Metalist Oblast Sports Complex facts for kids
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| Former names | Tractor Stadium (1926–1940) Dzerzhinets Stadium (1940–1967) |
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| Location | Kharkiv, Ukraine |
| Coordinates | 49°58′51.09″N 36°15′42.13″E / 49.9808583°N 36.2617028°E |
| Owner | Kharkiv City Council |
| Operator | Metalist 1925 Kharkiv |
| Capacity | 41,307 |
| Field size | 105 m × 68 m (344 ft × 223 ft) |
| Surface | Grass |
| Construction | |
| Broke ground | 1925 |
| Opened | 12 September 1926 |
| Renovated | 5 December 2009 |
| Architect | Z. V. Permilovskyi |
| Tenants | |
| Metalist Kharkiv (1926-present) Metalist 1925 Kharkiv (2016–present) Shakhtar Donetsk (2017–2020) |
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The Metalist Stadium (Ukrainian: Стадіон "Металіст") is a large sports complex in Kharkiv, Ukraine. It is mainly used for football matches. It is the home stadium for the football team FC Metalist 1925 Kharkiv. This stadium was also one of the places where games were played for a big football event called Euro 2012. Today, it can hold about 40,003 people.
After the football team FC Metalist Kharkiv stopped playing professionally in 2016, the stadium was empty for a short time. But then, in August 2016, another team, Metalist 1925 Kharkiv, started using it as their home. Later, in February 2017, the team FC Shakhtar Donetsk also began playing their home games here.
History of Metalist Stadium
Work on the stadium began in 1925. It was ordered by Anastas Mikoyan and a group of steel workers in Kharkiv. The stadium first opened on September 12, 1926. It was called Traktor Stadium back then. This name came from the workers of the Kharkiv Locomotive Factory who helped build it.
The stadium was built on the land of an old cemetery. This cemetery was used from 1772 to 1854. It was officially closed by the church in the late 1800s. When it first opened, Metalist Stadium was the biggest stadium in Kharkiv. That changed in 1931 when Dynamo Stadium was built.
Before World War II, the stadium's name changed to Dzerzhynets Stadium. This was to honor Felix Dzerzhinsky, who was a famous leader. Since 1967, the stadium has been known by its current name, Metalist. In that same year, the stadium could hold up to 10,000 people.
Stadium Renovations
The Metalist Stadium has been updated four times. The most recent updates were for the Euro 2012 football tournament.
- The first updates happened in the mid-1960s. The western part of the stadium was improved.
- The second big renovation started in 1970 and finished four years later. During this time, new stands were added on the north and south sides. This made the stadium big enough for 30,000 people. An architect named Yu. Tabakova worked on this project. They also added the stadium's first roof, a system to drain water, bright lights for night games, and an information screen. A hotel and a gym were also built under the north stand.
- A third renovation began in 1979. This was to fix the East and South stands. However, the work stopped for a long time. It only started again in 1998, almost twenty years later. A new East Stand was built, and the South Stand was partly rebuilt.
- The fourth and most recent set of renovations was done for Euro 2012. The South Stand was finished, and a brand new East Stand was constructed. The roof was replaced, and many other modern improvements were made. These updates were finished by the end of 2009. The newly renovated stadium officially opened on December 5, 2009. This was also the 50th birthday of Oleksandr Yaroslavsky, who was the president of FC Metalist Kharkiv at the time.
The South Stand of the stadium has a three-story shopping and business center. It's called "Metalist-Arena." Different businesses, like banks and travel agencies, have offices there. There is also a pharmacy and a medical office.
In August 2016, the football team Metalist 1925 started using the stadium as their home field. Later, in early 2017, the team Shakhtar Donetsk also moved to the Metalist Stadium. They had to move because of a conflict in their home city of Donetsk.
UEFA Euro 2012 Matches
The Metalist Stadium was one of the places where games were played for the UEFA Euro 2012 football tournament. Three group matches for Group B were played here. These matches involved the Netherlands team. The other games in that group were played at Arena Lviv.
Here are the matches that took place at the stadium during UEFA Euro 2012:
| Date | Time (CEST / EEST) | Team No. 1 | Res. | Team No. 2 | Round | Scorers |
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| 9 June 2012 | 18.00 / 19.00 |  Netherlands |
0–1 |  Denmark |
Group B | Michael Krohn-Dehli |
| 13 June 2012 | 20.45 / 21.45 | 1–2 |  Germany |
Mario Gómez Robin van Persie |
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| 17 June 2012 | 20.45 / 21.45 |  Portugal |
2–1 | Netherlands |
Cristiano Ronaldo Rafael van der Vaart |
See also
In Spanish: Estadio Metalist para niños
- KhTZ Stadium
- Dynamo Stadium (Kharkiv)
