San Siro

Stadio Giuseppe Meazza
San Siro
Location	Via Piccolomini 5, 20151 Milan, Italy
Broke ground	1925
Opened	19 September 1926
Renovated	1956, 1989
Owner	Milan Municipality
Surface	Grass
Capacity	80,074[1]
Field dimensions	105m x 68m
Tenants
A.C. Milan F.C. Internazionale Milano

The Stadio Giuseppe Meazza, originally and commonly referred to as the San Siro because of its location, is a football stadium located in the San Siro district in Milan, Italy. It is the home of both A.C. Milan and F.C. Internazionale Milano. The stadium is named in honour of Giuseppe Meazza, the two-time World Cup winner (1934, 1938) who played for Internazionale, and briefly for Milan, in the 1930s and 1940s. It held UEFA five-star stadium status which was superseded by a new system of classification.

History

The stadium construction started in 1925 in the district of Milan named San Siro. Originally called "Nuovo Stadio Calcistico San Siro" (San Siro New Football Stadium),^[2]. The idea to build a stadium in the same district as the horse racing track, belongs to the man who then was the president of AC Milan, Piero Pirelli. The architects designed a private stadium only for football, without the athletics tracks which characterized the Italian stadia built with public funds.^[3] The inauguration was on September 19, 1926, when 35,000 spectators saw Internazionale defeat Milan 6–3. Originally, the ground was home and property of AC Milan. In 1947 Internazionale became tenants and the two have shared the ground ever since.

As well as being used by Milan and Inter, the Italian national team also plays occasional games there and it has also been used for the 2001, 1970 and 1965 UEFA Champions League finals. The stadium was also used for Internazionale's UEFA Cup finals when played over home and away legs but has never featured since the competition changed to a single final structure in 1997–98.

The stadium underwent further renovations for the 1990 World Cup with $60 million being spent, bringing the stadium up to UEFA 5-star standard. As part of the renovations, the stadium became all seated, with an extra tier being added to three sides of the stadium. This entailed the building of 11 concrete towers around the outside of the stadium. Four of these concrete towers located at the corner to support a new roof which has distinctive protruding red girders.

Inter is in the process of new stadium feasibility studies.

The first Rugby Union international took place at the San Siro when Italy played New Zealand national rugby union team in the 2009 end of year rugby tests.

Renovations

• 1939 End stands enlarged and corners filled in. A crowd of 55,000 for Italy – England 2–2.
• 1940 65,000 for Italy vs. Germany.
• 1955 Completion of two tiers giving a claimed capacity of 100,000.
• 1956 April 25, in front of 100,000 spectators, Italy – Brazil 3–0 (Goals: Virgili 2, De Sordi).
• After the Heysel Stadium disaster, the capacity was reduced to 80,000 in the mid 1980s.
• 1987, as a preparations for the 1990 World Cup the Italian government gave the Milanese council $30 million for its modernization, but in the end, the cost was more than double that. Project 1990 by Ragazzi e Hoffner e Salvi: 11 concrete towers of 50 meters in height. Of the 11 towers, 4 at each corner, protruded above the 3rd tier as support for the new roof.
• 1990 Third tier completed on three sides giving an all seated capacity of 85,700.
• 2002 Sky Box: 20 for 200 seats. 400 all-seats for journalists.
• Future renovation may involve the completion of the 3rd tier on the east side of the stadium, although this would involve purchasing land from the present hippodrome, behind the stadium.

Pitch

• Length: 105 metres
• Width: 68 metres
• Surface: Grass
• Inauguration: September 19, 1926

Average attendances

* = Inter awarded Serie A title in wake of Italian match-fixing scandal.

Capacity

Italy vs All Blacks in 2009.

Other events

Other than football matches, the San Siro has been host to many pop music concerts.

Artists that have performed at San Siro include Laura Pausini, Red Hot Chili Peppers, U2, Feeder, Ash, Bob Marley, Michael Jackson, Depeche Mode, Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band, David Bowie, Robbie Williams, Madonna, The Rolling Stones, Vasco Rossi & Muse, among others.

The San Siro was also the venue for the boxing match between Duilio Loi vs. Carlos Ortiz for the Junior Welterweight title in 1960.

In November 2009, Italy played the All Blacks in rugby in front of a sold out crowd of 80,000, a record for Italian Rugby. The score finished at 20–6 in the All Blacks' favour.

Location

The stadium is located in the western part of Milan. The stadium can be reached by tram, line 16 ends right in front, or using the Lotto metro station (line 1, red color, direction Rho Fiera) which is approx a 15 minutes walk from San Siro. Before sport events and concerts, a free bus connection is available from Lotto station to the stadium.

Panorama

Panorama of the stadium

References

External links

• San Siro Website
• San Siro Museum & Tour Website
• AC Milan Website
• FC Internazionale Milano Website
• ACMilan.it.pn
• WorldStadiums.com architectural feature
• San Siro at Footballmatch