Qemal Stafa (stadium)
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

The Qemal Stafa Stadium ( sq, Stadiumi Qemal Stafa), named after Qemal Stafa (1920–1942), a
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
hero, was a
national stadium Many countries have a national sport stadium, which typically serves as the primary or exclusive home for one or more of a country's national representative sports teams. The term is most often used in reference to an association football stadiu ...
and the largest football stadium in
Tirana Tirana ( , ; aln, Tirona) is the capital and largest city of Albania. It is located in the centre of the country, enclosed by mountains and hills with Dajti rising to the east and a slight valley to the northwest overlooking the Adriatic Sea ...
,
Albania Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and shares ...
. Construction started in 1939 and the stadium was inaugurated in 1946 for the
Balkan Cup The Balkan Cup was an international association football competition contested on and off from 1929 to 1980 by countries from the Balkans region. The most successful team was Romania with four titles. Overview The first edition featured Romania, ...
, which was won by the
Albania national football team The Albania national football team ( sq, Kombëtarja e futbollit të Shqipërisë) represents Albania in men's international football, and is governed by the Albanian Football Association, the governing body for football in Albania. Albania com ...
. The stadium has been used for football matches of the Albanian Superliga and the national team, athletic events, and the six Albanian Spartakiads. Although it was enlarged in 1974 to accommodate up to 35,000 spectators, in the 1990s it became an
all-seater stadium An all-seater stadium is a sports stadium in which every spectator has a seat. This is commonplace in professional association football stadiums in nations such as the United Kingdom, Spain, and the Netherlands. Most association football a ...
, and its capacity was reduced to 19,700. The stadium was demolished in June 2016 to make way for the new national stadium called the Arena Kombëtare, was constructed on the same site and opened in November 2019. It has since been rebuilt in 2022. The Football Association of Albania and the Albanian government divide the property rights of the stadium between them; the football association holds 75% rights and the government 25%. National Arena, with a capacity of over 22,500 spectators built at a cost of
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 ...
60 million. The new stadium is football-only; the athletics track was removed. It meets the highest UEFA category.


History

The original stadium was built in an
Olympic Stadium ''Olympic Stadium'' is the name usually given to the main stadium of an Olympic Games. An Olympic stadium is the site of the opening and closing ceremonies. Many, though not all, of these venues actually contain the words ''Olympic Stadium'' as ...
shape, as idealized by
Gherardo Bosio Gherardo Bosio (19 March 1903 – 16 April 1941) was an Italian architect, engineer and urbanist, famed for his work in planning the centre of Tirana, the capital of Albania.http://www.shqiptariiitalise.com/shqiperi-itali/shqiperi-itali/shqiperi ...
, a young fascist architect from
Florence Florence ( ; it, Firenze ) is a city in Central Italy and the capital city of the Tuscany Regions of Italy, region. It is the most populated city in Tuscany, with 383,083 inhabitants in 2016, and over 1,520,000 in its metropolitan area.Bilan ...
,
Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...
. Its planned capacity was 15,000; Tirana at that time had less than 60,000 inhabitants so the stadium would have been more than sufficient. The stadium was originally designed in an elliptical shape and was to have been completely clad in marble.
Galeazzo Ciano Gian Galeazzo Ciano, 2nd Count of Cortellazzo and Buccari ( , ; 18 March 1903 – 11 January 1944) was an Italian diplomat and politician who served as Foreign Minister in the government of his father-in-law, Benito Mussolini, from 1936 until 1 ...
symbolically placed the first stone in August 1939. Construction lasted four years; work was interrupted in 1943 after the
Capitulation of Italy The Armistice of Cassibile was an armistice signed on 3 September 1943 and made public on 8 September between the Kingdom of Italy and the Allies during World War II. It was signed by Major General Walter Bedell Smith for the Allies and Briga ...
. After
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
, 400 workers and 150 daily volunteers finished construction of the stadium. The planned marble cladding was only installed on one stand. The stadium was named after Qemal Stafa, a Hero of Albania in World War II. The inauguration occurred when the
Albania national football team The Albania national football team ( sq, Kombëtarja e futbollit të Shqipërisë) represents Albania in men's international football, and is governed by the Albanian Football Association, the governing body for football in Albania. Albania com ...
played in the stadium for the first time on 7 October 1946, when the
Balkan Cup The Balkan Cup was an international association football competition contested on and off from 1929 to 1980 by countries from the Balkans region. The most successful team was Romania with four titles. Overview The first edition featured Romania, ...
was organised. The Cup was won by Albania; they overcame teams like
Yugoslavia Yugoslavia (; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Jugoslavija, Југославија ; sl, Jugoslavija ; mk, Југославија ;; rup, Iugoslavia; hu, Jugoszlávia; rue, label=Pannonian Rusyn, Югославия, translit=Juhoslavija ...
,
Bulgaria Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedo ...
, and
Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Moldova to the east, and ...
in that competition. Afterwards the stadium was used for the Albanian Superliga matches,
athletics Athletics may refer to: Sports * Sport of athletics, a collection of sporting events that involve competitive running, jumping, throwing, and walking ** Track and field, a sub-category of the above sport * Athletics (physical culture), competi ...
events, and the six Albanian Spartakiads. The second football stadium in Tirana, the
Selman Stërmasi stadium The Selman Stërmasi Stadium ( sq, Stadiumi Selman Stërmasi) is a multi-purpose stadium in Tirana, Albania. It is currently used mostly for football matches and is the home ground of KF Tirana. The stadium holds 9,500 people (all seated). It ...
, was built in 1959 but by the late 1960s and early 1970s, the stadium's capacity was still not sufficient to meet the growing needs of the Albanian Superliga. The Qemal Stafa stadium was thus enhanced for the 30th anniversary of the Liberation of Albania in 1974. One of the stands was extended from 10 to 28 rows, taking the capacity of the stadium to 35,000 (no seats were installed at that time). An electronic display purchased in
Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the ...
was also added. The enlargement of the stadium was celebrated in November 1974, on the occasion of the Third National Spartakiad. After 1991, other modernization projects took place, including the installation of seats which reduced the capacity to today's 19,700. In 1996, Qemal Stafa had illumination for evening sports event for the first time, with the funding being a gift from
UEFA Union of European Football Associations (UEFA ; french: Union des associations européennes de football; german: Union der europäischen Fußballverbände) is one of six continental bodies of governance in association football. It governs f ...
. In 2008, the stadium was revamped with new areas for anti- doping procedures and internet rooms were added for journalists. The stadium is used by the
Albania national football team The Albania national football team ( sq, Kombëtarja e futbollit të Shqipërisë) represents Albania in men's international football, and is governed by the Albanian Football Association, the governing body for football in Albania. Albania com ...
and for the home games of Tirana-based Albanian football clubs: KF Tirana, Partizani, and Dinamo.


Recent issues


Plans for demolition and reconstruction

In June 2010, the Albanian government put the stadium on a list of assets for sale. During the summer of 2010, there was a disagreement between the
Albanian Football Association The Albanian Football Association ( sq, Federata Shqiptare e Futbollit; FSHF) is the governing body of football in Albania. The association is based in Tirana, Albania. It organises the national football leagues of the Albanian Superliga, the F ...
(FSHF) and the Albanian government as to the disposition of the stadium. FSHF, sponsored by UEFA, proposed that the stadium, rather than being sold, should be totally donated by the government to FSHF, under the condition that the stadium receive UEFA funding for its reconstruction. On 8 October 2010, Albania's Prime Minister
Sali Berisha Sali Ram Berisha (; born 15 October 1944) is an Albanian conservative politician and former cardiologist who served as the second President of Albania from 1992 to 1997 and Prime Minister from 2005 to 2013. He is also the current chairman of ...
declared that for the 100th anniversary of the
Albanian Declaration of Independence The Albanian Declaration of Independence ( Albanian: ''Deklarata e Pavarësisë'') was the declaration of independence of Albania from the Ottoman Empire. Independent Albania was proclaimed in Vlorë on 28 November 1912. Six days later the Ass ...
, which will occur in 2012, a new national stadium will be built in Tirana. The new stadium, already approved by the Albanian Football Association and the government, will replace the existing one which will be demolished. The number of seats is expected to be more than 22,500.Top Channel Video - “Kleçka”, Supremja: Rigjykim i pjesshëm
The total construction cost will be around
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 ...
60 million, and 75% of the property rights of the stadium will belong to the Albanian Football Association, and the remaining 25% to the Albanian government. Once finished, the stadium is expected to be of category four, the highest UEFA category, and will potentially be able to host Champion League final matches. The demolition of the old stadium started in June 2016.


Renaming

In January 2010, after the death of the notable Albanian player Panajot Pano, an official request from the Partizani Tirana club and from the Albanian Minister of Culture, Youth and Sports was addressed to the Albanian government for the stadium to be renamed after the famous footballer.


The Qemal Stafa "Curse"

During the early 2000s, the stadium was considered a "curse" for other national teams by the Albanian media, partly due to the fact that Albania rarely lost their home games. In a period from September 2001 to October 2004, Albania went undefeated at this ground. Illustrious national teams such as
Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders ...
, who had just won Euro 2004, were eclipsed by Albania in 2004, whereas teams like Sweden, the
Republic of Ireland Ireland ( ga, Éire ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (), is a country in north-western Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 Counties of Ireland, counties of the island of Ireland. The capital and largest city is Dublin, on the eastern ...
, Switzerland, and
Bulgaria Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedo ...
had to settle for hotly contested draws in an intimidating arena. Before this period, during 1986 World Cup qualifying round, future semi-finalist
Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...
lost 2-0 at Qemal Stafa.


References


External links


National Arena of Albania Approved Project
(Albanian)
A 1980s military parade and civil demonstration t the stadium
{{Football venues in Albania Football venues in Albania Demolished buildings and structures in Albania Buildings and structures in Tirana Multi-purpose stadiums in Albania Athletics (track and field) venues in Albania KF Tirana Sports venues completed in 1946 Fascist architecture FK Dinamo Tirana Sport in Tirana FK Partizani Tirana Sports venues demolished in 2016