The San Siro as we know it, however, is still relatively new, and has only been like this since the 1990 World Cup. Before that, the stadium was a rather generic, though elegant, two-tiered affair.

While the city of Milan had initially planned to build a complete new stadium, lack of time and money resulted in a redevelopment instead. One of the leading architects of the project, Ragazzi and Partners, has kindly provided us with some photos of the plans, building works, and completed stadium, with the below photo gallery as a result.

San Siro 1990

To give you a taste of what football stadiums looked like in those years, we have compiled fifteen photos of different stadiums in the 1920s. Some already existed for several decades, but others had just been newly built.

1. Camp de Les Corts – Barcelona’s new stadium opened in 1922, and was the first in a wave of new Spanish stadiums that were to open in the next two years.

2. Stadio Luigi Ferraris – One of the oldest still existing stadiums in Italy. It had opened in 1911 and by the 1920s already grown into a decently-sized stadium.

3. Taksim Stadium – Istanbul’s community stadium used by all top clubs. Built on the courtyard of a splended building that used to be army barracks.

4. Hampden Park – Europe’s largest football stadium at that time, though it would get expanded even further in the 1930s and break several attendance records.

5. Stadium Metropolitano de Madrid – Atlético’s new stadium in the north of the city, which opened in 1923 and would remain their home until 1966.

6. Wembley Stadium – The crown jewel of English stadiums, though it got almost demolished a few months after it opened in 1923.

7. Het Kasteel – Arguably Holland’s most beautiful stadium at that time. The castle-inspired facade still stands today.

8. Campo de Chamartín – Real Madrid’s first proper stadium, built in 1924 and their home until the Bernabéu was put in its place in 1947.

9. Stamford Bridge – Offered to Fulham, but taken by Chelsea. Stamford Bridge in the 1920s consisted of one covered main stand and a vast open bowl of terraces.

10. Ibrox Stadium – Still without Archibald Leitch’s characteristic red-brick main stand, but already one of Europe’s largest grounds.

11. Waldstadion – The Waldstadion opened in 1925 and started right off by hosting the German title match. Standard playing venue of future tournaments in Germany.

12. Stade Gerland – Built by the city of Lyon to host multiple sports, but it would take another half decade before it became the regular home of Olympique Lyonnais.

13. San Siro – In nothing resembling the stadium of today, San Siro consisted of four separate stands when it opened in 1926.

14. Städtisches Stadion – 1. FC Nürnberg was Germany’s top club in the 1920s and therefore got itself an appropriate home. It already had its characteristic octagonal shape.

15. St James’ Park – By the 1920s, St James’ Park had already been around for fourty years, and slowly developed into a ground with a capacity of 60,000 places.

Football stadiums in the 1920s

Some stadiums though, jump out of the pack because of the spectacular location they have been built at. These settings can be man-made or natural, but they have in common that they all make for pretty nice pictures.

We have collected 17 of them, and they include such features as oceans, seas, lakes, mountains, rocks, beaches, castles, palaces, skyscrapers, and bridges. We have earlier already dedicated a photo gallery to riverside stadiums.

If you wish to know a bit more about these stadiums, then there is some explanation below the photos.

1. Cape Town Stadium – The stadiums are in random order, but even if we did make a ranking, we would likely have ended up with Cape Town Stadium as a solid number one. If you have the Atlantic Coast just a hundred metres away and the splendid Table Mountain as a backdrop, you are unbeatable if it comes to spectacular stadium settings.

2. Stadion Kantrida – Croatia has a knack for spectacular stadium settings – we have one more later on – , as they have tremendous help from the beautiful Adriatic sea coast. Rijeka built their stadium right on the coast, and as the stadium was built at the site of an old stone quarry, it is bordered by a wall of rocks on its other side. 

3. PPL Park – When the town of Chester offered Philadelphia Union to build a stadium in their municipality, they had hoped that it would regenerate the previously neglected area. This did not happen, but the new PPL Park, which sits almost right underneath the Commodore Barry Bridge that spans the Delaware River, surely has attracted the attention for its location.

4. Sparkassen-Erzgebirgsstadion – Tucked deep inside the Ore Mountains (Erzgebirge) of Eastern Germany lies the small town of Aue. The team has climbed up all the way to the 2. Bundesliga, and one also needs to climb a hill to get to their stadium which is surrounded by more green rolling hills. Visiting a match on a sunny autumn day must be a very pleasant experience.

5. Bet Butler Stadium – Scotland is another country that has an ample collection of beautifully located stadiums. Pittodrie and the Caledonian Stadium were good contenders, but there really was not much competition for Dumbarton’s Bet Butler Stadium. It sits right at the foot of Dumbarton Rock with (parts of) Dumbarton Castle perched on top.

6. Aker Stadion – We could have selected any Norwegian stadium outside of the Oslo area, but Aker Stadion in the town of Molde really has a lot going for it. It sits right on the shore of the Romsdalsfjord and has dramatic views over the adjacent snow-topped mountain ranges.

7. Bluetongue Stadium – One would expect an Australian stadium to be on the list, and isn’t it great to watch some football and see 22 palm trees waving above one of the goals? What’s more, behind the palm trees begins the Brisbane Water, an inland ocean bay, and one can almost imagine the dolphins and whales jumping out of the water (which Wikipedia says is very unlikely).

8. Estadio de Riazor – Admittedly, the above photos does not do justice, but what you see right behind the beach is La Coruña’s Estadio de Riazor. Local planners ruined the location somewhat by squeezing an indoor sports hall in between the stadium and the beach, but in few places you can plan a day at the beach and then walk a hundred metres to see some top football. Here is a better photo.

9. Inönü Stadi – Beşiktaş’ Inönü Stadi has two thing going for it: first there is the location right on the Bosphorus, but to top things off it lies also right next to Dolmabahçe Palace (visible on the photo), which is arguably one of Istanbul’s main cultural highlights.

10. Stade François Coty – Corsica is a beautiful island with an amazing coastline, and AC Ajaccio made good use of that by building a stadium high up the shore with a breathtaking view over the Mediterranean Sea. They were also smart enough to leave that side of the stadium open so that if the football disappoints, fans at least have the view.

11. BBVA Compass Stadium – Few of the newly built soccer-specific MLS stadiums have been built at central locations (on the contrary), but the Houston Dynamo decided to be the exception and build their recently opened BBVA Compass Stadium right in Houston’s downtown. This, of course, leads to nice skyline pictures.

12. Estadio San Carlos de Apoquindo – While basically any point in Santiago de Chile gives a magnificent view over the snow-topped Andes mountains, the home of Universidad Católica lies right at the foot of these mountains. In fact, the view may even be better from farther away, e.g. from Estadio Monumental, but La Católica’s rivals surely cannot recreate a photo like this.

13. Stadio Giuseppe Sinigaglia – If it is good enough for George Clooney, you know you are at a special place. Como’s home might not be a beauty itself, but more than makes up for it by sitting right on the shores of Lake Como. What better than having a pizza in Como’s historic centre and then making the short walk to the stadium while glancing out over the lake?

14. Alfheim Stadion – The second Norwegian entry comes from Tromsø. Could this be the most northern top-flight stadium in Europe? Because Norway pretty much ends after Tromsø. Located on an island in a bay of the Norwegian Sea, the wilderness is never far away, and in winter rough mountains covered with snow loom over the small stands of the stadium.

15. Hásteinsvöllur – A list of spectacular stadium settings is incomplete without a stadium from either the Faroer Islands or Iceland. Hásteinsvöllur is the home of Icelandic Premier League side IB Vestmannaeyja, and located on a small island off the coast. The spectacular rocks in the back give the extra edge. Good other candidates were this and this one on the Faroer Islands.

16. Stadion Gospin Dolac – It is the second Croatian stadium in this gallery, but this time not on the coast, but in a small mountain town. Second division side NK Imotski found some space in between a few rocks, and with some quirky stands had themselves a stadium. It is surrounded by medieval ruins and of you climb over the rocks, you look right into a lagoon.

17. Reebok Stadium – Yes really, the Reebok Stadium. Of course, it is built on a modern office park and the M61 runs right past, but if you take the photo from a reasonable distance and include something of the lovely English countryside, it actually looks very nice. It is not only the photo above, but we also could have chosen this, or this, or this, or this, or this shot, which kind of proves our point.

Spectacular stadium settings

Classic Stadium Facades

Still, many fans consider them to be a dime in a dozen with a lack of soul. They have seen the same kind of arenas pop up in places all over Europe and long back to their old stadium, that, though lacking comfort, made up in atmosphere and character.

They are the new generation of mid-size European arenas. Part of a massive regeneration of football stadiums that started in the mid 1990s and continues up until today.

We present you ten of them in this photo gallery. They range in capacity from 20,000 to 33,000, and have all been built in the last seven years. What do you think, soulless concrete boxes or the salvation of football?

Europe’s New Mid-Size Arenas

Both are amongst Mexico’s biggest clubs, not as big as América and Chivas (who make up the Súperclasico), but definitely big in terms of titles and support. Cruz Azul had its hey days in the 1970s, and has been a constant force in recent years. A well-run club, but with its last title in 1997 (and Mexico hands out two a year). The Pumas are on the rise, and have celebrated most of their successes in the last decade, with the last title less than a year ago.

The match got played at Estadio Azul, the city’s third biggest stadium, but more compact, which means stands and fans closer to the pitch than at the Azteca and Olímpico. Whereas Azul has regularly trouble filling up the stadium for a standard league match, the stadium was about 80% packed for the derby, with both sets of fans peacefully mixing up and an electric atmosphere.

The game could not match the atmosphere though, and ended in a 1-1 draw, something which has not really helped any of the clubs in their quest for this season’s title.

Derby Day in Mexico City

London Football

Euro 2012 – The Stadiums

Europe’s 80,000+ Stadiums

Riverside Stadiums