# Best stadiums left out of each World Cup?



## AcesHigh (Feb 20, 2003)

Considering that some important brazilian stadiums, including stadiums that were World Cup Standart stadiums (like Grêmio Arena), were left out of the 2014 World Cup, I was wondering about other World Cups, which were in your opinion the best stadiums in S.Africa, Germany, Japan/SKorea, and also previous World Cups, that could have easily hosted World Cup games (or better yet, naturally fitted all FIFA criteria for that specific World Cup), but for one reason or other were left out?


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## PejatBR (Nov 18, 2006)

Borussia Park/ Mönchengladbach - was left out of 2006 FIFA WC. I think other nice venues were out in Germany.http://www.stadiumguide.com/wp-content/uploads/borussiapark_front-2.jpg


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## Tony E Architecture (Mar 26, 2014)

Excellent Thread.

These is my Opinion on Best Stadium left out of each World Cup:

2006:

Olympic Stadium in Munich.
Esprit Arena in Dusseldorf.
Borussia Park in Monchengladbach.

2010:

-

2014:

Rio 2016 Athletics Stadium in Rio de Janeiro.
Gremio Arena in Porto Alegre (I Prefer All-Seaters though).
Morumbi in Sao Paulo (Although, needed Renovation and Arena Sao Paulo is nice).


2018:

Krasnodar Stadium.


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## pashazz (Jan 2, 2012)

I would like to add New Dynamo Stadium to this list. *2018*


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## PejatBR (Nov 18, 2006)

2014 - I probably would include Allianz Park (even if the stadium is not ready yet).

https://fbcdn-sphotos-h-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-ash3/29636_472699772837475_347857441_n.jpg


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## AcesHigh (Feb 20, 2003)

@Tony: any stadium can be made all seator for the World Cup. All Germany World Cup stadiums had seats placed for the World Cup and removed again in a few sectors, after the World Cup, for terraces.

obviously, if chosen for the World Cup, Grêmio Arena would be an all seater (it was in the project), then remove the seats to create a terrace after the World Cup, just like German stadiums.

I think this "preference" among stadiums should be restricted to stadiums that would need MAJOR renovations (or be demolished and rebuilt) to fit FIFA criteria, compared to other stadiums that got the World Cup.

Example: in a city with two stadiums, one of them being an Olympic Stadium with a running track, and the other being a football specific stadium, that is a major reason to have preference of one over the other.


Tony, can you give more info on Krasnodar? Is it an ALREADY built stadium that was left out, even though it could host the 2018 Cup, or was it a project that was not chosen and will be scrapped?

Or is it a project that was not chosen, and even though it was not chosen, it IS being built?


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## AcesHigh (Feb 20, 2003)

PejatBR said:


> 2014 - I probably would include Allianz Park (even if the stadium is not ready yet).


it´s a possibility that IF it had been chosen for the World Cup, they would have accelerated the works and SPECIALLY, the municipal administration would have conceded the licenses FASTER than they did (the stadium construction was halted for MONTHS waiting the municipal administration to slowly concede the licenses, while Corinthians Arena had the licenses conceded in a hurry).


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## Tony E Architecture (Mar 26, 2014)

AcesHigh said:


> @Tony: any stadium can be made all seator for the World Cup. All Germany World Cup stadiums had seats placed for the World Cup and removed again in a few sectors, after the World Cup, for terraces.
> 
> obviously, if chosen for the World Cup, Grêmio Arena would be an all seater (it was in the project), then remove the seats to create a terrace after the World Cup, just like German stadiums.
> 
> ...


AFAIK, Krasnodar will be building 2 Stadiums. One for Kuban and the other for FK Krasnodar. FK Krasnodar's Stadium would of been Krasnodar's Stadium if Krasnodar was chosen. Instead, Kaliningrad was chosen.


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## alexandru.mircea (May 18, 2011)

Whenever Turkey host something, it's going to be a shame not to have the jewel that the new Besiktas stadium will be, simply because there are too many other & bigger stadiums in Istanbul.

For EURO 2016, I would have rather had a refurbished La Beaujoire (Nantes) instead of the Bollaert from Lens.

For EURO 2012 I would have really liked to have the stadium in Krakow, but for the city more than for the stadium itself (which is OK but nothing special). The Legia stadium in Warsaw would have probably been the best Polish stadium left out of the tournament. On the Ukrainean side of EURO 2012, both the stadiums in Odessa and Dniepropetrovsk would have been better than Kharkiv in that they don't have a running track; but they are a tad smaller, though. 

For the WC 1998 venues, the best one left out was probably Strasbourg. It's a good stadium but not really an improvement over any of the stadiums that were chosen. The city would have been, though.


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## pashazz (Jan 2, 2012)

Tony E Architecture said:


> AFAIK, Krasnodar will be building 2 Stadiums.


False  At least not in next 5 years.

Saransk was chosen instead of Krasnodar. Kaliningrad is undisputable since this is the westernmost city of Russia located very close to Germany


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## AcesHigh (Feb 20, 2003)

alexandru.mircea said:


> Whenever Turkey host something, it's going to be a shame not to have the jewel that the new Besiktas stadium will be, simply because there are too many other & bigger stadiums in Istanbul.



eh???

what are the other too many bigger stadium in Istambul?

suppose Turkey hosts an Eurocup. How many stadiums are needed? Some 8 to 10? Are you sure there would be no place for this stadium?


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## alexandru.mircea (May 18, 2011)

AcesHigh said:


> eh???
> 
> what are the other too many bigger stadium in Istambul?
> 
> suppose Turkey hosts an Eurocup. How many stadiums are needed? Some 8 to 10? Are you sure there would be no place for this stadium?


In Istanbul you have the Olympic stadium, Galata's stadium and Fener's stadium which are larger than Besiktas' future stadium. And there's no way there's gonna be a summer tournament with more than two stadiums in the same city, IMO.


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## Tony E Architecture (Mar 26, 2014)

alexandru.mircea said:


> In Istanbul you have the Olympic stadium, Galata's stadium and Fener's stadium which are larger than Besiktas' future stadium. And there's no way there's gonna be a summer tournament with more than two stadiums in the same city, IMO.


Agreed. I reckon Ataturk Olympic Stadium and Turk Telekom Arena would be Istanbul's Stadium's for a UEFA Euro. I think for each Host, just like the Fifa World Cup, only 1 City would have 2 Stadiums, the rest would have 1. So - England, London would have 2 Stadiums. Turkey, Istanbul 2 Stadiums, Sweden, Stockholm would have 2 Stadiums etc. 

For Russia 2018, I quite liked the proposed Moscow Region Stadium, but that wasn't chosen.


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## wojtek354 (Aug 3, 2013)

2014-gremio arena
2010-orlando stadium 
2006-esprit arena 
2002-seul olympic stadium/toyota stadium


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## carnifex2005 (May 12, 2010)

1994 - Joe Robbie Stadium (Miami), other than that great choices in stadium.


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## AcesHigh (Feb 20, 2003)

alexandru.mircea said:


> In Istanbul you have the Olympic stadium, Galata's stadium and Fener's stadium which are larger than Besiktas' future stadium. And there's no way there's gonna be a summer tournament with more than two stadiums in the same city, IMO.


well, even so, Besiktas future stadium would certainly enter this list if there was a World Cup in Turkey and it was left out because the city already has other 2 stadiums.

after all, this thread is not about excuses to leave great stadiums out of tournaments, just what great stadiums were left out (for external factors), independent of the reasons being good or not.


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## alexandru.mircea (May 18, 2011)

AcesHigh said:


> well, even so, Besiktas future stadium would certainly enter this list if there was a World Cup in Turkey and it was left out because the city already has other 2 stadiums.


Eh? That's exactly what I said.


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## dvjmarcomatheus (Dec 16, 2011)

The King PArk its good one from South Africa in Durban










And the Newlands in Captown










But of course, the new ones wich were made to WC are better...


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## ivanmakesyouthink (Oct 13, 2011)

For the 1994 World Cup
Joe Robbie Stadium (Sun Life Stadium) in Miami
Georgia Dome in Atlanta
Mile High in Denver


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## trmather (Feb 7, 2008)

I always thought it was a shame Toyota Stadium wasn't used in 2002. Doesn't have a running track, has a retractable roof and looks great.


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## AcesHigh (Feb 20, 2003)

and from the 2014 World Cup this is probably the biggest miss, specially considering all the protests because of public money on stadiums and stadiums that were very late being built... Grêmio Arena is private and was finished in december 2012


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## Kobo (Dec 12, 2006)

Besides Sercans post of Stadio Via del Mare in Lecce can anybody else think of another stadium in Italy that got left out for Italia 90?


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## JorgeGt (Apr 4, 2013)

Germany 2006 has so many... Olympiastadion, Borussia Park, Espirit; 
As for Brazil 2014 Gremio Arena, Allianz Park;
SA 2010 I haven't choices; 
2002 Seoul Olympic Stadium and I've always wondeted why wasn't Tokyo a host city?


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## Yuri S Andrade (Sep 29, 2008)

AcesHigh said:


> and from the 2014 World Cup this is probably the biggest miss, specially considering all the protests because of public money on stadiums and stadiums that were very late being built... Grêmio Arena is private and was finished in december 2012


Why is it a miss? Is it better than Beira-Rio? Or are you suggesting two stadia for Porto Alegre?


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## AcesHigh (Feb 20, 2003)

Yuri S Andrade said:


> Why is it a miss? Is it better than Beira-Rio? Or are you suggesting two stadia for Porto Alegre?


1 - yes, *imhbo** it´s better than Beira Rio. Better and bigger circulation areas, larger capacity, taller and much closer to the field, perfect view from all angles, while at Beira Rio, from behind the goals, you can´t see the goal line (too far and too low), more bars and bathrooms, etc. Maybe Beira Rio is more beautiful. Although that is quite subjective. Among foreigners, I have seen less praise of the beauty of it than among brazilians.

2 - anyway, if it´s better or not is irrelevant, because this thread is about best stadiums left out of each World Cup. Did you even read the posts last page? Even if Grêmio Arena was worse than Beira Rio, it would still deserve a place in this thread.


*imhbo = in my humble biased opinion


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## MoreOrLess (Feb 17, 2005)

AcesHigh said:


> well, even so, Besiktas future stadium would certainly enter this list if there was a World Cup in Turkey and it was left out because the city already has other 2 stadiums.
> 
> after all, this thread is not about excuses to leave great stadiums out of tournaments, just what great stadiums were left out (for external factors), independent of the reasons being good or not.


It'll actually be interesting to see what kind of effect the protests seen in Brazil have for the future of WC's and Euro's.

I wouldn't be at all surprised for the extended euro's especially if we saw more of a drive for efficiently with several stadiums possible in nations with a centralised population.

How much less trouble might there have been for example if the Brasila stadium hadn't been built or instead something like Arena Gremino had been used?


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## AcesHigh (Feb 20, 2003)

MoreOrLess said:


> It'll actually be interesting to see what kind of effect the protests seen in Brazil have for the future of WC's and Euro's.
> 
> I wouldn't be at all surprised for the extended euro's especially if we saw more of a drive for efficiently with several stadiums possible in nations with a centralised population.
> 
> How much less trouble might there have been for example if the Brasila stadium hadn't been built or instead something like Arena Gremino had been used?


want to know something really ridiculous about the protests?

The public stadiums are not FEDERAL. They belong to States or Municipalities. Therefore, if they eat a large part of a state budget that could be spent on education, it´s THAT state that will have a decrease in education quality, for example.

Therefore, you would expect people from Brasilia would protest against the stadium in Brasilia.

That people in Rio would protest against the expensive reform of the Maracanã. 

That people in Cuiabá would protest against that stadium, and the same im Manaus.

NO.

That is not happening. The imbecile protesters (which I repeat, for the most part, are LEFTISTS connected to radical commie parties like PSTU, PCdoB, PSOL, etc) are ALWAYS quite content with the stadiums in THEIR states/cities. They think those stadiums WERE NEEDED.

It´s ALWAYS about stadiums in OTHER cities/states. :|


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## pachecohv (Oct 23, 2009)

1990 - Italia: Giuseppe Meazza / San Siro


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## afonso_bh (Feb 28, 2007)

^^ It was used. Opening game and many others.


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## AcesHigh (Feb 20, 2003)

Wasn't it built FOR the 1990 Cup?

I bet he missed the "left out of" part of the title


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## flierfy (Mar 4, 2008)

AcesHigh said:


> Wasn't it built FOR the 1990 Cup?


It was not exactly built for the World Cup as the stadium was pre-existent. It was rather modernised and enlarged in time for the 1990 World Cup.


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## AcesHigh (Feb 20, 2003)

flierfy said:


> It was not exactly built for the World Cup as the stadium was pre-existent. It was rather modernised and enlarged in time for the 1990 World Cup.


that third ring and the round towers that support the roof??


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## pachecohv (Oct 23, 2009)

AcesHigh said:


> that third ring and the round towers that support the roof??


Exactly


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## GEwinnen (Mar 3, 2006)

It wasn't the world cup, but the Euro is a big football tournament too:cheers:










Olympiastadion Berlin (in the shape of 1974) was left out of the Euro 1988 in West Germany for political reasons.


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## www.sercan.de (Aug 10, 2003)

is that a ramp at the 1st tier?


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## In The End (Jul 29, 2011)

From all I've seen:

*1990:*
Stadio della Vittoria








Stadio Renzo Barbera









*1994:*
Bryant Denny Stadium








Jordan Hare Stadium
Legion Field Stadium
Sun Devil Stadium
Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium
Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum
Ben Hill Griffin Stadium
Doak Campbell Stadium
Sun Life Stadium








Sanford Stadium
Georgia Dome
Aloha Stadium
Notre Dame Stadium
Lexington Commonwealth Stadium
Baton Rouge Tiger Stadium
Mercedes-Benz Superdome








Michigan Stadium (The Big House)








Arrowhead Stadium
Lincoln Memorial Stadium
Ralph Wilson Stadium
Ohio Stadium
Beaver Stadium
Williams Brice Stadium
Neyland Stadium
Darrell K. Royal Texas Memorial Stadium
Kyle Field
Husky Stadium
Lambeau Field









*2002:*
Toyota Stadium








Hiroshima Big Arch Stadium








Ajinomoto Stadium








Seoul Olympic Stadium









*2006:*
Borussia Park








Esprit Arena








Olympiastadion München








Weserstadion









*2010:*
ABSA Stadium (Kings Park Stadium)








Newlands Stadium








Orlando Stadium









*2014:*
Arena do Grêmio








Allianz Parque








Morumbi








Estádio João Havelange


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## iBox (Sep 24, 2012)

AcesHigh said:


> returning more in time, La Bombonera, Argentina´s most famous stadium together with River Plate´s Monumental de Nuñes, was not used however in the 1978 World Cup.
> 
> They picked only 6 venues... 2 in Buenos Aires (the other was Estádio José Amalfitani, home to Velez Sarsfield), and others in Rosario, Mendoza, Mar del Plata and Cordoba.
> 
> ...


Bombonera's access are terrible, i think it's not an iconic decission.


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## AcesHigh (Feb 20, 2003)

sorry, but Bombonera is totally iconic, even if it´s access are terrible (and couldn´t they be improved/fixed for the World Cup?)

it´s probably BEST KNOWN around the World than River Plate´s stadium.


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## www.sercan.de (Aug 10, 2003)

Saw Orlando Stadium for the first time. Shame on me


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## Andre Goth (Mar 17, 2013)

*2014 *

Some more pics and information about *Engenhão Stadium* (Olympic Stadium João Havelange), *Rio de Janeiro*, Brazil

Known popularly as Engenhão due to its location in the Engenho de Dentro neighborhood, the Olympic Stadium João Havelange, was inaugurated on June 30, 2007.

With total capacity of 46,931 people, is currently closed undergoing renovations for enhancing coverage and preparation for the 2016 Olympics

Source: Wikipedia (in portuguese)


Estadio Engenhão por FMallea, no Flickr


Engenhao Panorâmica por Marcelo B Ferraz, no Flickr


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## EMArg (Aug 2, 2013)

The best and biggest stadium of the Argentina World Cup 1978: the *River Plate Stadium*


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## EMArg (Aug 2, 2013)

^^

On HD:


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## LuisClaudio (Sep 13, 2011)

Mangueirão - Belém, Brazil.


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## Red85 (Jan 23, 2007)

EMArg said:


> The best and biggest stadium of the Argentina World Cup 1978: the *River Plate Stadium*
> (pics)


Huh? 

River Plate Stadium, AKA Antonio Vespucio, AKA Monumental

If Rensenbrink scored in stead of hitting the post in the final... 
Ah, what the hack. We lost, again. 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Estadio_Monumental_Antonio_Vespucio_Liberti

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1978_FIFA_World_Cup_Final


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## muc (Sep 29, 2005)

@pachecohv, EMArg

Why are you spamming this thread with stadiums that were used in world cups?
This thread is about stadiums that were LEFT OUT of world cups! Is that so hard to understand?


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## Hamzawi (May 20, 2015)

Belem should have hosted matches in the 2014 World Cup. I do not understand the decision to leave it out. It should have taken Curitiba or Cuiaba's place.

The Morumbi stadium in Sao Paulo should have been renovated and made a host instead of the Corinithians Arena which is an absolute joke.


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## Swapbeck (Apr 18, 2011)

In 1966 world cup Highbury, Twickenham ( never hosted any football match ) and St James Park were left out, looking at their history not exactly sure why these stadium were left out.


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## jts1882 (Jul 15, 2012)

Swapbeck said:


> In 1966 world cup Highbury, Twickenham ( never hosted any football match ) and St James Park were left out, looking at their history not exactly sure why these stadium were left out.


The England World Cup only used 8 stadia: two from London, one each from Birmingham, Manchester, Liverpool, Sheffield, Sunderland and Middlesbrough.

They didn't use any club stadia for London. Wembley hosted most of them and White City Stadium hosted a single game. The latter seems a bit strange but it could be a historical choice (as a former Olympic stadium) or capacity. If they'd picked a club stadium, WHL probably had the larger capacity then and was occasionally picked for FA Cup semifinals. Twickenham wouldn't have wanted football on their hallowed turf.

Newcastle missing out to two other northeastern cities seems rather strange now. I don't know the state and capacity of St James back then, so it could have been a practical issue. Roker Park was a regular FA Cup semi-final venue.

Goodison over Anfield looks a strange choice as well in highsight, but that was before Liverpool's golden ages. And again Goodison was a venue for FA Cup semi-finals.

If England ever get another world cup some major stadia in London will miss out. Apart from Wembley and the Emirates, the obvious selections just now, there will be the Olympic Stadium and the new stadia at WHL and Stamford Bridge. At least two will miss out.


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## jts1882 (Jul 15, 2012)

^^

It turns out White City was a substitute venue. They were planning to play all the London games at Wembley, but there was a greyhound racing meeting at Wembley that clashed with the France-Uruguay game so they moved the game to nearby White City.

Can you imagine the world cup playing second fiddle to dog racing these days?


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## Hamzawi (May 20, 2015)

Good Stadiums/Venues/Cities that have been left out - by tournament since 2000

*EURO 2000 NETHERLANDS/BELGIUM*

Stadion Galgenwaard in Utrecht, FC Twente stadium in Enschede 
I would pick either over the Gelredome in Arnhem


*WORLD CUP 2002 JAPAN/KOREA*

Ajinomoto Stadium in Tokyo  and Toyota Stadium in Toyota  should have been included
I did not like the domed stadium in Sapporo - its is more like a Baseball stadium than a foorball stadium

it is worth mentioning than Venue allocation in that tournament was a total disaster: Some relatively great stadiums, like the ones in Busan and Incheon hosted 2 or 3 games in the first round - with only two days in between - and hosted no matches in the knockout stage ! 


*WORLD CUP 2006 GERMANY*

Esprit Arena in Dusseldorf and Borussia Park in Monchengladbach are way better than the Stadiums in Nuremberg and Kaiserslautern for example.

I would've also renovated the stadium in Bremen and made it a host


*EURO 2008 AUSTRIA/SWITZERLAND*

Stadiums may have been nice but capacity is an absolute joke. 

the World's second-most important soccer tournament had one stadium of 50 k capacity, one with 40k capacity and all others were 30k. UEFA should not have picked Austria/Switzerland in the first place.


*EURO 2012 POLAND/UKRAINE*

Overall stadia were nice and capacities were good. However I would've raised the number of venues to 10 and included Odessa and Krakow


*WORLD CUP 2014 BRAZIL*

It is a disgrace to leave the Morumbi Stadium in Sao Paulo out of the World Cup. It is one of the most important venues in Btazil. It should have been renovated and made as a host for the Opening Match and Semi-Final instead of the ugly Corinthians Arena (which is a medium-capacity stadium and had 20k temporary seats added btw)

Belem should have made the cut too instead of either Curitiba (stadium construction was not complete even when the World Cup started) and Cuiaba. I would've also looked at Goiania as a potential host


*EURO 2016 FRANCE*

a renovated Le Beaujoire in Nantes instead of the old-fashioned and ageing Feliz-Bollaert in Lens. Choosing Nantes would also ensure better geographic distribution of venues.


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## Red85 (Jan 23, 2007)

Hamzawi said:


> Good Stadiums/Venues/Cities that have been left out - by tournament since 2000
> 
> *EURO 2000 NETHERLANDS/BELGIUM*
> 
> ...


Why? Both Utrecht and Enschede didn't have enough capacity. Utrecht played for 15.000 and Enschede was allready glad when 13.000 showed up in their brandspanking shining new stadium, after not even filling the old Diekman stadium of 8.000. 
Galgenwaard is later renovated to a cap of 24.500. 30.000 is untill now even impossible. Utrecht only has a capacity crowd against Ajax, and that is only once a year. Averages are around 17 to 19.000. No need to expand.

Arnhem at the time, had the most modern facility in the world. A roof which could be closed and even a pitch that could move out. In one piece. A masterpiece of a stadium which stood model for i.e. the Arena auf Schalke. 
And Vitesse Arnhem drew crowds then of over 25.000 which was close to capacity, because it where really highdays at the moment. Even won against Inter Milan and nationally they where doing good thinks if I'm recalling it correctly.
Seen the time, it was the obvious choice.


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## Hamzawi (May 20, 2015)

Thanks for the information. I thought the stadiums had their current capacity. Based on what you mentioned It made sense to pick Arnhem back in 2000 but If the tournament was held today I would pick Utrecht or Enschede. If I am not mistaken Utrecht is the 4 or 5th largest city In the Netherlands?




Red85 said:


> Why? Both Utrecht and Enschede didn't have enough capacity. Utrecht played for 15.000 and Enschede was allready glad when 13.000 showed up in their brandspanking shining new stadium, after not even filling the old Diekman stadium of 8.000.
> Galgenwaard is later renovated to a cap of 24.500. 30.000 is untill now even impossible. Utrecht only has a capacity crowd against Ajax, and that is only once a year. Averages are around 17 to 19.000. No need to expand.
> 
> Arnhem at the time, had the most modern facility in the world. A roof which could be closed and even a pitch that could move out. In one piece. A masterpiece of a stadium which stood model for i.e. the Arena auf Schalke.
> ...


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## Red85 (Jan 23, 2007)

Hamzawi said:


> Thanks for the information. I thought the stadiums had their current capacity. Based on what you mentioned It made sense to pick Arnhem back in 2000 but If the tournament was held today I would pick Utrecht or Enschede. If I am not mistaken Utrecht is the 4 or 5th largest city In the Netherlands?


4th. 
If NL was to organise a big tournament in the following years, Utrecht would be my pick also. Because indeed it's the 4th largest city and it's very central. But I don't think FC Utrecht needs a stadium of 30 or even 40.000. So temporary seeting would be the option then. In the corners there is plenty of room. 

And the stadium was used in the past, after renovations, for a multiple of sport events. FIFA youth world cup final (the one Argentina -20 won with Messi) and a fieldhockey WC where staged in Galgenwaard (translation: The Gallowsfield)


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## Hamzawi (May 20, 2015)

Im surprised Utrecht was not selected in the Netherlands Bid with Belgium to host the 2018 World Cup



Red85 said:


> 4th.
> If NL was to organise a big tournament in the following years, Utrecht would be my pick also. Because indeed it's the 4th largest city and it's very central. But I don't think FC Utrecht needs a stadium of 30 or even 40.000. So temporary seeting would be the option then. In the corners there is plenty of room.
> 
> And the stadium was used in the past, after renovations, for a multiple of sport events. FIFA youth world cup final (the one Argentina -20 won with Messi) and a fieldhockey WC where staged in Galgenwaard (translation: The Gallowsfield)


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## pozinhossc (Oct 10, 2010)

Personally, from '82 in Spain best improvement was Santiago Bernabeu. The roof gave the stadium a really distinctive look and atmosphere:


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## Rossoliver (Jul 31, 2011)

The old Mungersdorferstadion in Cologne wasn't selected for the 1974 World Cup despite being one of the best stadiums in (West) Germany at the time.

EDIT: A few people in this thread seem to be missing the point. The thread is about the best stadiums that WERE NOT USED at a World Cup. Hence why the inclusion of the Esprit Arena in Dusseldorf or Borussia Park in Monchengladbach is appropriate since neither were used at the 2006 World Cup (and didn't exist in 1974). Both the Bernabeu and El Monumental hosted a World Cup final (in 1982 and 1978 respectively) so technically do not belong in this thread.


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## wiedi (Dec 2, 2010)

Hamzawi said:


> *EURO 2008 AUSTRIA/SWITZERLAND*
> 
> Stadiums may have been nice but capacity is an absolute joke.
> 
> ...


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## Hamzawi (May 20, 2015)

Of course Both factors have to be taken into account and there has to be some sort of balance between the cultural/economic importance and general character of the city and the capacity of the stadium. In Austria/Switzerland there was no balance at all - Yes there was more ambience than 2012 and this is because the two countries are more beautiful then Ukraine/Poland but come on man the stadiums were just TOO small. Imagine matches like Netherlands-Italy, Netherlands-France and France-Italy all played in 30k capacity stadium and the tournament Semi-Final played in 40k capacity stadium





wiedi said:


> Hamzawi said:
> 
> 
> > *EURO 2008 AUSTRIA/SWITZERLAND*
> ...


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## usernametaken (Jun 22, 2015)

Well I think Euro 2008 was hosted brilliantly with gorgeous venues and superb atmosphere. No idea what the problem is with the attendencies. In this day and age everybody has a tv, and the demand of tickets will always be higher than what they can sell. So for me its not a valid argument.


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## Olympico (Aug 26, 2015)

The Olympic stadium of Seoul was left out off the world cup in 2002. Instead they build a new stadium with a lower capacity.


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