico City, the Estadio Azteca can hold up to 105,064 spectators, making it the sixth largest stadium in the world. In the 1970 World Cup, it hosted 10 matches which included a semi-final and the final between Brazil and Italy which Brazil won 4-1.

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#12 Santiago Bernabeu

Home to the biggest club in football – Real Madrid, Santiago Bernabeu was opened in 1947 with an initial capacity of 75,145 spectators. Located on the Paseo de la Castellana district in Madrid, the stadium has seen some major renovations since its inaugural.

Being a home ground to Real Madrid has several perks, and hosting the best string of players in the world is one of them. Real Madrid has always had the best of players in their squad, and fans swarm the stadium to watch their favourite idols. With a capacity of 81,044 seats, the stadium will soon be undergoing major renovations with the club president Florentino Perez claiming it to be the world’s best stadium soon in the upcoming years.

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#13 Allianz Arena

The Allianz Arena is home to European giant Bayern Munich and 1860 Munich, and is located in Munich, Bavaria of Germany. Well known for its exterior plastic panels which are capable of changing colours, the Allianz Arena lights up in red when Bayern play while it turns blue for 1860 Munich.

With a capacity of holding 71,437 spectators, the Allianz Arena is the third largest stadium in Germany, only behind Westfalenstadion and the Olympiastadion in Berlin. But what sets this stadium apart from others is the use of 2,874 ETFE-foil air panels, and interestingly each panel can be independently lit with white, red, or blue light. It was also one of the venues for the 2006 World Cup, and also hosted the 2012 Champions League final.

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#14 Old Trafford

Home to one of Europe’s biggest teams - Manchester United, Old Trafford is one of those stadiums that every football fan must visit before he dies. Nicknamed ‘The Theatre of Dreams’ by Sir Bobby Charlton, Old Trafford has been United's home ground for more than a century now.

Old Trafford seats over 75,000 fans, which makes it the second largest stadium in United Kingdom. And, even though it is not necessarily known for its atmosphere, the sheer feeling of being in the stadium that has seen so much success makes it a must-visit arena. Also, remember to add ‘taking a photo with the Sir Alex Ferguson Stand’ to your to-do list if you are to visit the stadium anytime soon.

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#15 San Siro

The Stadio Giuseppe Meazza, or San Siro as it is known as, is the home stadium for both AC Milan and Inter Milan. Situated in the San Siro district in Milan, Italy, and officially opened back in 1926 with a friendly between its two tenants.

The stadium has been also venue to several concerts with acts from Bob Marley, Bob Dylan, Madonna, Michael Jackson, the Rolling Stone and many others.

Capable of holding up to 83,381 spectators, the San Siro has been more like a Mecca for fans worldwide with 89 years of service for two of the biggest teams in Europe. The stadium was also host to the 1965 and 1970 European Cup finals, as well as the 2002 Champions League final. If you are in Milan when the two rivals are playing each other, this is definitely where you would want to be.