Salt Lake Stadium | |
Location | Bidhannagar, Kolkata [1] |
---|---|
Public transit | Salt Lake Stadium (Line 2) |
Owner | Government of West Bengal |
Operator | Department of Youth Services & Sports |
Capacity | 85,000 (limited to 68,000 by FIFA from 2017) [2] Former capacity: List
|
Record attendance | 131,781 (1997 Federation Cup semi-final) |
Field size | 105 m × 68 m (344 ft × 223 ft) |
Surface | Grass (1984–2011) Astro-turf (2011–2015) Bermuda grass (2015–present) [4] [5] |
Scoreboard | Yes (manual & digital) |
Construction | |
Opened | 25 January 1984 |
Renovated | 2011, 2014, [6] 2016–2017 |
Architect | M. S. Ballardie, Thompson & Matthews Pvt. Ltd. H. K. Sen & Associates |
Tenants | |
India national football team (1984–present) West Bengal football team (1984–present) East Bengal (1984–present) Mohun Bagan (1984–present) Mohammedan (1984–present) |
The Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan (VYBK), commonly known as Salt Lake Stadium, [7] is an Football stadium [7] located in Bidhannagar, Kolkata, [8] with a capacity of 85,000 spectators. [2] Named after Swami Vivekananda, the stadium is the home ground of East Bengal , MohammadenSC and Mohun Bagan. The stadium hosted the final match of the 2017 FIFA U-17 World Cup, alongside other matches of the tournament. [9] [10]
The stadium switched back to natural grass from artificial turf as part of the preparations for hosting the U-17 World Cup. The new turf was unveiled in a Kolkata Derby match between East Bengal and Mohun Bagan during the 2016 Calcutta Premier Division match. [11]
The stadium was established in 1984 because the club grounds in the Maidan area, each with capacity around 20,000, were proving too small for the huge crowd that occupied the grounds on matchdays. And while the Eden Gardens was there to handle some of the bigger games, like the Kolkata Derby, the pressure of handling both cricket and football was proving to be a bit too much for the stadium. [12]
The stadium is situated approximately 10 kilometers to the east of the Kolkata downtown. The roof is made of metal tubes and aluminum sheets and concrete. The stadium was inaugurated in January 1984. There are two electronic scoreboards and control rooms. There is illumination at night. There are special arrangements for TV broadcasting. [13]
The stadium features three tiers of concrete galleries. The stadium has 9 entry gates and 30 ramps for the spectators to reach the viewing blocks. The nine gates include the VIP gate. Gates 1 and 2 are on Kadapara road, gate no.3, 3A, 4, 4A and 4B are on the side of Broadway; gate no 5 and the VIP gate are on the side of EM By pass. The ramps are inside the stadium and link the inner ring road to the different levels of the stadium complex. [14]
The stadium covers an area of 76.40 acres (309,200 m2). The stadium has a unique[ citation needed ] synthetic track for athletic meets. It has a main football arena measuring 105 by 70 metres (344 ft × 230 ft). It also houses electronics scoreboards, elevators, VIP enclosures, peripheral floodlighting arrangement from the roof-top, air-conditioned VIP rest room, conference hall and much more. The stadium has its own water arrangements and standby diesel generatiorsets. [13]
An installation of a personal seating and a reducement of capacity for safety reasons down to 85,000 was a long-term project meant to "give enough elbow room to the spectators and also facilitate smooth passage during the breaks". [15]
While some changes to modernize the stadium started in 2014, [15] the ₹1 billion (US$12 million) renovation project began earnestly in February 2015. The artificial turf at the stadium has been replaced by an all-natural grass pitch. The new grass is from Riviera Bermuda seeds and below it there are two layers of sand and gravel. The next layer is fitted with perforated pipes to prevent water-logging. German company Porplastic provided the elastic coating for the running track around the pitch, which was replaced for the first time since the stadium was built.
The lobby of the VIP entrance that leads to the player's arena was air-conditioned. The broadcast rooms and stadium offices were renovated. Bucket seats replaced the concrete benches in the galleries, which brought down the stadium's capacity from 120,000 to 85,000. The VIP and press boxes, both in the middle tier, were pulled down and a new press box with a capacity of 240 seats is now on the third tier. The VIP box remained on the second tier, with an added 240 seats. The press conference room has been shifted to a 19x8.5-metre space. A spacious broadcast room of similar dimensions has been built.
Two full-sized practice grounds and eight floodlight towers have come up at the Hyatt end of the stadium, as recommended by FIFA. The referees rooms have been built alongside the practice grounds. The number of gates to the stadium has been increased to nine. Some of the existing gates has been widened, as were the paths connecting the ring road. [4] [5] [16] [14]
The stadium is located in the satellite township of Salt Lake in North 24 Parganas and it also lies beside the Eastern Metropolitan Bypass which makes it easily accessible by road.
There are numerous buses which ply around the city to the stadium. The Line 2 of the Kolkata Metro is passing near the stadium, therefore the stadium has its own station, opened on 13 February 2020. [17] The stadium is approx 13 kilometres (8.1 mi) away from N.S.C. Bose International Airport.
After its inauguration in January, 1984 with the Jawaharlal Nehru International Gold Cup, the Salt Lake Stadium has hosted several important international tournaments and matches such as matches of the 1986 FIFA World Cup qualification in 1985, Super-Soccers in 1986, 1989, 1991 and 1994, 3rd South Asian Games in 1987, USSR Festival Cup in 1988, Charminar Challenger Trophy in 1992 and the Jawaharlal Nehru International Gold Cup in 1995.
The Salt Lake Stadium hosts the home games of the local clubs East Bengal and Mohun Bagan who played in the I-League and now play in the ISL as East Bengal and Mohun Bagan SG, respectively. It also hosts the games of Mohammedan, who currently play in the I-League. Many of the home games of the Indian Team are also played in the Salt Lake Stadium. Since 2014 a new tenant team Atlético de Kolkata (playing in the ISL) had made the stadium their home ground. Later ATK club was dissolved and stakes of their parent club was bought in Mohun Bagan in 2020 and became ATK Mohun Bagan or later being called Mohun Bagan Super Giant.
On 5 June 2011, FIFA scheduled a friendly match [ citation needed ] to be played at the Salt Lake on 2 September 2011. The match was played between Argentina and Venezuela. This was a historic occasion in the history of Indian football and also for the stadium as the match featured Argentine superstar Lionel Messi. [18] [19] The stadium has also hosted Oliver Kahn's official farewell match for Bayern Munich when they played a friendly match against Mohun Bagan. Bayern Munich won the match 3–0. [20] In December 2012, a friendly match was played between Brazil Masters and IFA All Stars. Brazil Masters won it 3–1. Beto scored twice and Bebeto scored one goal for Brazil Masters. [21]
On 12 October 2014, the stadium hosted the first match in the Indian Super League, preceded by an opening ceremony which featured superstars from the footballing world as well as from Bollywood. In the opening match, Atlético de Kolkata defeated Mumbai City FC 3–0. [22] The stadium hosted its last match of the inaugural edition of ISL on 14 December where Atlético de Kolkata played FC Goa in the first leg of the semi-finals. Salt Lake stadium was the only stadium among the eight venues of ISL where matches were allowed to be played on artificial turf. It hosted 11 matches in 2017 FIFA U-17 World Cup, including the Final. The stadium also hosted the FIFA world cup qualification match between Bangladesh and India.
The stadium also hosts important athletic events. It has hosted the SAF Games in 1987 and various national athletics events in India. The stadium also hosts different kinds of cultural programs such as dance and music concerts. The stadium also hosted the opening ceremony of 2013 IPL season. [23] [24]
Mohun Bagan Athletic Club is an Indian professional multi-sports club based in Kolkata, West Bengal. Founded in 1889, it is one of the oldest multi-sports clubs in Asia. The club has various sports departments like football, cricket, hockey, tennis, athletics, eSports etc.
East Bengal Club, commonly referred to as East Bengal, is an Indian professional multi-sports club based in Kolkata, West Bengal. It is best known for its professional men's football team that competes in the Indian Super League (ISL), the top flight of the Indian football. It is one of the most successful football clubs in the country. The club has other departments for women's football, men's and women's cricket, field hockey, athletics and eSports.
Mohun Bagan Ground, also known as Mohun Bagan–Calcutta FC Ground, is a football stadium located in Maidan, Kolkata, just opposite Eden Gardens. Due to certain restrictions by the Indian Armed Forces, who own all the land surrounding Fort William, the ground is legally leased to Mohun Bagan AC for their operations. The ground is mostly used as training facilities for the senior football team of Mohun Bagan, but also acts as the home ground in regional tournaments like Calcutta Football League where reserve team participates. The stadium has a capacity of 22,000 spectators with separate VIP box and press box. The ground is also a shared home venue of Calcutta CFC, who were the earliest tenants of the ground.
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Football is one of the most popular sports in Kolkata, West Bengal. East Bengal, Mohun Bagan and Mohammedan are the heart of Kolkata football. The rivalry between Mohun Bagan and East Bengal, originating from the Calcutta Football League as the Kolkata derby, is one of the fiercest in the world and considered among the flagship events in the Indian footballing calendar. Kolkata is known to be the Mecca of Indian football, with the two most supported teams in the city of Kolkata – Mohun Bagan and East Bengal, whereas Mohammedan Sporting having a pan India fan base. The city is also home to the biggest football stadium in India, the Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan, which as of 2015 has a capacity of 85,000. The record attendance of 131,781 came in a match between the said two teams in the semifinal of the 1997 Federation Cup.
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Mohun Bagan Super Giant, commonly referred to as Mohun Bagan, is an Indian professional football club based in Kolkata, West Bengal. Founded in 1889, it is one of the oldest football clubs in Asia. The club competes in the Indian Super League, the top tier of Indian football league system. The club is most notable for its victory over the East Yorkshire Regiment in the 1911 IFA Shield final. This victory made Mohun Bagan the first all-Indian club to win a championship over a British club and was a major moment during India's push for independence.
The 2021 Durand Cup Final is the final match of the 2021 Durand Cup, the 130th edition of Asia's oldest football tournament organised by the Durand Football Tournament Society (DFTS) of Indian Armed Forces and jointly hosted by the Eastern Command and the Government of West Bengal. It was played at the Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan in Kolkata, India on 3 October 2021.
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