Aleppo International Stadium

The Aleppo International Stadium (Arabic: ملعب حلب الدولي‎) is an Olympic-standard, multi-use, all-covered and all-seater stadium in the Syrian city of Aleppo. It is the largest stadium in Syria, and is currently used mostly for football matches. It serves as a home ground of Al-Ittihad football club. It also hosted some home games of the Syrian football team. The stadium was opened in 2007 and holds up to 53,200 spectators. The venue is located near the al-Hamadaniah Sports City in the southwestern part of Aleppo.

Aleppo International stadium

The stadium in 2009
Full name	Aleppo International stadium
Location	Aleppo, Syria
Coordinates	36°11′06″N 37°07′04″E
Owner	Government of Syria
Operator	General Sports Federation of Syria
Capacity	53,200[1][2]
Field size	105 x 68 m
Surface	Grass
Construction
Built	1980 to 2007
Opened	3 April 2007
Closed	2011
Construction cost	US$ 30,000,000
Architect	Stanislaw Kus
Tenants
Al-Ittihad Syria national football team

History

The stadium at night, 2009

The construction of the stadium was launched in 1980, based on the design of the Polish Constructor Stanislaw Kus with the assistance of architect Fawzi Khalifeh. It was scheduled to be completed in 1987 to become ready for the Mediterranean games. However, the construction process was stopped and delayed for 2 decades due to financial difficulties, until 2003 when the officials of the Syrian Government implemented a serious programme to overcome all difficulties.

Finally, after a record period of 27 years of construction, the stadium became ready with its entire facilities in early 2007. Officially, the stadium was opened on 3 April 2007 with an inaugural friendly match between al-Ittihad and Fenerbahçe of Turkey which ended in a 2–2 draw. The first goal scored in the stadium came at the 8th minute of the inaugural match, through Abdul Fattah Al Agha. The Syrian president Bashar Al Assad and Prime Minister of Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdoğan attended the opening ceremony and the match.[3]

Civil war

It was severely damaged during the Syrian Civil War. Its facade and many of its indoor facilities were completely destroyed, and the pitch and tribunes took significant damage, especially from mortar fire.[4]

The Syrian government started the process of repairing the stadium after the conclusion of the Battle of Aleppo (2012–2016).[4][5] Iran has assisted Syria with repairs.[6]

Facts

The stadium has five levels: the first level is the sport ground itself, with its surrounding facilities, the second level consists of training halls, different facilities and support services. The rest three levels are designed to host the attendants' seats; the first tier holds up to 25,000 seats while the second and the third host 14,000 each. The VIP hall located on the third level, is designed and decorated with oriental wood-works.[7]

The stadium occupies an area of 3.5 hectares out of the 33 hectares of the whole sports complex. It is provided with two large electronic screens (10 tones, 7X15 meters each). The seats are all in light blue color with a small number of white colored seats placed in the eastern tribune to form the word "Aleppo" both in Arabic and English languages. The stadium is all-covered with a pre-built concrete which is the second largest one of its type in the world. The parking area of the arena hosts more than 8,000 vehicles. The entry to the stadium is secured through 26 gates.

References

1. "Stadiums in Syria". Archived from the original on 2012-03-16. Retrieved 2010-02-06.
2. Aleppo Int'l Stadium
3. Özlem Tür (2016). Turkey-Syria Relations: Between Enmity and Amity. Routledge. p. 81. ISBN 9781317005957.
4. Голованов, Евгений. "В Сирии восстанавливают разрушенные боевиками спортивные объекты". НТВ. Retrieved 2018-06-26.
5. "تأهيل استاد حلب الدولي على مرحلتين بتوجيه من رئيس الحكومة و صيانة صالة الأسد في عهدة لجنة الإعمار المركزية | الجماهير". jamahir.alwehda.gov.sy (in Arabic). Retrieved 2018-06-26.
6. "دراسة إعادة تأهيله أصبحت في مقدمة الأولويات .. افتتاح استاد حلب الدولي بتعاون سوري إيراني .. ولقاء استثنائي بين الاتحاد والحرية | الجماهير". jamahir.alwehda.gov.sy (in Arabic). Retrieved 2018-06-26.
7. http://www.alwehda.gov.sy/index.php/حلب/2057-المنشآت-الرياضية-في-محافظة-حلب

External links

• The stadium at WorldStadiums