Arena "Husejin Smajlović" (before: Arena Zenica) is a multifunctional indoor sports venue located in

Zenica Zenica ( ; ; ) is a city in Bosnia and Herzegovina and an administrative and economic center of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina's Zenica-Doboj Canton. It is located in the Bosna river valley, about north of Sarajevo. The city is k ...

Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh, / , ), abbreviated BiH () or B&H, sometimes called Bosnia–Herzegovina and often known informally as Bosnia, is a country at the crossroads of south and southeast Europe, located in the Balkans. Bosnia and H ...

History

Construction

The construction began in February 2007 and was completed on March 20, 2009. Total construction costs are estimated to be around 32 million convertible marks (

€ The euro sign () is the currency sign used for the euro, the official currency of the eurozone and unilaterally adopted by Kosovo and Montenegro. The design was presented to the public by the European Commission on 12 December 1996. It consists ...

16 million) provided from the Zenica municipality budget.

Name change

In May 2017, local authorities outvoted to rename the arena from "City Arena Zenica" to the "City Arena Arena Husejin Smajlović", eponymous after former longtime (2004–2016) Mayor .klix.ba
/ref> The decision made was controversial for a number of reasons, the most significant being the object is of secular purpose (including musical manifestations, alcohol, etc.) and Smajlovic was Muslim; new name has not got established yet, musicians continue to state that they perform at the Arena Zenica for managerial reasons of name simplicity and neutrality, and it is still mentioned by most citizens in free speech as the Zenica Arena (or Arena only).

Capacity

The total

seating capacity Seating capacity is the number of people who can be seated in a specific space, in terms of both the physical space available, and limitations set by law. Seating capacity can be used in the description of anything ranging from an automobile that ...

of Arena Zenica is 6,200 for

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...

or handball matches, and it can be increased up to 10,000 for concert events.

Tenants

Arena is the new homeground for Bosnia and Herzegovina

and handball national teams.

Activities

Notable concerts

Amar Jašarspahić Amar Jašarspahić (; born 30 December 1990), better known as Amar Gile () or only Gile, is Bosnian singer from Kakanj, winner of the seventh season of music competition ''Zvezde Granda''. Biography Gile has been interested in music since his e ...

– Gile held a concert on 21. December 2013. *

Miligram (band) Miligram is a Serbian pop band. The band is named after the founder and member Aleksandar Milić. Miligram's latest album ''Magnetic'' was released on 12 December 2015. They have their record label, Miligram Music. Tours In order to promote th ...

performed a sold out concert, promoting their Ludi petak album on 8. November 2014. *

Šaban Šaulić Šaban Šaulić ( sr-cyr, Шабан Шаулић; 6 September 1951 – 17 February 2019) was a Serbian folk singer. Renowned for his refined baritone vocals and performances characterised by emotional intensity and crowd interaction, his career ...

performed a concert on 8. April 2015. *

Seka Aleksić Svetlana Piljikić (; ; born 23 April 1981), better known as Seka Aleksić, is a Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bosnian-born Serbian singer. Born in Zvornik and raised near Šabac, she rose to prominence in 2002 with her debut album ''Idealno tvoja''. ...

performed a sold-out show promoting her album Lek za spavanje on 19. September 2015. *

Lepa Brena Fahreta Živojinović (; ; born 20 October 1960), known by her stage name Lepa Brena (), is a folk singer, actress, and businesswoman. She is the best-selling female recording artist from the former Yugoslavia. Lepa Brena grew up in Brčko, Bosni ...

performed a sold-out show as part of her Začarani krug Tour on 18. November 2015.

2013 Men's Junior World Handball Championship

Arena Zenica has been the host to teams in Group D playing at the

2013 Men's Junior World Handball Championship The 2013 IHF Men's Junior World Championship was the 19th edition of the tournament and was held in Bosnia and Herzegovina from 14 – 28 July 2013. The Oceania Continent Handball Federation withdrew from the tournament. Host cities Bosnia and ...

, which was held in Bosnia and Herzegovina from July 14 to July 28, 2013.

References

External links

* *{{Official website, https://web.archive.org/web/20110210092751/http://arenazenica.com/, Official website (archive)

Sport in Zenica Sports venues completed in 2009 Basketball venues in Bosnia and Herzegovina Handball venues in Bosnia and Herzegovina Buildings and structures in Zenica