- Address: Nasrec Road, Johannesburg
- Country: South Africa
- Capacity: 94,000
- Opened: 1989
- Main use: Football
- Tenants: Kaizer Chiefs (football)
Extra stadium info – FNB Stadium
The First National Bank Stadium, nicknamed Soccer City and The Calabash, is also known as a venue for concerts and rugby union. It is among the largest sports venues by capacity in the world. In 2010, the venue hosted a match between the national rugby union teams of South Africa and New Zealand. 94,000 people attended the game, which became a record crowd for a rugby union match in South Africa.
The 2010 FIFA World Cup
The stadium hosted the first match of the 2010 FIFA World Cup. The game between the national football teams of South Africa and the United Mexican States ended 1-1. The venue also hosted the prestigious 2010 FIFA World Cup final. A closing ceremony was held before the final, featuring Shakira, the first person with 100 million followers on his or her main social media page. After the closing ceremony, her boyfriend Gerard Piqué played for Spain.
The national football teams of the Netherlands and Spain
The FIFA World Cup final was won by Spain after defeating the Netherlands. The Spanish football star Andrés Iniesta scored the only goal of the game. It was the first-ever world championship title for the national football team of Spain and the third FIFA World Cup final for the Netherlands. The Netherlands lost their first-ever FIFA World Cup final in 1974. In 1978, they lost their second FIFA World Cup final against the Argentine Republic.
The Kaizer Chiefs
The Kaizer Chiefs, the first South African sports club with 1 million followers on its main social media page, use the stadium for home matches. The club was founded in 1970 and it is among the first African sports clubs with a value of at least $10 million. The Kaizer Chiefs, nicknamed Amakhosi, won the top-flight football league of South Africa various times. The Kaizer Chiefs lost their first-ever African football championship final in 2021. That year, Al-Ahly from Egypt became the first football club with 10 African championship titles after defeating the Kaizer Chiefs.
The Orlando Pirates
The matches between the Kaizer Chiefs and the Orlando Pirates, their arch-rivals, are known as Soweto derbies. In 2011, the first Soweto derby at the completely renovated FNB Stadium attracted a crowd of 92,000. The Orlando Pirates became the first South African football club with an African football championship title in 1995. They won the title after beating the Ivorian football club ASEC Mimosas in a two-legged final.
