Arenas and Stadiums in Sportland North Rhine-Westphalia

Places with Stories and History

Stadium Dortmund

Signal Iduna Park, Dortmund

Signal Iduna Park, formerly known as Westfalenstadion, is the largest football stadium in Germany with room for 81,365 spectators. For international events, it can seat 66,099. The stadium has the largest standing-room terrace in Europe, the world-famous “Yellow Wall”. At home games of the Bundesliga club Borussia Dortmund this legendary south stand offers space for around 25,000 BVB fans, who whip up a very special atmosphere there. Fans even travel from football’s home country of England to experience the unique spirit at this stadium.

Over the years, the arena has hosted several international football tournaments, including the 1974 and 2006 World Cups. During the 2006 World Cup, referred to in Germany as the “summer fairy tale”, the DFB German national team’s matches against Poland (preliminary round: 1:0) and Italy (semi-final: 0:2 after extra time) took place here. The UEFA Category 4 stadium is a Dortmund landmark, recognisable from afar by the distinctive yellow pylons in its roof construction.

Stadium Gelsenkirchen

Veltins-Arena, Gelsenkirchen

The Veltins-Arena, aka Arena auf Schalke, has a capacity of 62,271 and is the second-largest stadium in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, which calls itself Sportland.NRW. Located in Gelsenkirchen, the arena can seat 54,740 sports fans at international events. A special feature of this arena is that the football pitch can simply be rolled out to make way for other events.

The stadium on Rudi-Assauer-Platz has since 2001 been home to the “Königsblauen” (Royal Blues), the Bundesliga club FC Schalke 04. Tradition is avidly celebrated in the stands – especially when the Ruhr miners’ song “Steigerlied” rings out.

The Veltins-Arena is a UEFA Category 4 stadium and has frequently hosted international events. These include the Champions League Final in 2004 as well as several matches of the 2006 Football World Cup. In addition, the Veltins-Arena is also regularly the venue for the Biathlon World Team Challenge. In December 2019, German biathlon star Laura Dahlmeier ended her active sports career here in front of more than 45,000 spectators.

Stadium Düsseldorf

Merkur Spiel-Arena, Düsseldorf

The Merkur Spiel-Arena is located in the state capital of Düsseldorf. The home football club Fortuna Düsseldorf vies with visiting teams here in a stadium with a retractable roof. For national matches, the capacity is 52,000 spectators. This makes the Merkur Spiel-Arena the third largest football stadium in the state known as Sportland.NRW. For international events, the stadium seats 44,683.

In the 2019/2020 season, the arena hosted the semi-finals of the UEFA Europa League – but without spectators. In January 2015, the multifunctional arena was the chosen venue for the highlight of the German ice hockey season: the DEL Winter Game with 51,125 spectators. Never before had so many fans attended an ice hockey league game. The arena also hosts major concerts and shows. Depending on the type of event and stage set-up, the capacity can then be expanded to up to 66,500 spectators.

Stadium Mönchengladbach

Borussia-Park, Mönchengladbach

The Borussia-Park in Mönchengladbach has since 2004 been the home of the Bundesliga football club Borussia Mönchengladbach, which previously made history at the legendary Bökelberg Stadium. The stadium accommodates 54,022 spectators for Bundesliga games and 46,286 for international events.

Numerous international matches have kicked off in the stadium on Hennes-Weisweiler-Allee, including both Champions League and Europa League games. When the Women’s World Cup football championship was held in Germany in 2011, Borussia-Park was one of the venues. Among other games, the German team won a 4:2 victory in the group match against France here. Bastian Schweinsteiger, a member of the 2014 world champion men’s national football team, wore the DFB jersey for the last time here in Mönchengladbach in 2016.

Stadium Cologne

RheinEnergieSTADION, Cologne

The RheinEnergieSTADION is located in the Müngersdorf district of Cologne. It replaced the Müngersdorfer Stadion, built on the site in 1923 and then rebuilt in 1975. Today’s stadium was constructed from 2002 to 2004 in the run-up to the 2006 Football World Cup. The sports facility is home to the Bundesliga football club 1. FC Köln. The club’s loyal fans gather for matches in the south stand, known as the “Südkurve”. The stadium seats 41,825 spectators and has standing room for 8,175 more at national games. For international matches, the venue on Aachener Strasse offers seating for 46,195 football fans.

Several major sporting events have been held at Cologne’s RheinEnergieSTADION, for example the 1988 European Football Championship and the 2006 Football World Cup. In 2020, the arena hosted the final match of the UEFA Europa League.

Since 2010, the RheinEnergieSTADION has had a fixed place in the German football calendar as the permanent venue for the DFB Women’s Cup final.

Stadium Aachen

Tivoli, Aachen

Alemannia Aachen has made its home in the new Tivoli Stadium since August 2009. For national matches, the stadium on Krefelder Strasse can accommodate up to 32,960 football fans. For international matches, the stadium seats 27,250. The arena is part of the Sportpark Soers, which has gained fame as home to the world’s largest equestrian tournament, the CHIO.

Something that few people are aware of is that in 2014 Tivoli became the first stadium in Germany to be equipped with FIFA-certified goal-line technology. The national football team played a guest match here in the run-up to the 2010 World Cup, defeating Malta 3:0. The DFB women also regularly play in Aachen.

Stadium Duisburg

schauinsland-reisen-arena, Duisburg

The schauinsland-reisen-Arena, formerly known as the Wedaustadion, is the home stadium of the Bundesliga founding member MSV Duisburg. The stadium has a capacity of 31,514 for national matches and 28,000 for international events. It is part of the Sportpark Duisburg, which also includes a famous regatta course that serves as venue for world championships in canoeing and rowing.

The schauinsland-reisen-Arena in Duisburg’s south has hosted various international matches, such as the quarter-finals of the 2020 UEFA Europa League, an international match played by the German national football team in 2007, the opening match of the 2006 INAS World Football Championship for athletes with intellectual disabilities, and a friendly match played by the German women’s football team.

Stadium Leverkusen

BayArena, Leverkusen

The BayArena, formerly known as the Ulrich-Haberland-Stadion, has been home to the Bundesliga football club Bayer 04 Leverkusen since 1958. The stadium has room for 30,210 fans at national games. For international matches, the arena near the Leverkusen motorway junction can accommodate 29,412 football fans.

Besides hosting national football team matches, the BayArena also served as venue for the 2011 Women’s Football World Cup, among other events. Champions League and Europa League matches have also taken place here over the years. A special highlight was when the BayArena hosted the final match of the 2006 INAS World Football Championship for athletes with disabilities.

Stadium Bochum

Vonovia Ruhrstadion, Bochum

The Vonovia Ruhrstadion is the home ground for German football club VfL Bochum. The stadium has a capacity of 27,599 for national games. At international matches, such as European Cup games, the 2011 Women’s Football World Cup and the 2004 UEFA European Under-21 Championship, 15,574 football fans could be accommodated in the stadium on Castroper Strasse.

The stadium anthem of the local club VfL is “Bochum” by the popular German singer Herbert Grönemeyer. The Vonovia Ruhrstadion was one of the first football-only stadiums in the Bundesliga. This means that there is no running track here for track & field events, putting the fans closer to the “action”.

Stadium Bielefeld

SchücoArena, Bielefeld

The SchücoArena, popularly known as the Bielefeld Pasture, is home to the football club Arminia Bielefeld. For national games, the stadium accommodates 26,515 fans. International matches have also been held here, including for the 2006 INAS World Football Championship for athletes with disabilities and the 2010 U-20 Women’s Football World Cup.

In 2019, Arminia Bielefeld set up a separate area in a former box for special stadium visitors: people on the autism spectrum. Following the example of English stadiums, this enables fans to watch games in a more tranquil atmosphere. In case of overstimulation, there is a soundproofed “Snoezel” room equipped with special lighting to help visitors calm down.

Arena Cologne

Lanxess-Arena, Cologne

This is where Germany became handball world champion in 2007: The Lanxess-Arena, also known as the Kölnarena, is an event venue in the Deutz district on the right bank of the Rhine. The arena can accommodate up to 20,000 spectators, with capacity varying depending on the event. For the regular ice hockey games played by the Cologne Haie (Sharks), the arena can seat 18,700 spectators. Numerous international tournaments have also been held in the Lanxess-Arena on Willy-Brandt-Platz, including the 2007 and 2019 World Men’s Handball Championships, the IIHF World Championships in ice hockey in 2001, 2010 and 2017, and the NBA Europe Live Tour basketball exhibition tour in 2006. The Lanxess-Arena is also a regular venue for the Handball Final Four. In addition, two ATP Tour tennis tournaments were held here in the fall of 2020.

Stadium Wattenscheid

Lohrheidestadion, Bochum

The Lohrheidestadion is a football stadium equipped with track & field facilities located in the Wattenscheid district of Bochum. The stadium can accommodate 16,233 fans, 5,033 of them seated. The Lohrheidestadion was built in 1954, and the club SG Wattenscheid 09 has played its home games here since the 1965/66 season. Since 2002, the stadium on Lohrheidestrasse has hosted the German Athletics Championships several times.

Upon entering the stadium, the west stand catches the eye: It has a curved shape reminiscent of cable sheaves as a tribute to Wattenscheid’s mining past. From the main stand there is a view of the “Himmelstreppe” (Stairway to Heaven) by artist Herman Prigann on the site of the former Rheinelbe colliery in Gelsenkirchen, a landmark on the Ruhr area’s Industrial Heritage Trail.

Multifunctional Arena in Dortmund

Westfalenhalle, Dortmund

The Westfalenhalle in Dortmund is one of the most tradition-steeped event venues in Germany and is listed as a Dortmund monument. The venue has a capacity for 15,400 spectators. Since 1952 Dortmund has hosted several world and European championships in various sports, including table tennis, handball, figure skating, Taekwondo, skateboarding, wrestling and boxing as well as different types of dancing.

Hockey Stadium Mönchengladbach

SparkassenPark, Mönchengladbach

The SparkassenPark in Mönchengladbach, also known as the Hockeypark, is the home stadium of the Rheydter Hockey Club. The stadium can accommodate up to 12,000 field hockey fans. With additional stands, a total of 14,000 spectators are possible for sporting events. In 2006, the SparkassenPark was the venue for the Men’s FIH Hockey World Cup, during which around 100,000 spectators made their way to the hockey park over the twelve match days. In 2011, the EuroHockey Nations Championship was held here. In addition, Mönchengladbach hosted the Junior Bowl in American football for junior teams in the German Football League three years in a row.

The SparkassenPark is also a popular venue for concerts by music legends such as Sting, Bryan Adams and the Fantastische Vier. The stadium attracted nationwide attention in the summer of 2020 with the concert series “Strandkorb Open-Air”. Observing the social distancing and hygiene rules necessitated by the coronavirus pandemic, the park set up 450 roofed wicker beach chairs where visitors could kick back and enjoy a total of 65 shows by big names in German music from Brings to Heinz-Rudolf Kunze. The idea was awarded the 2020 German Tourism Prize.

Arena Düsseldorf

ISS DOME, Düsseldorf

The ISS DOME is a multifunctional arena in the state capital of Düsseldorf. For home games played by the ice hockey club Düsseldorfer EG, the arena offers space for 14,282 fans, making the ISS DOME the fourth largest ice hockey stadium in Germany. In addition, Düsseldorf has played host on several occasions to the Pixum Super Cup between the champions in the Handball Bundesliga and the DHB Cup winners. For track & field events, the ISS DOME can accommodate 10,400 spectators.

Arena Krefeld

Yayla-Arena, Krefeld

The Yayla-Arena is a multifunctional venue in Krefeld that can accommodate from 20 to 9,500 guests, depending on the event. Around 8,029 spectators can be seated for ice hockey games played by the home team, the Krefeld Pinguine (Penguins). The arena has been host since 2018 to the international Deutschland Cup ice hockey tournament.