Silesian Stadium

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Silesian Stadium
Stadion Śląski
Witches' Pot
Full name Silesian Stadium
Stadion Śląski
Location Chorzów, Silesia, Poland
Built 1956
Opened 22 July 1956
Owner Silesian Voivodeship
Tenants Poland national team
Silesian national team¹
and:
Górnik Zabrze¹
GKS Katowice¹
Ruch Chorzów¹
Polonia Bytom¹
GKS Tychy¹
other club from USMU¹
¹ - only important matches
Capacity 47,246
(in the past 120,000)
Field dimensions 105 x 68 m

Silesian Stadium (Polish: Stadion Śląski) is a sport stadium located between Chorzów and Katowice, Silesia, Poland. It opened on 22 July 1956 and has since hosted crowds of over 120,000 for both football matches and motorcycle speedway world championships. It also hosts music festivals.

Contents

[edit] History

It was decided to build the Silesia Stadium in 1950 and Julian Brzuchowski was chosen as its designer. Silesia Stadium was completed in 1956, together with the 10th Anniversary Stadium (Polish: Stadion Dziesięciolecia) in Warsaw. On 22 July 1956, it hosted its first event - a friendly game with the East Germany national football team (2:0 for the Germans). Electric lighting was installed in 1959.

Initially designed to hold 87,000 people, it was often filled by crowds ranging between 90,000 and 100,000. On September 18, 1963, it held a record number of spectators (120,000) during a European Cup match between Górnik Zabrze and FK Austria Wien. However, the enforcement of international security standards forced the stadium's authorities to reduce its number of seats.

In 1993, the stadium was designated as the official home stadium of the Polish national football team. In the 1990s, the stadium was converted to an all-seater stadium, reducing the capacity to 47,246. Currently, there are plans to expand its capacity to 60,000 and to construct a roof over the stadium.

[edit] Events

[edit] Football

[edit] Poland national football team

Poland vs Norway football match at Silesia Stadium in 2001
Poland vs Norway football match at Silesia Stadium in 2001
No. Date Match Result Turnout
1 22 July 1956 Poland – GDR 0:2 90 000
2 20 October 1957 Poland – USSR 2:1 100 000
3 11 May 1958 Poland – Ireland 2:2 80 000
4 14 September 1958 Poland – Hungary 1:3 90 000
5 28 June 1959 Poland – Spain 2:4 100 000
6 8 November 1959 Poland – Finland 6:2 22 000
7 26 June 1960 Poland – Bulgaria 4:0 25 000
8 25 June 1961 Poland – Yugoslavia 1:1 100 000
9 5 November 1961 Poland – Denmark 5:0 10 000
10 10 October 1962 Poland – Northern Ireland 0:2 50 000
11 2 June 1963 Poland – Romania 1:1 40 000
12 23 May 1965 Poland – Scotland 1:1 80 000
13 3 May 1966 Poland – Hungary 1:1 95 000
14 5 July 1966 Poland – England 0:1 70 000
15 21 May 1967 Poland – Belgium 3:1 65 000
16 24 April 1968 Poland – Turkey 8:0 35 000
17 30 October 1968 Poland – Ireland 1:0 18 000
18 7 September 1969 Poland – Netherlands 2:1 85 000
19 14 October 1970 Poland – Albania 3:0 10 000
20 6 June 1973 Poland – England 2:0 90 000
21 26 September 1973 Poland – Wales 3:0 90 000
22 10 September 1975 Poland – Netherlands 4:1 85 000
23 24 March 1976 Poland – Argentina 1:2 60 000
24 21 September 1977 Poland – Denmark 4:1 80 000
25 29 September 1977 Poland – Portugal 1:1 80 000
26 4 April 1979 Poland – Hungary 1:1 60 000
27 2 May 1979 Poland – Netherlands 2:0 85 000
28 26 September 1979 Poland – GDR 1:1 70 000
29 6 June 1980 Poland – Czechoslovakia 1:1 45 000
30 2 May 1981 Poland – GDR 1:0 80 000
31 2 September 1981 Poland – Germany 0:2 70 000
32 22 May 1983 Poland – USSR 1:1 75 000
33 11 September 1985 Poland – Netherlands 0:0 75 000
34 16 November 1985 Poland – Italy 1:0 20 000
35 19 October 1988 Poland – Albania 1:0 35 000
36 11 October 1989 Poland – England 0:0 35 000
37 25 October 1989 Poland – Scotland 0:2 15 000
38 29 May 1993 Poland – England 1:1 65 000
39 2 April 1997 Poland – Italy 0:0 32 000
40 31 May 1997 Poland – England 0:2 30 000
41 27 May 1998 Poland – Russia 3:1 8 000
42 31 March 1999 Poland – Sweden 0:1 30 000
43 1 September 2001 Poland – Norway 3:0 42 000
44 6 October 2001 Poland – Ukraine 1:1 35 000
45 29 March 2003 Poland – Hungary 0:0 47 000
46 10 September 2003 Poland – Sweden 0:2 20 000
47 8 September 2004 Poland – England 1:2 45 000
48 3 September 2005 Poland – Austria 3:2 45 000
49 31 May 2006 Poland – Colombia 1:2 40 000
50 11 October 2006 Poland – Portugal 2:1 44 000
51 17 November 2007 Poland – Belgium 2:0 47 000

[edit] Cup games

No. Cup Date Match Result Turnout
1 UEFA CL 13 September 1961 Górnik Zabrze – Tottenham Hotspur 4:0 80 000
2 UEFA CL 12 September 1962 Polonia Bytom – Panathinaikos Athens 2:1 30 000
3 UEFA CL 18 November 1962 Polonia Bytom – Galatasaray S.K. Istanbul 1:0 10 000
4 UEFA CL 18 September 1963 Górnik Zabrze – FK Austria Wien 1:0 120 000
5 UEFA CL 13 November 1963 Górnik Zabrze – Dukla Praha 2:0 100 000
6 UEFA CL 20 September 1964 Górnik Zabrze – Dukla Praha 3:0 80 000
7 UEFA CL 22 September 1965 Górnik Zabrze – LASK Linz 2:1 60 000
8 UEFA CL 28 November 1965 Górnik Zabrze – AC Sparta Praha 1:2 35 000
9 UEFA CL 20 September 1967 Górnik Zabrze – Djurgårdens IF Stockholm 3:0 45 000
10 UEFA CL 9 November 1967 Górnik Zabrze – FC Dynamo Kyiv 1:1 100 000
11 UEFA CL 13 March 1968 Górnik Zabrze – Manchester United 1:0 90 000
12 UEFA CWC 1 October 1969 Górnik Zabrze – Olympiakos Pireus 5:0 30 000
13 UEFA CWC 12 November 1969 Górnik Zabrze – Rangers 3:1 80 000
14 UEFA CWC 18 March 1970 Górnik Zabrze – PFC Levski Sofia 2:1 100 000
15 UEFA CWC 15 April 1970 Górnik Zabrze – AS Roma 2:2 100 000
16 ICFC 16 September 1970 GKS Katowice – FC Barcelona 0:1 85 000
17 ICFC 16 September 1970 Ruch Chorzów – ACF Fiorentina 1:1 85 000
18 UEFA CWC 9 November 1971 Górnik Zabrze – Manchester City 2:0 90 000
19 UEFA CL 29 September 1971 Górnik Zabrze – Olympique de Marseille 1:1 70 000
20 UEFA CL 8 November 1972 Górnik Zabrze – FC Dynamo Kyiv 2:1 70 000
21 UEFA CL 18 September 1985 Górnik Zabrze – FC Bayern Munich 1:2 60 000
22 UEFA CWC 2 October 1986 GKS Katowice – Fram Reykjavik 1:0 20 000
23 UEFA CWC 22 October 1986 GKS Katowice – FC Sion 2:2 10 000
24 UEFA Cup 5 October 1988 GKS Katowice – Rangers 2:4 30 000
25 UEFA CL 26 October 1988 Górnik Zabrze – Real Madrid 0:1 55 000
26 UEFA CL 13 September 1989 Ruch Chorzów – Sredec Sofia 1:1 15 000
27 UEFA Cup 14 September 2000 Ruch Chorzów – F.C. Internazionale Milano 0:3 20 000

[edit] Other matches

[edit] Speedway

The grass of Silesia Stadium is surrounded by a speedway track.

Major events run at the Stadium in the past include:

Speedway World Championships:
Speedway Grand Prix of Europe: 2002, 2003

[edit] Concerts

Silesia Stadium has hosted a number of large concerts, including performances by Iron Maiden, The Rolling Stones, AC/DC, Metallica, Nightwish and Slipknot. On 5 July 2005, U2 performed for a crowd of 80,000. In 2007, it was the venue of performances by Linkin Park, Pearl Jam, Genesis and Red Hot Chili Peppers.

[edit] References

  • "Pół wieku Stadionu Śląskiego" (Half a century of the Silesian Stadium)
  • Gazeta Wyborcza
    • "Pół wieku Stadionu Śląskiego" Część 1, 26 czerwca 2006, page: 1, 2, 3, 4
    • "Pół wieku Stadionu Śląskiego" Część 3, 10 lipca 2006, page: 1, 2, 3, 4
    • "Pół wieku Stadionu Śląskiego" Część 4, 17 lipca 2006, page: 1, 2, 3, 4

[edit] External links

Coordinates: 50°17′17.53″N, 18°58′22.65″E