King Fahd International Stadium
درة الملاعب | |
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| Location | Riyadh, Saudi Arabia |
|---|---|
| Capacity | 68,752 |
| Construction | |
| Broke ground | 2 December 1982 |
| Opened | 1987 |
| Architect | Ian Fraser, John Roberts, Michael KC Cheah & Partners |
| Tenants | |
| Al Hilal SFC (1987–2018, 2020–present) Al-Shabab (1987–present) Al-Nassr (1987–2020) | |
The King Fahd Stadium (Arabic: استاد الملك فهد الدولي), also nicknamed "Pearl of Stadiums" (درة الملاعب Durrat al-Mala'eb) or simply "the Pearl" (الدرة Addurra), is a multi-purpose stadium in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. It is currently used mostly for football matches and it also has athletics facilities.
Overview[]
The stadium was built in 1987 with capacity over 67,000 seats.[1] It measures 116 yards by 74 yards. It also has one of the largest stadium roofs in the world. It was a venue for matches of the FIFA World Youth Championship in 1989, including the final match.
In September 2017, as part of Saudi Vision 2030, there was a celebration of the 87th anniversary of the Saudi founding with concerts and performances, with women for the first time being allowed into the stadium.[2]
The stadium has been included in the FIFA video games since FIFA 13, when the Saudi Professional League began being featured in the game. A modified version of the stadium with two tiers all around was featured in the Pro Evolution Soccer series during the PlayStation 2 era under the name ‘Nakhon Ratchasima’.
The cost of construction was about 1.912 billion Saudi riyals or $510 million.[1] The stadium's roof shades over 67,000 seats and covers an area of 47,000 square feet. The 24 columns are arranged in a circle with a 247-metre diameter. The huge umbrella keeps the sun off the seats and concourse slabs, providing shade and comfort in the hot desert climate. The first goal in an official game was scored by Majed Abdullah.
As a personal touch to the stadium, a royal balcony was constructed.
The architect was Michael KC Cheah.
Events[]
The stadium's first major musical event was holding a concert by BTS, which was their first concert in the Middle East, as part of their Love Yourself: Speak Yourself World Tour on 11 October 2019. This made the band the first international act to perform in the stadium. They played to an audience of 31,899 people.
The stadium hosted WWE's event Crown Jewel on 31 October 2019.[3]
The stadium also hosted all the three matches of 2021–22 Supercopa de España which was won by Real Madrid.[4] The semi-final between Barcelona and Real Madrid was the first official El Clásico to be held in a stadium outside of Spain.
See also[]
References[]
- ^ a b "King Fahd International Stadium". StadiumDB. Retrieved 2 October 2014.
- ^ "Women allowed into stadium as Saudi Arabia promotes national pride, part of reform push". 23 September 2017.
- ^ "THE NEXT WWE EVENT IN SAUDI ARABIA WILL TAKE PLACE.... | PWInsider.com". www.pwinsider.com. Retrieved 15 October 2019.
- ^ "Athletic Club 0-2 Real Madrid - Goals and highlights - Supercopa 21/22". MARCA. 16 January 2022. Retrieved 16 January 2022.
External links[]
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to King Fahd Stadium. |
Coordinates: 24°47′17.54″N 46°50′21.25″E / 24.7882056°N 46.8392361°E
| History | |
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| Landmarks | |
| Education |
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| Football clubs |
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| Transport | |
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- 1987 establishments in Saudi Arabia
- Football venues in Saudi Arabia
- Buildings and structures in Riyadh
- Sports venues in Saudi Arabia
- Athletics (track and field) venues in Saudi Arabia
- National stadiums
- Multi-purpose stadiums in Saudi Arabia
- 1997 FIFA Confederations Cup stadiums
- Venues of the 2034 Asian Games
- Asian Games football venues
- 1992 King Fahd Cup
- 1995 King Fahd Cup
- Sport in Riyadh
- Sports venues completed in 1987