Rungrado 1st of May Stadium facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Rungrado 1st of May Stadium

Full name	The Rungrado 1st of May Stadium Pyongyang
Former names	Rungrado May Day Stadium
Location	Rungra Island, Pyongyang, North Korea
Capacity	114,000
Field size	Main pitch – 22,500 m2 (242,000 sq ft) Total floor space – over 207,000 m2 (2,230,000 sq ft)
Surface	Artificial turf
Construction
Broke ground	1986
Built	1986–1989
Opened	1 May 1989 (1989-05-01)
Tenants
North Korea national football team North Korea women's national football team April 25 Sports Club

The outside of the Rungrado 1st of May Stadium.

A huge performance during the Arirang Festival.

The Rungrado 1st of May Stadium is a huge sports stadium in Pyongyang, North Korea. It sits on Rungra Island. This stadium opened on May 1, 1989. Its first big event was the 13th World Festival of Youth and Students.

It is one of the largest stadiums in the world. It can hold about 114,000 people. This makes it a truly massive place for events.

What the Stadium Is Used For

The Rungrado 1st of May Stadium is used for many things.

• It hosts exciting football matches.
• Sometimes, it is used for track and field events.
• Most often, it is the home of the famous mass games of the Arirang Festival. These are huge shows with thousands of performers.

How the Stadium Looks

The stadium has a very special design. Its roof looks like a beautiful magnolia blossom. It has 16 arches arranged in a circle.

The main playing field is very large, covering about 22,500 square meters. The total space inside the stadium is over 207,000 square meters. The highest points of its roof are more than 60 meters above the ground.

The stadium was first built to hold 150,000 people. After some updates in 2014, where old bench seats were changed to individual seats, it can now hold around 114,000 spectators.

History of the Stadium

The Rungrado 1st of May Stadium was built between 1986 and 1989. It was part of a big building project in North Korea. This project happened after the 1988 Summer Olympics were held in Seoul, South Korea. North Korea wanted to show off its own achievements.

One of the main reasons for building the stadium was to host the 13th World Festival of Youth and Students in 1989. When it was finished, it was the biggest stadium ever built in Asia.

While sports events happen here, the stadium is most famous for its huge performances. These shows celebrate the country and its leaders.

The Arirang Festival

In 2002, the stadium hosted the giant Arirang Festival. This was a gymnastic and artistic show. More than 100,000 people performed in it! That's twice the number of people watching. Foreign visitors were also allowed to attend.

These amazing performances now happen every year in Pyongyang, usually in August and September. In 2007, the Guinness Book of Records recognized the Arirang Festival as the largest gymnastics display ever. It had 100,090 participants.

Other Events

The stadium has also hosted other unique events:

• In 1995, it held Collision in Korea, a very large professional wrestling event.
• In 2015, the stadium reopened after a two-year renovation.
• In 2018, the leaders of North and South Korea met here. South Korean President Moon Jae-in gave a speech to 150,000 North Korean people. He spoke about peace and working together.
• In 2019, Kim Jong Un hosted Chinese leader Xi Jinping at a special performance. This show celebrated 70 years of friendship between China and North Korea.
• On December 31, 2022, a New Year's Eve concert was held at the stadium. Kim Jong Un and other important officials attended.

Notable Events at the Stadium

• Opening and closing ceremonies of the 13th World Festival of Youth and Students in 1989
• Collision in Korea professional wrestling event in 1995
• 2018 Inter-Korean Summit Pyongyang

Annual Events

• Arirang Festival
• Pyongyang Marathon

See also

• List of football stadiums in North Korea
• Strahov Stadium
• Yanggakdo Stadium
• In Spanish: Estadio Rungrado Primero de Mayo para niños