German cities will spend some
1.4bn euro on football stadiums
By Graham Cunningham, Sports Editor

28 December 2003: In preparation for the 2006 FIFA Football World Cup the German stadiums, where the games will be played, have all been rebuilt or renovated. Total costs are estimated to have been around 1.4 billion euro. Financing was supplied by the 12 German host cities, the federal government and state governments as well as by private investors. Private investors include football clubs in cases where stadiums are owned by clubs.

Berlin | Dortmund | Frankfurt | Gelsenkirchen | Hamburg | Hannover | Kaiserslautern | Kôln | Leipzig | München | Nürnberg | Stuttgart |

Berlin: Olympiastadion
The 2006 Football World Cup Final will be played in Berlin’s Olympiastadium, which was originally designed by architect Werner March and built between 1934-36. American sprinter Jesse Owens won four gold medals there at the Olympic Games in 1936. Today, one of the avenues leading to the ground bears the great runner's name. Since 1985, the German Cup Final has been played in the stadium, which received a facelift prior to hosting three games in the 1974 FIFA World Cup.

Renovation work began in the summer of 2000, with completion of the main structure scheduled for 30 June 2004 at the latest. The new roof will be finished by 30 September 2004 and the remaining facilities by the end of the same year. When completed, the renovated stadium will offer 74,500 seats. The German government will contribute some 196 million euro towards the renovation cost of 242 million euro.

The German Football Association has applied to hold the 2005 UEFA Champions League Final and UEFA Cup Final in Berlin.

Dortmund: Westfalenstadion
Known nationwide as the Bundesliga’s opera-house, the Westfalenstadion was originally built for the 1974 FIFA Football World Cup. Borussia Dortmund play their home games there in front of what is almost always a sell-out crowd. In November 2001, the decision was taken to join up the four separate stands, thus increasing the seating capacity to around 69,000. Crucially, the new stands will stop above the existing video screens, allowing further ventilation for the pitch.

Frankfurt: Waldstadion
A new Waldstadion is being built on the same site as its predecessor, which was erected in the 1920s and renovated for the 1974 FIFA World Cup and again for the 1988 European Championships. Fondly remembered occasions in the history of the old Waldstadion include the waterlogged semi-final game between Poland and West Germany in 1974, and the Muhammad Ali vs Karl Mildenberger heavy weight boxing bout in 1966. The new stadium will have a capacity of 48,000 seats and cost some 126 million euro to build.

Gelsenkirchen: Arena AufSchalke
The AufSchalke Arena was opened in August 2001. The Arena, which is located next to the old Parkstadion, immediately set new standards in the art of building stadia. “This stadium is a pilot project for the whole world,” said FIFA President Joseph Blatter. On 20 November 2002, the Arena hosted the Germany vs Holland international game. Seating capacity is 51,000.

The stadium’s features include:
• A video cube with four screens, each measuring 36 square metres.
• A state-of-the-art loud-speaker system with a maximum output of 193 decibels.
• A removable pitch.
• A retractable roof.
• An electronic chip card payment system.
• Newly designed electronic parking and traffic control system.

Hamburg: Stadion Hamburg
The new Hamburg Stadium opened its doors in September 2000 for the international encounter between Germany and Greece. The showcase stadium and especially the local fans now keenly await the next visit from the German National Team. The stadium offers seats to some 50,000 fans.

Hannover: Niedersachsenstadion
The Niedersachsenstadion was completed in 1954 and has been home to Hannover 96 since 1959. Both Brazil and Holland played matches there during the 1974 FIFA World Cup. Reconstruction was started in March 2003 and completed in April 2005. Latest features include a new roof, a new heated pitch, new flood lights and new stands. The renovated stadium will offer 45,000 seats.

Kaiserslautern: Fritz-Walter-Stadion
The Fritz-Walter-Stadion first opened its doors in 1920. Built on the Betzenberg mountain, the ground takes its name from the German 1954 FIFA World Cup captain, and is home to FC Kaiserslautern. After the 2006 FIFA World Cup was awarded to Germany, FC Kaiserslautern increased their efforts to improve the Fritz-Walter-Stadion to World Cup standards. The renovation will cost more than 48 million euro and, in 2006, the stadium will have a capacity of 48,500 seats.

Köln (Cologne): Stadion Köln
The predecessor to today’s modern World Cup stadium was the Müngersdorfer Stadion, the only completely covered stadium in Germany when it was built in 1975. Today’s ground is home to FC Köln. In June 2000, the city council of Köln announced their decision to reconstruct Stadion Köln as a modern, purpose-built football stadium. Rebuilding will cost 110 million euro and the renovated stadium will have a capacity of 45,000 seats.

Leipzig: Zentralstadion
The old Zentralstadion, which opened in 1956, was once the largest stadium in Germany, with a capacity of 100,000. In October 1997, the city council of Leipzig decided to construct a new purpose-built football stadium within the old stadium walls. Building has been underway since November 2000. The new stadium will have a capacity of almost 43,000 seats.

München (Munich): Stadion München
The originally planned reconstruction of the Olympic Stadium was rejected after a local referendum voted in favour of a new, purpose-built football stadium in München. In July 2001, the city council announced their support for a new stadium in the Fröttmaning area on the north side of town. The project is being funded by the Bavarian capital’s two Bundesliga clubs, TSV 1860 München and FC Bayern München.

In February 2002, the senior experts’ committee decided in favour of a design by architects Herzog & de Meuron. The design is an innovative, futuristic interpretation of a football stadium. The smooth external façade has a transparent, diamond-shaped shell, which acts as a projection surface to enshroud the stadium in a kaleidoscope of colour, giving it an almost magical aura. With three tiers of seats inside, each and every one of the 66,000 capacity crowd is guaranteed to be right on top of the action. All seats are covered. Building costs will be in the region of 280 million euro. The new stadium will have a capacity of 66,000 seats.

Nürnberg: Frankenstadion
The Frankenstadion first opened its doors in 1991. Capacity will be increased to 45,500 seats by various measures, including lowering the pitch and adding new stands. Building started in 2002 and was completed in July 2005.

Stuttgart: Gottlieb-Daimler Stadion
The (previously-named) Neckar-Stadion was built in 1933 based on a design by architect Paul Bonatz. From 1949-51, a new open stand was built opposite the main stand and between 1955-56, the Cannstatter and Untertürkheimer ends were extended. Further extensions followed in 1971-73 and 1974 (main stand), and the pitch was modernised in 1990.

The Gottlieb-Daimler-Stadion was improved to FIFA World Cup standard as early as 1999-2001, with an investment of around 54 million euro on the main stand. The focal point was the new ‘Business Centre’ with 44 executive boxes, 1,500 business seats, a multi-storey car park with direct access, and facilities for visitors, sportsmen and the media. Total capacity will 54,500 seats.