The Largest Football Stadiums in the World

Football is one of the few activities that can TRULY fill a stadium. Football is, without a doubt, the most popular sport on the planet, with an estimated 3.5 billion followers. With the 2022 Qatar world cup awaiting just around the corner, and not having hosted any big football events before, Qatar has been building new stadiums to accommodate a large number of spectators like the luxurious 80,000-seat Lusail stadium, which according to the Vwin99 sportsbook report, is going to host the final event. In this article, we'll talk about the largest operating stadiums.

1. Rungrado First Of May Stadium

North Korea, possibly the world's most isolated country, is home to the world's largest football stadium. The Rungrado First of May Stadium, located in Pyongyang, North Korea's capital, has a capacity of 150,000 people, which is what the North Koreans assert.

In fact, the venue's real capacity is 114,000, yet it would still rank among the world's largest. First opened in 1989, the stadium presently hosts the annual Arirang Games.

In case you didn't know, the Arirang Games is the world's largest gymnastics performance, according to the Guinness Book of Records. In 2014, it was refurbished and reopened to the public in 2015.

2. AT&T Stadium

AT&T Stadium is most known as the home of the Dallas Cowboys in American football, but it has also held football (soccer) events. In Arlington, Texas, the arena is the world's biggest domed stadium.

It has a retractable roof, and in the center of the stadium is the world's biggest high-definition television screen. To top it off, AT&T Stadium has a maximum capacity of 105,000, making it the second-largest football stadium globally.

3. Melbourne Cricket Ground

Melbourne Cricket Grounds, in Melbourne, Australia, was built especially to hold cricket matches in 1853, as its name suggests. However, the stadium has held a variety of other sports, including football matches. The Melbourne Cricket Grounds, dubbed "The G" by locals, has a seating capacity of 100,024.

Additionally, the first FIFA-recognized international football match played at the arena was a World Cup qualification match between Australia and Iran in 1997. It has also hosted matches between well-known European clubs such as Manchester United and Juventus.

<2>4. Camp NouWith a total capacity of 99,354, Camp Nou is the home field of Futbol Club Barcelona, a well-known football team and Europe's largest soccer stadium. It's in the city of Barcelona, Spain.

Camp Nou is currently undergoing substantial repairs after opening its doors in 1957. The stadium is so popular among fans that it requires a vote to approve plans for rebuilding, which is expected to be finished in 2022.

5. FNB Stadium

The FNB Stadium, located in Johannesburg, South Africa, is the continent's largest football stadium. The stadium, often known as Soccer City, was constructed in 2009 in time to host matches during the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

On the other hand, the stadium was not constructed from the ground up, but instead, as a rebuild of the previous stadium, completed during South Africa's Apartheid era in 1989. It can hold 94,736 people.

Honorable Mentions

Here are a few honorable mentions of huge soccer stadiums. Although they don't compare to the ones above, their holding capacity is still astonishing. If you want to read more about other large stadiums, feel free to check them out here.

The Rose Bowl - Pasadena, California
Wembley Stadium - London, England
Estadio Azteca - Mexico City
The Bukit Jalil National Stadium - Kuala Lumpur
Borg El Arab Stadium - Borg El Arab, ‎Egypt