Pittodrie Stadium

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Pittodrie Stadium
The Pittodrie Stadium in May 2016
Pittodrie Stadium seen from the south in May 2016
Data
place ScotlandScotland Aberdeen , Scotland
Coordinates 57 ° 9 '33 "  N , 2 ° 5' 20"  W Coordinates: 57 ° 9 '33 "  N , 2 ° 5' 20"  W.
owner Aberdeen FC
opening September 2, 1899
First game 2 September 1899
Aberdeen FC - Dumbarton FC 7-1
Renovations 1925 Construction of the Main Stand
1968 Seating of the Main Stand
1971 Fire damage Main Stand
1979 Conversion into a pure seating stadium
1993 Construction of the Richard Donald Stand
surface Natural grass
costs £ 4.5m (Richard Donald booth)
capacity 20,961 seats
playing area 100 × 66 m (109 × 72 yd)
Societies)

The Pittodrie Stadium (short Pittodrie called) is a football stadium in Scotland Aberdeen . The owner FC Aberdeen welcomes their opponents to the games here. The venue is only around 500 meters from the North Sea .

history

For the first time in 1899 and since 1903 permanently, the stadium serves as the home ground of FC Aberdeen. The facility was opened on September 2, 1899 with the game of the then original club FC Aberdeen against FC Dumbarton (7: 1). Pittodrie was the first British football stadium to be completely converted into a seating stadium in the 1970s. In addition, a stadium was equipped there for the first time with a covered coach and substitute bench as a dugout in the 1940s and a floodlight system in the 1950s.

The stadium was known as "Pittodrie Park" before it was renamed "Pittodrie Stadium" in the 1960s. After being converted into a fully seated stadium, it currently has a capacity of 20,961, with the record number of 45,061 for the game between Aberdeen FC and Heart of Midlothian dating back to 1954.

The quarter-final match between FC Aberdeen and FC Bayern Munich in the European Cup Winners' Cup 1982/83 , the second leg of which was played on March 16, 1983 at the Pittodrie Stadium, is generally regarded as the highlight . In front of a sold-out home, Aberdeen won 3-2 after a 0-0 first leg and a 2-1 deficit in the meantime and thus advanced to the next round of the competition.

The last decisive structural measure took place in 1993 when the old "Beach End Stand" was torn down and replaced by the new "Richard Donald Stand". This is now the only grandstand in the stadium that is divided into two tiers, which also triggered criticism from supporters because, according to popular fan opinion, they could not maintain the atmosphere of the old Beach End grandstand. After that, only minor work was carried out, such as the introduction of the electronic entry system in 2006.

The stadium was also used for other occasions, such as rugby games or concerts by Elton John or Rod Stewart .

Due to an agreement, the club Inverness Caledonian Thistle (ICT) also played its home games at the Pittodrie Stadium at the beginning of the 2004/05 season after ICT's Caledonian Stadium did not meet the technical requirements of the Scottish Premier League , to which the club had been promoted .

future

An expansion or renovation of the Pittodrie Stadium is uneconomical given its age and also not possible due to the surrounding residential areas. For several years there have been plans to build a new stadium. A move to a new venue was planned for the 2013/14 season. The biggest obstacle to a new building are the debts of FC Aberdeen. At the moment, the plans are that, after the debt has been reduced, a new home with 21,000 places should be completed for the 2017/18 season.

gallery

  • Grandstand plan

  • The old Beach Stand End, which was replaced by the Richard Donald Stand in 1993.

  • The granite facade of the Merkland stand

  • Rugby Union international match between Scotland and Canada in November 2008

panorama

and display information about the image
The Pittodrie Stadium as seen from the South Booth guest block in November 2006

Web links

Commons : Pittodrie Stadium  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ afc.co.uk: History of the stadium (English)
  2. ↑ scotsman.com: 26,000 pack Pittodrie as Elton John's world tour rolls into Aberdeen's sell-out gig Article from June 19, 2004 (English)
  3. ↑ news.bbc.co.uk: Aberdeen make new stadium pledge article from July 19, 2008 (English)
  4. ↑ stadionwelt.de: New stadium in Aberdeen soon a reality? Article dated August 12, 2014