Humans have always loved watching a good show, and few shows are quite as good as a game of soccer played in front of thousands of fans, and many of our large stadiums are proof of this.
Being monstrous in design and accommodating tens of thousands of people at any given time, these stadiums are what many of the fans look forward to the most; not just for their sheer size, but for the architectural genius that went into the construction.
Not all stadiums are created equal, however, and some tend to be significantly larger than the others. Here, we will look at the world’s very largest stadiums in terms of how many people they can hold during a game.
The FNB Stadium – Johannesburg
Commonly known among locals as Soccer City, this humongous stadium was built by First National Bank, one of the leading financial institutions in the country of South Africa. It was opened in 1989, and then underwent intensive renovations much later down the line in 2010.
In fact, it was one of the stadiums that was prominent during the 2010 World Cup, where the vuvuzela became famous. The stadium can hold up to 94736 people at once.
Estadio Azteca – Mexico City
This has been the home to two different World Cup finals, as well as the venue of the “Hand of God” goal that was scored by Diego Maradona in the quarter finals of 1986.
The name of the venue has been attributed to the Aztecs that once lived in the area centuries before the Spanish arrived. The stadium currently accommodates around 95000 people, all of which can sit comfortably during a match as the teams play now,
Camp Nou – Barcelona
Run by one of the world’s richest soccer teams, Camp Nou is the second largest stadium of its kind throughout the globe. It is the home of the famous Barcelona team, and the venue for many of their most memorable games, but it’s also been home to a large number of Catalan teams.
In 2000, fans were asked to vote in a poll and “Camp Nou” was officially announced as the name, where it was known as Estadi del FC Barcelona beforehand. It can house almost 100,000 at full capacity.
Rungrado May Day Stadium – Pyongyang
North Korea is a country that undergone much hardships over the years, but no expense was spared when the government decided to put together a stadium worthy of their infamous leader. The Rungrado May Day Stadium currently holds the record for being the largest of its kind, putting all others to shame in regard to the sheer amount of people that it’s able to hold.
When it’s not being used for soccer games, it’s used for celebrating the achievements of the country as well as the government. It’s been speculated that the stadium was once used as a site for military executions of those that had tried to assassinate the leaders of the state, although this remains unconfirmed. Regardless, at a capacity of 150,000 people, it holds the title for the biggest in the world.
