HSH Nordbank Arena

Infobox Stadium
stadium_name = HSH Nordbank Arena
nickname = Volksparkstadion


UEFA
fullname = HSH Nordbank Arena
location = Hamburg, Germany
built = 1951-1953 "As Volksparkstadion"
opened = 12 July 1953; 1998 (new stadium)
owner =
operator =
surface = grass
construction_cost =
architect =
former_names = Volksparkstadion (1953-2001)
AOL Arena (2001-2007)
FIFA World Cup Stadium, Hamburg (2006 FIFA World Cup)
tenants = Hamburger SV(Bundesliga) (2000-"present")
Hamburg Sea Devils (NFL Europa) (2005-2007)
seating_capacity =
57,274

dimensions =
105 m x 68 m

HSH Nordbank Arena is the municipal stadium of Hamburg, Germany. It is the home ground of the Hamburger SV football team and was one of the 12 stadiums used in the 2006 Football World Cup, which hosted four group games and a quarter final. The arena was known as the Volksparkstadion until 2001 when AOL Time Warner bought the naming rights until July 2007.

History

HSV actually have nothing to do with the origins of the stadium, even though they own the current arena. Before the club moved to the current site they played at Sportplatz at Rothenbaum. Bahrenfelder Stadion was the first stadium to built on the site of the Volksparkstadion and the AOL Arena. It was inaugurated on 13 September 1925 with a match between FC Altona 93 and HSV. In front a crowd of 25,000, HSV lost 2-3. At the time the stadium was also known as Altonaer Stadion, however it was not the home ground of FC Altona 93 (it was Adolf-Jäger-Kampfbahn). [http://www.altona93.de/ Altona] was a large club of Germany that has long been surpassed by HSV.

After a long break the stadium was finally renovated. Between 1951 and 1953 the stadium was rebuilt. On 12 July the stadium was opened under its new name Volksparkstadion (The People's Park Stadium). Most of the building materials came from the ruins of Eimsbüttel, a district of Hamburg destroyed under Allied bombing. The new stadium could hold up to 75,000 and continued to be used for the various sporting events of the city.

In 1963, when HSV qualified for the newly created Bundesliga, they moved into the Volksparkstadion, a stadium that was both larger and more modern then Rothenbaum. At this time, FC Altona missed out on the opportunity and has struggled ever since. HSV then began to see some success in the Bundesliga and managed to maintain their status for years to come. HSV won titles in 1979, 1982, and 1983.

In May 1998 HSV decided to replace the unpopular Volksparkstadion with a brand new stadium, not only to help Germany get ready to host the Football World Cup, but also because it was getting harder and harder to meet the safety standards with such an old facility. The old stadium was totally demolished and the new arena was rotated 90° to provide an equal viewing experience for all the stands and to take advantage of sunlight. The estimated cost of the new stadium was €90-100 million. The new arena serves both as a football ground and a concert hall. The capacity of the stadium during club matches is 57,274, which is reduced to 51.500 during international matches when the standing sections in the north grandstand are converted into seated areas. The building permit for the new arena was issued on 30 April 1998. The new stadium got rid of the track and field facilities that increased the distance between the pitch and the stands. The stadium was inaugurated in 2000 when Germany played Greece; the home team won 2-0. With the new stadium, HSV has managed to attain an average attendance of 50,000. In 2004 a museum dedicated to the history of HSV was opened.

In 2001 AOL bought the naming rights to the Volksparkstadion for 15.3 million euro. This contract, with HSV, ran out in 2006 but had a provision to be renewed. However, as in many cases when naming rights are sold to corporate giants, many locals still refer to the stadium by its former name.

On 29 March 2007 the HSH Nordbank bought the naming rights to the AOL Arena for 25 million € because AOL didn't renew this contract. For the next 6 years the name will be "HSH Nordbank Arena".

Tournaments hosted

1974 World Cup

The 1974 FIFA World Cup was held in West Germany and the Volksparkstadion was one of the stadiums used in the tournament. In combination with the Berlin Olympic Stadium the two stadiums held all of the Group A games of the first phase. Three of those were played at the Volksparkstadion. The first game played was the match between East Germany and Australia where attendance dipped to a low of only 17,000. The next game, with the home side West Germany playing Australia, saw a bounceback with 53,300 in attendance. The attendance grew even more for the next match to 60,200 as home side West Germany played neighbouring East Germany. East Germany won the close game 1-0 with an 80th-minute goal.

Euro 88

In 1988 the European Football Championship came to West Germany. The Volksparkstadion was chosen to be one of the host stadiums. At the time the stadium could hold 61,200 spectators. The only game of the tournament that was played at the stadium was a semi-final that saw hosts West Germany go down to the Netherlands 1-2.

2006 FIFA World Cup

The stadium was one of the venues for the 2006 FIFA World Cup. However, due to sponsorship contracts, the arena was known as "FIFA World Cup Stadium Hamburg" during the World Cup.

HSH NORDBANK

Main Arcticle: HSH Nordbank

HSH Nordbank is a German bank based mainly in Hamburg, Germany; Manhattan, USA; Kiel, Germany, and Sweden. The following games were played at the stadium during the World Cup of 2006:

2010 UEFA Cup Final

The stadium was chosen by UEFA to host the 2010 UEFA Europa League Final. [cite news|url=http://www.uefa.com/uefa/keytopics/kind=64/newsid=676743.html|title=Madrid and Hamburg awarded 2010 finals|publisher=UEFA|date=2008-03-28|accessdate=2008-03-28]

Transport

The stadium's nearest station is Stellingen. It's on the S3 & S21 lines of the Hamburg S-Bahn. A free bus shuttle service is provided during soccer matches from the Stellingen train station to the stadium. There are several big car parks around the stadium. The Autobahn 7 (expressway) is close to the stadium and the stadium can be reached via the exit Stellingen.

Trivia

*The record attendance was attained in Hamburg's victory over Borussia Moenchengladbach (2-0) on the 9 April 2006, where 56,750 people were counted.
*The pitch is heated via undersoil heaters.
*There are 22 positions for cameras to provide a variety of angles for TV viewers.
*The AOL Arena is one of UEFA's which enables it to host the UEFA Cup and the UEFA Champions League Final.
*On 7 July 2007 Live Earth's Germany concert was held at the arena.
*Tina Turner headlined a concert at the stadium during her highly successful Twenty Four Seven Tour.

References

External links

* [http://www.hsv.de/ Official team site]
* [http://www.hsv-hshnordbank-arena.de/ Official site of the HSH Nordbank-Arena]