Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Jump to: navigation, search
Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium
View of Nelson Mandela Stadium.jpg
Location Port Elizabeth, South Africa
Coordinates 33°56′16″S 25°35′56″E / 33.93778°S 25.59889°E / -33.93778; 25.59889Coordinates: 33°56′16″S 25°35′56″E / 33.93778°S 25.59889°E / -33.93778; 25.59889
Broke ground 2007
Opened 2009
Owner Nelson Mandela Metropolitan Municipality
Operator Access Facilities and Leisure Management (Pty) Limited
Surface Grass
Construction cost R 1.1 Billion
Architect Architectural Design Associates(Pty)Ltd & Dominic Bonnesse Architects cc
Capacity 46,500
Tenants
Bay United and Southern Kings both proposed

Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium is a 46,500 seat stadium in Port Elizabeth.

The five-tier, 1.1 billion Rand (approximately $150m USD) Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium was built overlooking the North End Lake, at the heart of the city. It is one of three coastal stadiums built in anticipation of the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

Contents

[edit] Background

This is the first time a world-class soccer stadium has been built in the Eastern Cape Province. The stadium boasts 150 VIP suites, 60 business suites, a sports clothing shop, gymnasium, 500 parking bays, plus lecture and function rooms, and was originally scheduled for completion in December 2008.

Inevitably, there was a great deal of speculation about the status of stadium construction in the run-up to the 2010 World Cup, with the requirement that all the FIFA World Cup host stadiums must be completed by January 2010. The Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium was the first of five new stadiums to start construction. The other new arenas being built are in Cape Town, Durban, Polokwane and Nelspruit.

[edit] Design

The stadium will have an eye-catching, unique roof-structure and a spectacular view, overlooking the North End Lake. There are not many stadiums in the world that are designed and constructed overlooking a lake; this in itself is a very distinctive feature of the Nelson Mandela Bay Multi-Purpose Stadium. The stadium building is approximately 40m high and consists of six levels on the western side in addition to five on each of the north, south and east stands.

[edit] Facilities

The stadium will seat 45 000 in addition to 4 000 extra seats which will be temporarily installed for the World Cup. There are 23 private boxes with a planned additional 22 private boxes, including two bars, as part of the post World Cup building. The stadium also has two conference rooms, which are able to accommodate 200 people, which will be situated on the 5th level.

There are four ramps for easy wheelchair access, three VIP/VVIP lifts are being installed, two in the West Stand and one in the East Stand, as well as six passenger’s lifts will also be installed around the stadium Two additional lifts will be installed for the legacy phase. The stadium will have a total of 11 lifts. No escalators will be installed. There are to be 32 turnstiles and colour coded gates on level 2 for spectators to access their seats and four ramps leading up from level 2 to level 5.

Two big viewing screens (12.7m x 7.2m) will be installed for live coverage of the activities on the field. There will be a total of 74 toilet Blocks (Male and Female) - 36 Blocks on level 2 - 4 Blocks on level 3 - 14 Blocks on level 4 and 20 Blocks on level 5.

Parking inside the stadium is provided only on Level 1 and consists of Media Parking – 160 Bays, Broadcast – 80 Bays, VVIP Parking – 70 Bays, Special VVIP Parking – 12 Bays, VIP Parking – 32 Bays, Disable Parking – 4 Bays ,General Parking on Site – 1280 Bays.[1]

[edit] Pitch

The playing surface is made of natural grass, it was grown off site in the area of St Albans. The areas surrounding the pitch are made of artificial turf.

The field was designed to be able to accomadte both football and rugby.

[edit] Transport

The stadium is located along the cities new BRT network. Currently, the dedicated lanes for the busses are being built. Once completed, the BRT busses will ferry people to and from the stadium during game days.

While the network is still being built, the Algoa Bus Company has set up temporary bus stops in the surrounding streets. These are used on game days, to provide public transport until the completion of the BRT network.

[edit] Confederations Cup

On July 8, 2008 it was announced that the stadium had been removed from the list of stadiums for the 2009 Confederations Cup as it was believed it would not be ready on time,[2] however surprisingly, it became the first newly-built 2010 Stadium to be completed[3].

[edit] FIFA World Cup

The stadium will host 8 games during the tournament. It will host 5 group games, as well as a round of 16 game, a quarterfinal and the 3rd/4th playoff will be played at the stadium.[4]

The stadiums first rounds games are:[5]

  • 12 June 2010 Korea Republic vs Greece
  • 15 June 2010 Cote d'Ivoire vs Portugal
  • 18 June 2010 Germany vs Serbia
  • 21 June 2010 Chile vs Switzerland
  • 23 June 2010 Slovenia vs England

Round of 16:

  • 26 June 2010 Winner of Group 1 vs Runner-up of Group 2

Quarter Final:

  • 2 July 2010 Winner of Match 53 vs Winner of Match 54

3rd/4th place play-off:

  • 10 July 2010 Loser of Semi-final 1 vs Loser of Semi-final 2

[edit] Football at the stadium

On the 4th of July 2009 the stadium hosted the 2009 edition of the Premier's Cup. The teams contesting the cup were, Supersport United, Kaizer Chiefs, Bloemfontein Celtic, and Bay United. 20 000 fans attended this event.[6]

On the 23rd of July 2009 the stadium hosted a leg of the Vodacom Challenge. The match involved Orlando Pirates and Kaizer Chiefs. The 30 000 strong crowd watch Kaizer Chiefs win 4-3 on penalties, after the game ended 1-1. They went on to face Manchester City in the final of the challenge.[7]

On the 9th of August 2009 (Women's Day in South Africa) a special double-header of games was played. This along with female musical acts were performed to celebrate Women's Day. The first match involved two women's teams, Nelson Mandela XI and Amatole Invitational XI, the second was between a Brazilian legends and South African legends team. The Brazilian legends were drawn form their World Cup winning squad from 1994. The South African team was drawn from the 1996 African Cup of Nations winners.[8]

On the 14th of November 2009 the stadium hosted its first international football match. A friendly between Bafana Bafana and Japan was playedat the stadium. A crowed of 44,000 watched as the game ended in a 0-0 draw.[9]

On the 20th of November 2009 the stadium hosted its first PSL game. Santos 'hosted' Kaizer Chiefs at the stadium, as no venue was available in the Western Cape due to World Cup renovations. A large and vocal crowed was in attendance as Kaizer Chiefs won 1-0 in controversial fashion.[10]

[edit] Rugby at the stadium

On the 16th of June 2009 (Youth Day in South Africa) the stadium played host to a British and Irish Lions tour match. The game was between the Lions and the newly launched Southern Kings. The game was attended by over 35 000 fans.[11]

On the 19th of September 2009, the Eastern Province Mighty Elephants played their first ever Currie Cup First Division game at the stadium. They beat the Valke 44 - 8. In addition, the province's U19 and U21 teams played each other in curtain raisers to the main match.

[edit] Other Large Events

On the 6th of June 2009 an open day was held at the stadium for residents of the city to see the new venue, as well as serve as the stadium opening and a trial run of FIFA match day protocols. The event was attended by government officials as well as 17 000 residents.[12]

On 18 November 2009, the stadium hosted the Miss World Sports event of the Miss World 2009 pageant.[13]

The stadium was to host its first concert on 29 November 2009. The 12 hour event was called the Bay Summer Concert, and was to feature Busta Rhymes, as well as other top acts. Despite all the needed arrangements being made, Busta Rhymes decided not to honour the event. Instead, he chose to do a concert at a local club. He arrived at the stadium hours late, and told those who had stayed, to go to the club that he would be performing at.[14]

A second concert was planed to be held at the stadium from 18 to 20 December 2009. It was billed as the Nelson Mandela Bay International Music Festival, and was to have such artists as Keri Hilson.[15] Unfortunately, this concert was also cancelled due to lack of funds.[16]

[edit] Post World Cup Usage

After the World Cup the stadium may be used as the home ground for the Southern Kings if they had been admitted to the Super 15. While Melbourne has been announced as the winner of the 15th franchise[17], they are now hoping to be included in the South African Conference.[18] Bay United will use the stadium if they return to the Premier Soccer League.

[edit] See also


[edit] References

  1. ^ "NMB Stadium". Nelson Mandela Bay Metropolitan Municipality. http://www.nelsonmandelabay.gov.za/FIFAWORLDCUP/Content.aspx?objID=4. Retrieved 2009-11-07. 
  2. ^ "Port Elizabeth stadium dropped". BBC. 8 July 2008. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/africa/7496165.stm. 
  3. ^ "SA’s first newly-built 2010 stadium complete". South Africa - the Good News. 8 June 2009. http://www.sagoodnews.co.za/countdown_to_2010/sa_s_first_newly-built_2010_stadium_complete.html. 
  4. ^ "Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium". FIFA.com. http://www.fifa.com/worldcup/organisation/ticketing/stadiums/stadium=5007768/index.html. Retrieved 2009-11-08. 
  5. ^ "THEY ARE COMING....". Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality. http://www.nelsonmandelabay.gov.za/FIFAWORLDCUP/Default.aspx. Retrieved 2009-12-18. 
  6. ^ "Eastern Cape Premiers Cup :Bringing brilliant soccer to the city". Nelson Mandela Bay Metropolitan Municipality. 2009-06-30. http://www.nelsonmandelabay.gov.za/FIFAWORLDCUP/News.aspx?objID=4&cmd=view&id=138. Retrieved 2009-12-03. 
  7. ^ "Chiefs meet Man City in final". News 24. 2009-07-23. http://www.sport24.co.za/Content/Soccer/266/28c734442c464d4195e082828dcf153d/23-07-2009-11-21/Chiefs_meet_Man_City_in_final. Retrieved 2009-11-07. 
  8. ^ "Women’s Day Football Festival tickets on sale now!". Nelson Mandela Bay Metropolitan Municipality. 06-08-2009. http://www.nelsonmandelabay.gov.za/FIFAWORLDCUP/News.aspx?objID=4&cmd=view&id=146. Retrieved 2009-12-03. 
  9. ^ "Bafana, Japan in stalemate". News 24. 2009-11-14. http://www.sport24.co.za/Content/Soccer/266/59b586b852304541af9e55be9f4c5469/14-11-2009-06-17/Bafana,_Japan_in_stalemate. Retrieved 2009-11-16. 
  10. ^ "Controversial win for Chiefs". News 24. 2009-11-21. http://www.sport24.co.za/Content/Soccer/PSL/380/75aa3ff668254043af92bba9278efd00/21-11-2009-03-14/Controversial_win_for_Chiefs. Retrieved 2009-12-01. 
  11. ^ "Lions subdue gutsy Kings". News 24. 2009-11-12. http://www.sport24.co.za/Content/Rugby/LionsinSA/954/45acaacf3ab74abe804f66bff76a93da/16-06-2009%2005-06/Lions_subdue_gutsy_Kings. Retrieved 2009-12-18. 
  12. ^ "EASTERN CAPE SETS TONE WITH NELSON MANDELA BAY STADIUM OPEN DAY!". Nelson Mandela Bay Metropolitan Municipality. 2009-06-09. http://www.nelsonmandelabay.gov.za/fifaworldcup/News.aspx?objID=-1&cmd=view&ID=134. Retrieved 2009-07-10. 
  13. ^ "Miss World Sportswoman 2009". http://www.missworld.com/index.php/en/news/246--miss-world-sportswoman-2009. Retrieved 2009-12-01. 
  14. ^ "Fury at Busta no-show". The Weekened Post. 2009-11-30. http://www.weekendpost.co.za/article.aspx?id=504063. Retrieved 2009-12-01. 
  15. ^ "Music festival in balance as organisers chase funds". The Herald. 2009-12-18. http://www.theherald.co.za/article.aspx?id=511379. Retrieved 2009-12-18. 
  16. ^ "Music event cancelled". The Herald. 2009-12-18. http://http://www.theherald.co.za/article.aspx?id=511996. Retrieved 2009-12-18. 
  17. ^ http://www.vicsuper15.com.au/
  18. ^ "Lions and Cheetahs in danger?". News 24. 2009-12-18. http://www.sport24.co.za/Content/Rugby/264/bbca619fbba441359324333c2b461793/12-11-2009-11-28/Lions_and_Cheetahs_in_danger. Retrieved 2009-12-18. 

[edit] External links

Search Wikimedia Commons Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium
v • d • e
2010 FIFA World Cup Stadia

Cape Town Stadium (Cape Town) • Ellis Park Stadium (Johannesburg) • Free State Stadium (Bloemfontein) • Loftus Versfeld Stadium (Pretoria) • Mbombela Stadium (Nelspruit) • Moses Mabhida Stadium (Durban) • Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium (Port Elizabeth) • Peter Mokaba Stadium (Polokwane) • Royal Bafokeng Stadium (Rustenburg) • Soccer City (Johannesburg)
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nelson_Mandela_Bay_Stadium"