The UEFA Stadia List is a ranking of football stadia compiled by UEFA's Stadia and Security Committee. The Union of European Football Associations (Union des associations européennes de football is the administrative and controlling body for European football. It ranks stadia according to their ability to accommodate large events. Each stadium is given a star rating. The rating system is primarily designed to ensure stadia are suitable and safe to hold UEFA finals, such as the UEFA Champions League and UEFA European Football Championship final. The strictness of safety and security requirements and their enforcement can be attributed to UEFA's drive to improve stadium standards for major showpiece events following the Heysel Stadium disaster at the 1985 European Cup final and subsequent heavy criticism^[1][2] of UEFA over the selection of Heysel Stadium. The Heysel Stadium disaster occurred owing to Football hooliganism in which a retaining wall of the Heysel Stadium in Brussels collapsed on May 29 See also Heysel Stadium disaster The King Baudouin Stadium (French Stade Roi Baudouin, Dutch Koning Boudewijnstadion

5 Star rating

Geographical distribution of the UEFA 5-star (in red) and 4-Star (in blue) Stadia

A 5-star rating enables a stadium to host the finals of the UEFA European Football Championship and UEFA Champions League. The UEFA European Football Championship is the main football competition of the men's national football teams governed by UEFA (the Union of European See also List of European Cup and UEFA Champions League winners The UEFA Champions League, which evolved from the European Champion Clubs' Cup is a seasonal club They can also host finals of the UEFA Cup. The UEFA Cup is a football competition for European club teams organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA. All have seated capacities in excess of 50,000 spectators (with the exception of Ernst Happel Stadium, which is being expanded to 50,000-plus capacity for Euro 2008) and meet a number of additional quality criteria. The 2008 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as Euro 2008, was the 13th UEFA European Football Championship, a quadrennial football

4-star rated stadia (capacity over 30,000 spectators) may hold the finals of the UEFA Cup. The UEFA Cup is a football competition for European club teams organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA.

There are several grounds which meet the 5-star criteria but are yet to be formally approved, or have yet to seek approval, by UEFA. Most notable is the new Wembley Stadium, the second largest in Europe, which is currently under consideration by UEFA for the 2011 Champions League final. Wembley Stadium is a Stadium in Wembley, located in the London Borough of Brent in London, England. ^[3][4] In addition, Arsenal F.C.'s Emirates Stadium is under consideration for the UEFA Cup final in 2011. The Emirates Stadium is a football stadium located on Ashburton Grove in Holloway, North London, and the home of Arsenal Football Club since ^[5] Decisions on both, and their UEFA star rating, will be made after inspection in March 2008. At present Old Trafford remains the only formally recognised 5-star stadium in England.

Contrary to many beliefs, Celtic Park has no UEFA rating and has only been informally described as 5-star by FIFA President Sepp Blatter. Celtic Park is a football Stadium in the Parkhead area of Glasgow in Scotland. ^[6]

It is unlikely, following the election of Michel Platini as UEFA President, that in the immediate future stadia with a capacity less than 70,000 will be considered for the UEFA Champions League Final. Michel François Platini (born June 21, 1955) is a French former football player manager and current president of the UEFA. ^[7] This is as a result of security issues at the 2007 UEFA Champions League Final. Route to the final See also UEFA Champions League 2006–07 Teams qualified for the Champions League group stage either directly or through three preliminary rounds This would rule out a number of 5-star rated grounds from hosting the final, and may hinder the Allianz Arena from bidding to hold the final in 2010. The Allianz Arena is a football Stadium in the north of Munich, Germany

Criteria for UEFA 5 Star rating

• Minimum capacity of 50,000 (5-star venues) / 30,000 (4-star venues) – individual seats with backrests. All-seater stadium is the terminology applied to those sports stadia in which every spectator has a seat (Venues that still have individual seats without proper backrests will still continue to be accepted. In the future, however, closer attention will be paid to this aspect, and which will influence the committee’s decision regarding the addition of venues to these list categories. )
• Pitch dimensions of 105 x 68 m. The field of play must be in pristine condition and be prepared accordingly for a final (quality of grass, irrigation, smooth surface, etc. ).
• Protective fences around the field of play are not acceptable. Venues which have such installations will not be included on the list.
• Sufficient room around the field of play for advertising boards and at least 18 TV cameras. In addition, there must be enough room between the goals and the first row of spectator seats behind both goals for a minimum of 150 photographers.
• First-rate dressing-rooms for both teams and the referees (equal size and furnishings for both teams, spacious, bright and clean).
• Suitable and appropriately equipped drug-testing room.
• Floodlighting of a minimum intensity of 1,400 lux (eV) in the direction of the main camera, and of 1,000 Lux (eV) towards the other areas of the stadium, plus an efficient emergency power supply able to provide, without interruption, the same luminous light intensity as the main lighting.
• Modern security installations (access monitoring system, adequate PA system, etc. ).
• A permanent TV surveillance system in colour that is able to monitor the movement of spectators, as well as their behaviour inside and outside the stadium. This installation must also be able to produce still shots of any troublemakers, which can then be distributed immediately to the security officers / stewards in the stadium.
• Clear signage that everyone can understand inside and outside the stadium, as well as in its immediate vicinity.
• Suitable covered seats for disabled spectators and their accompanying persons (minimum of two sectors with at least 50 places each). The areas for disabled spectators must be adequately equipped with toilet facilities and a refreshment bar.
• Acceptable sanitary facilities for spectators (both sexes) in terms of numbers, cleanliness and standards. Toilets without seats will no longer be accepted for spectators of either sex.
• Provision of first-rate media facilities in terms of camera positions, working places, TV studios, etc. , in accordance with the “UEFA Guidelines for Media Facilities”.
• Adequate first-class facilities must be provided for VIPs, including a minimum of 150 places in the Honorary Tribune VIP box.
• International airport(s) able to cope with the huge extra demands of a UEFA final (capacity for up to 60 charter flights per day in addition to the normal, scheduled flights)
• Adequate hotel accommodation. For UEFA and its partners, at least 1,000 five-star hotel rooms (UEFA Champions League) / 500 rooms (UEFA Cup) are needed. In addition, enough other hotel accommodation in all types of category must be available.

See also

• Category:UEFA 4 star stadiums
• Category:UEFA 5 star stadiums
• List of European stadia by capacity

References

• fussballtempel.net