UEFA stadium categories are categories for football stadiums laid out in UEFA 's Stadium Infrastructure Regulations. Using these regulations, stadiums are rated as category one, two, three, or four (renamed from elite) in ascending ranking order. These categories replaced the previous method of ranking stadiums on one to five star scale in 2006.
31-535: UEFA [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] [REDACTED] Ernst-Happel-Stadion ( pronunciation ), known as Praterstadion until 1992, sometimes also called Wiener-Stadion , is a football stadium in Leopoldstadt , the 2nd district of Austria 's capital Vienna . With 50,865 seats, it is the largest stadium in Austria. It was built between 1929 and 1931 for the second Workers' Olympiad to
62-646: A bit of a loner, always accompanied by his cigarettes and cognac. He nevertheless would meet up with Austrian friends, enjoying card games, pool and darts. A heavy smoker for most of his adult life, Happel died of lung cancer in 1992 at age 66. In the wake of his death, the biggest football stadium in Austria, the Praterstadion in Vienna, was renamed the Ernst-Happel-Stadion . Four days after his death, Austria played against Germany and reached
93-737: A subsidiary of Wien Holding . It is a UEFA Category 4 stadium , and as such, it is the home of the Austria national football team . It also hosts the Viennese clubs' matches in UEFA competitions . The stadium is served by Stadion station on the U2 metro line, 77A and 11A bus lines. The foundation stone was laid in November 1928 in honor of the 10-year celebration of the Republic of Austria. The stadium
124-451: Is also one of six managers–– along with Ancelotti, Mourinho, Giovanni Trapattoni , Tomislav Ivić , and Eric Gerets –– to have won top-flight domestic league championships in at least four countries. Happel started his professional playing career at Rapid Wien , where he made his first team debut at age 17. Forming a solid defensive partnership with Max Merkel , he played 14 years for Rapid, from 1943 until 1954 and 1956 until 1959, winning
155-405: Is the home of the Austria national football team . Club football matches are generally limited to the domestic cup final and international competitions featuring one of Vienna's top clubs, FK Austria Wien and SK Rapid Wien , as their regular stadiums are too small to host UEFA Champions League and UEFA Cup matches. Vienna derby matches between FK Austria and SK Rapid have also been played in
186-607: The 1958 World Cup . His last international was a September 1958 match against Yugoslavia . He earned 51 caps and scored 5 goals. After retiring as a player, Happel went on to become one of the greatest coaches of all time. He won the league title in four countries. He also took two clubs to gold in the European Champions' Cup (now the UEFA Champions League ) and the Netherlands to second place in
217-703: The 1978 World Cup . His first club was ADO Den Haag in 1962, with whom he won the Dutch Cup in 1968. After Den Haag he coached Feyenoord , with whom he won the European Cup (defeated Glasgow Celtic in the 1970 final ) and the Intercontinental Cup in 1970, and the Dutch championship in 1971. At the 1978 World Cup in Argentina, Happel was coach of The Netherlands national team and reached
248-775: The Austrian Championship title six times. He was chosen in Rapid's Team of the Century in 1999. The two years in between Happel played for Racing Club de Paris in France . Happel made his debut for Austria in September 1947 against Hungary . He played for Austria at the 1948 Summer Olympics . He was a participant at the 1954 FIFA World Cup in Switzerland, where he helped them reach third place, and also at
279-566: The Soviet Union was in 1960. The capacity has since been reduced. Other sporting events are held in the stadium, including athletics, cycling and tennis. In 1950, 35,000 watched Austrian Josef Weidinger win the European Heavyweight crown against Stefan Olek (of France ), and a temporary pool in the stadium was the venue for the 1995 European LC Championships . During the 1950 and 1960s, motorcycle speedway took place at
310-672: The European Cup again, 13 years after the triumph with Feyenoord, this time with Hamburger SV , defeating Juventus in the final. He is one of six coaches in the history of the European Cup (now called Champions League) to win the title with two clubs, the others being Ottmar Hitzfeld , who won with Borussia Dortmund and Bayern Munich ; José Mourinho , who won with Porto and Inter Milan ; Jupp Heynckes , who won with Real Madrid and Bayern Munich ; Carlo Ancelotti , who won with Milan and Real Madrid ; and Pep Guardiola , who won with FC Barcelona and Manchester City . In 1987, Happel returned to Austria as coach of Swarovski Tirol . With
341-399: The Netherlands at the 1978 FIFA World Cup . This is the best result ever for a non-domestic manager in a World Cup alongside Englishman George Raynor 's Swedish runner-up campaign in 1958 . He was the first of the six managers to have won the European Cup with two clubs ( Carlo Ancelotti , Ottmar Hitzfeld , José Mourinho , Pep Guardiola and Jupp Heynckes being the other five). He
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#1732772303568372-835: The Prater Stadium was renamed after him in 1992. In 1964, 1987, 1990, and 1995, the Ernst Happel Stadium was the venue of the European Cup / UEFA Champions League final. During the UEFA Euro 2008 tournament, the Ernst Happel-Stadion hosted seven games (three group matches involving Austria , two quarter-finals, a semifinal match, and the Final match ). In preparation for the tournament, the first and second place additional rows of seats increased
403-848: The UEFA Euro finals and 30,000 for the UEFA Europa League and the UEFA Nations League finals, since these regulations were introduced in 2006. After the 2007 Champions League final , UEFA President Michel Platini stated that he wanted European Cup finals to be held at stadiums with an average capacity of 70,000 to solve security issues. The hosts for the finals between 2008 and 2023 ( Luzhniki Stadium , Stadio Olimpico , Santiago Bernabéu , Wembley Stadium , Allianz Arena , Olympiastadion , San Siro , Millennium Stadium , Olimpiyskiy Stadium , Stade de France , Atatürk Stadium ) all had capacities of at least 70,000 seats—with
434-651: The UEFA Stadium Infrastructure Regulations. If a retractable roof is present, its use will be directed by consultation between the UEFA delegate and the main assigned referee. Although the minimum stadium capacity for category four is 8,000, it is required to host the UEFA Europa Conference League final, and only one stadium with a capacity less than 60,000 has been selected to host a UEFA Champions League and
465-403: The capacity was reduced. The attendance record was 90,726 spectators set on 30 October 1960 at the football match between Spain and Austria (0–3). In 1970, the stadium was the venue of the 1970 European Cup Winners' Cup Final which saw Manchester City F.C. beat Górnik Zabrze 2–1. Neil Young and a Francis Lee penalty sealed the win for City. This final was played under torrential rain in what
496-558: The club, he won the Austrian Championship title twice (1989 and 1990) before becoming coach of the Austria national team in 1992. All youth players of Rapid Vienna automatically became member of the Hitler Jugend in 1938. Ernst reported he refused to sing along to their songs until he was kicked out of their gatherings. He was conscripted and dispatched to the Eastern Front in 1943. Although he never saw action, he
527-591: The design of German architect Otto Ernst Schweizer. The stadium was renamed in honour of Austrian footballer Ernst Happel following his death in 1992. The stadium hosted seven games in UEFA Euro 2008 , including the final which saw Spain triumph over Germany . The stadium is owned by the City of Vienna (Municipal Department 51 – Sports of the City of Vienna). It is managed by the Wiener Stadthalle Betriebs und Veranstaltungsgesellschaft m.b.H. ,
558-667: The exceptions of 2014 and 2019 finals ( Estádio da Luz and Metropolitano Stadium ) held with capacities of 65,000 seats. Two finals were played during the coronavirus pandemic in 2020 and 2021 in stadiums reaching 50,000 seats ( Estádio da Luz and Estádio do Dragão ) with none or reduced attendances. 350 E v (lux) vertical illuminance uniformity ratios U1h >0.35 and U2h >0.45 750 E v (lux) vertical illuminance uniformity ratios U1h >0.4 and U2h >0.45 1000 E v (lux) vertical illuminance uniformity ratios U1h >0.4 and U2h >0.5 Ernst Happel Ernst Franz Hermann Happel (29 November 1925 – 14 November 1992)
589-626: The final against the Argentina national team . Always a man of few words, Happel's pre-match pep talk is said to have consisted of just one sentence: "Gentlemen, two points." The Dutch, however, lost the final 3–1 in extra time. During his career as coach, Happel worked for several clubs, including Sevilla , Club Brugge (winning the Belgian Championship title several times) and Hamburger SV (1981–1987, German champions in 1982 and 1983, German Cup winner 1987). In 1983, he won
620-416: The final 27,000 spectators saw Austria lose to Germany 30–27 in double overtime. The stadium was scheduled to host Taylor Swift 's Eras Tour for three shows from 8–10 August 2024. The shows were canceled out of caution on 7 August by its organiser after the revelation of a terror plot targeting the shows. UEFA Elite stadium A stadium must be rated as category four in order to host games in
651-565: The grandstands in the corridors of Section B. On 30 September, 1,038 prisoners were deported to the Buchenwald concentration camp . The next day, the stadium was back to being used as a football pitch. 44 men were released in early 1940, 26 were freed in 1945, the rest were murdered in the camps. In 1988, one of the surviving victims, Fritz Klein, was awarded compensation by the Austrian government equivalent to 62,50 euros for being detained in
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#1732772303568682-567: The playoffs of the qualifying stage for the UEFA Champions League , or any game in the main competition. Category four is also required to host any game in the main competition of the UEFA Europa League , UEFA Europa Conference League , UEFA Nations League or the UEFA European Championship final tournament. UEFA does not publish lists of stadiums fulfilling the criteria for any of the categories defined in
713-479: The stadium had a capacity of approximately 60,000 people. During the Nazi era, following Anschluss (1938–1945), the stadium was used as a military barracks and staging area and as a temporary prison for the deportation of Jewish citizens. Between 11 and 13 September 1939, after the attack on Poland, over a thousand Polish-born Viennese Jews were detained on the orders of Reinhard Heydrich . They were imprisoned beneath
744-517: The stadium until the track was demolished. Major events included the final of the 1963 Speedway World Team Cup . On 16 July 2011, the American Football World Championship final took place where USA defeated rivals Canada with a score of 50–7 in front of 20,000 spectators. On 6 and 7 June 2014, the three games of the final stage of the 13th European Championship of American Football took place in this stadium. In
775-494: The stadium's capacity to 53,000 seats. Leading up to the tournament, it was fitted with a heated pitch in the summer of 2005. In May 2008, a connection to the Vienna U-Bahn was established, easing access from all over the city. The cost of the rebuilding was € 39,600,000. The following games were played at the stadium during the UEFA Euro 2008: The Ernst Happel Stadium is the largest football stadium in Austria . It
806-404: The stadium. The stadium is rated one of UEFA 's Five Star Stadiums permitting it to host the UEFA Champions League final. The seating capacity was temporarily expanded to 53,008 for the UEFA Euro 2008 championship , with the final played in the stadium. The stadium also hosted 3 group games, 2 quarter-final matches, a semi-final and final. The attendance record of 92,706 for the match against
837-521: The stadium. In 2003 a memorial plaque, commemorating these events, was unveiled in the VIP area by a private initiative. In 1944, the stadium was severely damaged during a bomb attack on the Wehrmarcht Staff offices. After the war and the reconstruction of the stadium, it was again sporting its original use. In 1956, the stadium's capacity was expanded to 92,708 people by Theodor Schull, but in 1965
868-415: Was an Austrian football player and manager . Happel is regarded as one of the greatest managers of all time, winning both league and domestic cup titles in the Netherlands, Belgium, West Germany, and Austria. Happel won the European Cup twice, in 1970 with Feyenoord and 1983 with Hamburger SV , managed Club Brugge to a European Cup runner-up finish in 1978 , and won a runners-up medal with
899-585: Was arrested by the Americans in 1945. He escaped by jumping out of the train wagon in Munich and took several months to make his way back to Vienna . He smuggled himself into the Soviet occupation zone with the excuse that he had seen from afar his house was still standing and that he'd started playing at Rapid Vienna again. Ernst Happel never married. He was described by one of his ex-players Birger Jensen as
930-592: Was constructed in 23 months, from 1929 to 1931. It was built according to a design by the Tübingen architect Otto Ernst Schweizer and the second Workers' Olympiad. Schweizer also designed the adjacent Stadionbad (with 400,000 sq m, Europe's largest swimming pool). According to its location in Vienna's Prater, it was initially named Prater Stadium. It was a modern stadium at the time, particularly in Europe, because of its short discharge time of only 7 to 8 minutes. Initially
961-464: Was then an uncovered stadium. This along with the fact no Polish supporters were allowed to travel to the match restricted the attendance, which is variously reported at between 7,900 and 15,000 spectators. In the 1980s, the stands were covered and fully equipped with seats. At its reopening a friendly match against archrival Germany was organised. Austria won the match 4–1. After the death of former Austrian top player and coach Ernst Happel (1925–1992),