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Construction
Construction of Stadion Poljud
football stadium in Split, Croatia
- 12 September 1979
- Europe
Construction
football stadium in Split, Croatia
Fetching the article from Wikipedia…
Gradski stadion u Poljudu (English: City Stadium in Poljud), better known as Stadion Poljud (English: Poljud Stadium) or simply Poljud, is a multi-use stadium in Split, Croatia, which has been the home ground of Hajduk Split football club since 1979. The stadium is located in the neighbourhood of Poljud, which belongs to city district of Spinut. It was opened in September 1979, and has a seating capacity of 33,987.
It had an original capacity of 55,000, increased to 62,000 in the 1980s, before being equipped with seats in the 1990s, thus reducing the capacity to 33,987.
Poljud Stadium was the venue for the 1990 European Athletics Championships and 2010 IAAF Continental Cup. Electronic music festival Ultra Europe, an expansion of the Ultra Music Festival, was held at Stadium Poljud from 2013 until 2019 when it moved to Park Mladeži. The city of Split holds the multi-day festival annually, drawing more than 150,000 people each year.
The author of the winning project in the original 1975 competition for the Split stadium was architect Ivan Piteša. He designed a fully covered, shell-shaped stadium without an athletics track, drawing his main inspiration from the Parc des Princes in Paris. Despite winning first place, the project was taken from him under controversial circumstances and awarded to Boris Magaš. In that same competition, Magaš's original proposal, which bore no resemblance to the stadium built today, had only placed third.
The seashell-like design by Croatian architect Boris Magaš has a roof structure spanning at 206×47 meters. Its design offers views of nearby hills and forests from the stands, modelled after ancient Greek theaters. Suspended on the west roof "shell" are 19 cabins. Seven of them are used by TV reporters, with the others occupied by cameras, central referee station, photo finish, scoreboard, and audio control. They are all interconnected via a catwalk that runs through a structure spanning the entire roof giving access to the cabins, as well as to the 630 Philips lights, placed along the brim and inner side of the roof.
Stands are supported by a construction of reinforced concrete with entrances via 12 bridges placed 30–40 meters apart around the entire stadium as well as eight staircases. Underneath them is a trench holding office areas. The area around the stadium is composed of 60,000 square meters of designed landscape with greenery designated for pedestrians, with the stadium slightly beneath the grade level of surrounding roads. Under the western stands are 11,000 square meters of sports facilities (three gyms, pool, sauna), official club offices and restaurants, while the eastern stands cover 9,100 square meters of business areas. The inner stadium ground is composed of a 105x68 meters football pitch and eight running tracks surrounding it.
The stadium was refurbished before hosting the 2010 IAAF Continental Cup athletics competition. A new tartan track was constructed, including the introduction of new VIP boxes and seats. In October 2014, following heavy damage from Ultra Europe, a new pitch and drainage system were constructed, replacing the original ones that lasted for 35 years.
In November 2015 the stadium was officially recognized as culture heritage.
In October 2024, it was announced that the Poljud Stadium would undergo reconstruction. The roof of the stadium will be adapted, along with its reinforced concrete structure and electrical installations. The Split stadium will also receive a new video and audio system, as well as updated fire protection measures. The Government of Croatia has approved funds for all the necessary project documentation. Work on the stadium was expected to begin in the spring of 2025, at the end of the current competitive season. The funds have been secured, and the project will be implemented in several stages.
The first section to be renovated includes the southwest stand, where the visiting fans will be seated, and part of the west stand extending toward the south. In the second phase, reconstruction is planned for the southeast stand and part of the east stand extending southward, followed by the sections to the north. The plan initially involved using alpinists; however, scaffolding will still need to be utilized. The chairs will remain in place, and the entire concrete structure will be renovated. While the work is ongoing, some parts of Poljud will be closed, but Hajduk will still be able to play at the stadium.
This is a list of events, concerts and other public gatherings at Poljud Stadium.
Text from the Wikipedia article “Stadion Poljud”, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.