| Stadion FK Crvena Zvezda | |
|---|---|
| Marakana | |
An aerial view of the stadium. |
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| Full name | Marakana (Red Star Stadium) |
| Location | Belgrade, Serbia |
| Built | 1960-1963 |
| Opened | 1 September 1963 |
| Owner | Red Star Belgrade |
| Capacity | 55,538 |
| Field dimensions | 100 x 68 meters |
The Red Star Stadium (Serbian: Стадион Црвена Звезда/Stadion Crvena Zvezda) is a multi-use stadium in Belgrade, Serbia. It is currently used mostly for football matches and is the home stadium of Red Star Belgrade. The stadium is all-seated and the capacity is 55,538.[1] It was opened in 1963 after construction which had started three years earlier.
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The first football stadium in this location was constructed in 1927. It was the stadium of SK Jugoslavija. It consisted of a 30,000 capacity stadium with grass pitch, athletic track, training facility and club house. SK Jugoslavija played its matches on the stadium until the end of the Second World War when the club was disbanded by the new Yugoslav authorities. The ground was signed over to the newly founded club Red Star Belgrade.
On 27 December 1959, Red Star played its last match at the old ground. FK Novi Sad was the opposition in a farewell game at the dilapidated arena.
Together with the crumbling facility, a part of football history had left as well. At that stadium Moša Marjanović scored a famous goal on the Spanish keeper Ricardo Zamora, also František Plánička was defeated, and after World War II plenty of beautiful and exciting games were played. These included the European Cup quarter-final second leg on 5 February 1958, in which Red Star took on the English league champions Manchester United, who had won the first leg in England 2-1. Despite fighting back to draw 3-3 after being 3-0 down, Red Star were eliminated from the competition by the English side.[2]The game is most memorable for being the last played by the Manchester United side before the Munich air disaster the following day, when the team's aeroplane crashed in the West German city on the return journey.[3]Eight Manchester United players were among the 23 people who died as a result of their injuries in the crash, while two of the surviving players were injured to such an extent that they never played again.[4]
After the farewell game, stadium was demolished to be replaced by the modern new sporting facility at exactly the same spot. In order to prepare the adequate construction area for the new stadium that was to be 12 meters lower than the previous one, over 350,000 cubic metres of soil and 15,000 cubic metres of stone had to be excavated.
After three years of construction, the new stadium was ready to be unveiled. The official opening took place on 1 September 1963 with the Yugoslav First League match against NK Rijeka (2:1). That day, some 55,000 spectators came through 9 entrance gates of 5 metres width each into the still unfinished stands. The very first visitor to the stadium is known to be Laza Petrović, a peasant from the Loznica vicinity. This fiery Red Star fan arrived to the new stadium early in the morning and took his place in the eastern stand. He took out cheese and a bannock from his bag, then ate his breakfast while he waited patiently until the late afternoon for the game to start.
The largest crowd was recorded that autumn at a derby against FK Partizan – 74,000 people. Next year, after the stadium was fully completed its capacity increased to 110,000 spectators and it got the unofficial moniker - Marakana, in honour of the famous Brazilian stadium. Apart from the exciting look, the new stadium also featured a magnificent grass pitch with drainage, which made the overall playing experience much more enjoyable.
First official goal at the stadium was scored by Trifun Mihajlović in a youth match between Red Star and Jedinstvo from Zemun, a prelude to the first league match with NK Rijeka. First official top division goal is a deed of Vukoja from Rijeka while Dušan Maravić scored Red Star's first ever goal at stadium with the tying effort in the same game.
Still on the subject of records, according to the number of tickets sold, stadium saw its largest crowd on 23 April 1975 at the Cup Winners Cup semi-final home leg against the Hungarian side Ferencváros 2–2. There were officially 96,070 spectators in the stands that night with purchased tickets, but it is believed that the stadium was filled to the maximum allowable capacity which at the time was 110,000.
In the years since, the stadium's capacity was gradually decreased. Following different modernisation touch-ups more seats were put in each time. During mid 1990s in order to meet UEFA demands for spectators' comfort and security, standing places at the stadium were completely done away with. Seats were installed on all 4 stands so that the stadium‘s maximum capacity today reaches 60,000.
In 2008, the club announced the reconstruction of the pitch in the stadium. Under-soil grass heaters were installed and new modern turf has replaced the old playing surface. The training pitch will also be renovated by laying down synthetic turf and installing new lighting equipment.
In May 2010, Red Star presented a new stadium project. It will feature 60,000-70,000 seats. The Portuguese architect said "We tried to make this stadium known as the Red Star stadium. That's why we designed the main stadium structure in the form of pentagonal star, which is the club's symbol. The highest architectural standards will be applied to the entire complex. Steel, glass and natural materials will be used to achieve a modern and innovative architectural solutions to make the Red Star complex a unique and distinctive signiture of Belgrade."
Marakana has seldom been used as a concert venue in its 45-year history.
The most notable performer is Zdravko Čolić who held massive shows at Marakana on three separate occasions. The first was on September 5, 1978 as part of his now famous Putujući Urnebes Tour - 70,000 people showed up. Then, almost 23 years later on June 31, 2001, he made anther appearance promoting his Okano album in front of 85,000 spectators. Finally on June 23, 2007 he promoted his Zavičaj album with another huge concert at Marakana.
Other than him, Serbian folk singer Ceca held a huge concert on June 15, 2002.
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| Preceded by De Kuip Rotterdam |
European Cup Final Venue 1973 |
Succeeded by Heysel Stadium Brussels |
| Preceded by King Baudouin Stadium Brussels |
UEFA European Football Championship Final Venue 1976 |
Succeeded by Stadio Olimpico Rome |