- Address: Sylvesterallee 7, Hamburg
- Country: Germany
- Capacity: 57,000
- Opened: 12 July 1953
- Main use: Football
- Tenants: HSV (football)
Extra stadium info – Volksparkstadion
The stadium opened as the Volksparkstadion. It was known as the AOL Arena between 2001 and 2007, the HSH Nordbank Arena between 2007 and 2010 and the Imtech Arena between 2010 and 2015. The Netherlands won the first-ever UEFA European Football Championship game at the stadium in 1988. They reached the final of the tournament after that match, which they won against the former USSR. In 2009, the UEFA Cup was rebranded the UEFA Europa League. 2010, the Volksparkstadion hosted the first-ever final of the tournament after its was rebranding. The final was won by the Spanish side Atlético de Madrid after defeating Fulham from the United Kingdom.
The FIFA World Cup
The first-ever FIFA World Cup match at the stadium took place in 1974. The national football team of Australia played in the first two FIFA World Cup games at the Volksparkstadion. The Argentine Republic, Costa Rica, the Côte d’Ivoire, the Czech Republic, Ecuador, the Italian Republic, Saudi Arabia and Ukraine played in the FIFA World Cup at the stadium in 2006. The Argentine Republic won the first 2006 FIFA World Cup game at the Volksparkstadion after beating the Côte d’Ivoire in front of 49,000 spectators.
The Hamburg Sea Devils and HSV
The Hamburg Sea Devils played numerous American football games at the Volksparkstadion. HSV (Hamburger Sport-Verein) use the Volksparkstadion for home matches. HSV, also known as Der Dino, won the German top-flight football league various times. In 2018, HSV were relegated to the second football level of Germany for the first time in their history. They drew an average home attendance of 50,000 in that league season. HSV played various decades in the German top-flight football league before they were relegated.
The European championship for football clubs
HSV were crowned European champions in 1983 for the first time in their history after beating Juventus in the Greek city of Athens. They drew an average home attendance of 28,000 for domestic league games during that football season. HSV reached the final after beating the Spanish side Real Sociedad. Juventus reached the final after defeating the Polish side Widzew Łódź. On 13 September 2006, HSV faced the English club Arsenal in a European championship match at the Volksparkstadion. That day, Arsenal became the first club in UEFA Champions League history to have fielded 11 players of different nationalities at the same time.
