Mestalla Stadium

Mestalla Stadium (Spanish: Estadio de Mestalla [esˈtaðjo ðe mesˈtaʎa], Valencian: Estadi de Mestalla [esˈtaði ðe mesˈtaʎa]) is a football stadium in Valencia, Spain. The stadium is the home of Valencia Club de Futbol and has a capacity of 48,600 seats, making it the 8th-largest stadium in Spain, and the largest in the Valencian Community. The North Stand of the stadium is known for its very steep section.

History

The Estadio Mestalla was inaugurated with a friendly match on 20 May 1923 between Valencia CF and Levante UD. The new stadium had a capacity of 17,000 spectators, which was increased to 25,000 four years later. During the Civil War, the Mestalla was used as a concentration camp and storage warehouse. It would only keep its structure, since the rest was an empty plot of land with no terraces and a grandstand damaged during the war.

During the 1950s, the Mestalla was renovated, resulting in a stadium with a seating capacity of 60,000 spectators. It was severely damaged by the flood of October 1957 when the Turia River broke its banks.

This page also has a version in other languages :  Месталья Стадион (russian)