Stožice Stadium () is a multi-purpose stadium located in

Ljubljana {{Infobox settlement , name = Ljubljana , official_name = , settlement_type = Capital city , image_skyline = {{multiple image , border = infobox , perrow = 1/2/2/1 , total_widt ...

, Slovenia. It was designed by Sadar + Vuga architects and is the biggest football stadium in the country. It lies in the Bežigrad district, north of the city centre. The stadium is part of the Stožice Sports Park sports complex. The stadium is the home ground of Olimpija Ljubljana and is the main venue of the Slovenia national football team. In addition to football, the stadium is also intended for cultural events.

History

The stadium was named after the area in which it is located, and a change of the name is possible in the future due to sponsorship rights. Together with an indoor arena, it is a part of the Stožice Sports Park. The stadium's built-up area measures 24.614 square metres. It was constructed in 14 months and was opened on 11 August 2010 in a football friendly match between the national teams of

Slovenia Slovenia, officially the Republic of Slovenia, is a country in Central Europe. It borders Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the south and southeast, and a short (46.6 km) coastline within the Adriati ...

and

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

, won by Slovenia 2–0. The stadium has a capacity of 16,038 spectators and is laid out under the plateau of the park. The stadium also has 558 VIP seats and 97 spots for people with disabilities. The stadium's press area can accommodate 210 journalists. As a structure, the stadium is 'sunk' into the park. Only the roof over the stands rises above the plane of the park as a monolithic crater. For cultural purposes such as music concerts, the stadium capacity is increased to over 20,000.

Football

The stadium is mainly used for football and is the home ground of football club Olimpija Ljubljana. In addition, the stadium is also the home venue of the Slovenia national football team, and has hosted 55 national team matches as of 23 March 2025. In 2021, the stadium was one of the eight hosts of the

2021 UEFA European Under-21 Championship The 2021 UEFA European Under-21 Championship (also known as UEFA Under-21 Euro 2021) was the 23rd edition of the UEFA European Under-21 Championship (26th edition if the Under-23 era is also included), the biennial international youth Association ...

, and also hosted the final between

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

and

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...

Culture

Although the stadium was primarily built for football, it is also intended to host a number of cultural events. The first was a joint project of two comedians, Lado Bizovičar and Jurij Zrnec, entitled ''Notpadu lajv?!'', on 20 September 2010. Over 20,000 people gathered at this event.

Records

On 20 November 2023, 16,432 spectators gathered for the UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying match between Slovenia and

Kazakhstan Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a landlocked country primarily in Central Asia, with a European Kazakhstan, small portion in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the Kazakhstan–Russia border, north and west, China to th ...

, which is the highest attendance of any football match in Slovenia since the country's independence in 1991. The attendance record was later tied on 26 March 2024, when Slovenia hosted

in a

friendly match An exhibition game (also known as a friendly, scrimmage, demonstration, training match, pre-season game, warmup match, or preparation match, depending at least in part on the sport) is a sport, sporting event whose prize money and impact on th ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Stozice Stadium Football venues in Slovenia

Stadium A stadium (: stadiums or stadia) is a place or venue for (mostly) outdoor sports, concerts, or other events and consists of a field or stage completely or partially surrounded by a tiered structure designed to allow spectators to stand or sit ...