Amsterdam ArenA
is a stadium in Amsterdam, Netherlands. The stadium was built from 1993 to 1996 at a cost of €140 million, and was officially opened on August 14, 1996. It has been used for association football, American football, concerts, and other events. The stadium has a retractable roof combined with a grass surface. It has a capacity of 51,628 seats during sports matches and 68,000 places during concerts.
The stadium is the home of the association football club AFC Ajax (1996–present) and was the home of the now-retired American football club Amsterdam Admirals (1996–2007). It was one of the stadiums used during UEFA Euro 2000. Dutch and international artists gave concerts in the ArenA, such as André Hazes and The Rolling Stones. Every year the dance event Sensation is held in the stadium.
|
AMSTERDAM ARENA TICKETS
| EVENT | DATE | AVAILABILITY |
|---|
| Bruno Mars Tickets 7/2 | Jul 02, 2026
Thu, 8:00 PM |  | | Bruno Mars Tickets 7/4 | Jul 04, 2026
Sat, 8:00 PM | | | Bruno Mars Tickets 7/5 | Jul 05, 2026
Sun, 8:00 PM | | | Bruno Mars Tickets 7/7 | Jul 07, 2026
Tue, 8:00 PM | | | Luke Combs, The Script, Ty Myers & The Castellows Tickets 7/11 | Jul 11, 2026
Sat, 6:30 PM | |
|
History
Amsterdam was one of six cities that bid to host the
1992 Summer Olympics. In 1986, a new Olympic stadium was designed, with a football field and an athletics track. It was to be built in the area of Strandvliet in
Amsterdam Zuidoost. After Amsterdam lost the bid to
Barcelona in October 1986, the plans for the new stadium were abandoned. In 1987, the Stichting Amsterdam Sportstad (
English: "Amsterdam Sports City Foundation") was established, which made new plans for a sports stadium with an all-seated capacity of 55,000. In 1990, a new design was made based on both previous designs, with a football field, an athletics track, and completely covered by a roof. By this time,
AFC Ajax needed a new stadium, because their old stadium
De Meer no longer had sufficient capacity.
[1]
Once more the design was altered: the athletics track was removed, the capacity was reduced to 50,000 seats, and the fixed roof was replaced by a
retractable roof. In 1992, the
Government of Amsterdam authorised the plans for the stadium with a
Transferium
where people could transfer from their car to various forms of public transportation. In 1993, the Government of Amsterdam changed the development plan of the location and gave a permit to build the stadium.
The first pile of the
deep foundation of the stadium was placed on
November 26,
1993. The construction work would take almost three years. The highest point of the building was reached on
February 24,
1995, after the roof construction was raised. The fly-over from the public road to the parking facilities was opened on
March 13,
1996. The Amsterdam ArenA received 180,000 visitors during the construction work, until the stadium was closed from
July 1,
1996 until the opening ceremony.
The Amsterdam ArenA was officially opened on
August 14,
1996 by
Queen Beatrix.
[2]
The Queen opened the Amsterdam ArenA by making a curtain fall inside the stadium. This revealed the world's largest painting
De Zee
(English:
The Sea
) of 80 × 126 metres. Two-dimensional ships were placed on the sea representing the clubs in the
Eredivisie
.
Trijntje Oosterhuis sang the
hymn De Zee
, composed for the opening ceremony by
John Ewbank. An eight-day
torch relay with 375 runners over 1400 kilometer through the Netherlands reached the stadium. The first runner was
Johan Cruijff starting in the old stadium De Meer, the last runner was
Frank Rijkaard arriving in the new stadium Amsterdam ArenA. After the grass was revealed and the roof opened, an inaugural football match was played between AFC Ajax and
AC Milan.
The construction of the Amsterdam ArenA cost
€140 million.
[3]
The stadium combines a retractable roof with a grass surface. This caused some problems in the beginning: the grass rolls would not grow in the shade of the open roof and had to be replaced up to four times a year.
Building and facilities
Its all-seated capacity is 51,628. During music concerts, the stadium has a maximum capacity of 68,000 visitors.
The parking capacity of the
Transferium
is 500 cars(inside); there are additional 12.000 spots outside.
The Amsterdam ArenA is one of two stadiums in the Netherlands that is rated with
five stars by
UEFA, the other being the
Feijenoord Stadion in
Rotterdam.
[4]
The Ajax Museum is located in the stadium, which shows the more than 100 years of history of Ajax.
[5]
The nearest train station is
Amsterdam Bijlmer ArenA.
Sport events
Association football
The inaugural match was between the home team
Ajax and
AC Milan which ended in a 0-3 win by Milan. The first goal was scored by
Dejan Savicevic.
The stadium is the home of
AFC Ajax in the
Eredivisie
.
The
UEFA Champions League 1997-98 final was played in the ArenA.
It was also one of the stadiums in
UEFA Euro 2000.
After the death of
Rinus Michels in 2005,
Ajax fans tried to convince the stadium's board to rebrand the stadium as the Rinus Michels Stadium. The board refused, however at every Ajax home game Ajax fans bring a large banner displaying the words 'Rinus Michels Stadion'.
American football
The stadium was also the home of the
American football team
Amsterdam Admirals, until the
NFL Europa ended its European competition in June 2007.
[6] They played over 50 matches in the stadium from 1997 to 2007.
[7] World Bowl IX was played at the ArenA in
2001, when the
Berlin Thunder defeated the
Barcelona Dragons.
Music events
Tina Turner was the first singer who gave a concert in the ArenA during her
Wildest Dreams Tour, with more than 150,000 people attending the three sold-out concerts in September 1996. Whilst
Michael Jackson played five nights at the ArenA during the '
HIStory World Tour in 1996 and 1997 to over 250,000 fans.
Despite frequent complaints about the acoustics of the Arena, concerts are often held in the stadium. Stars such as
Tina Turner,
Michael Jackson,
Céline Dion,
George Michael,
David Bowie,
Bon Jovi,
Eminem,
Robbie Williams,
Andre Hazes,
Red Hot Chili Peppers,
Justin Timberlake,
The Rolling Stones,
Genesis,
U2,
Metallica,
Madonna and
The Police have played the venue over the years.
The stadium is also host to dance event
Sensation.
Panoramic views
center and NEC on January 16, 2006
Ajax and NEC on January 16, 2006
15x13px
Panoramic view of the ArenA Boulevard on March 18, 2008
References
- {{nl icon}} The making of Amsterdam ArenA. Amsterdam ArenA. Retrieved on 2008-06-08.
- {{nl icon}} Wist je dat.... Amsterdam ArenA. Retrieved on 2008-06-08.
- {{nl icon}} Facts & figures. Amsterdam ArenA. Retrieved on 2008-06-09.
- 5-star stadia. Football temples of the world. Retrieved on 2008-06-09.
- The Museum. AFC Ajax. Retrieved on 2008-06-09.
- {{nl icon}} Admirals houdt op te bestaan. NRC Handelsblad. Retrieved on 2008-06-08.
- {{nl icon}} Wist je dat.... Amsterdam Arena. Retrieved on 2008-06-08.