Camp Nou
Aerial view of Camp Nou
Full name	L'Estadi Camp Nou
Former names	Estadio del FC Barcelona (1957–2000)
Location	Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain
Coordinates	41°22′51.20″N 2°7′22.19″E / 41.380889°N 2.1228306°E / 41.380889; 2.1228306 (Camp Nou)
Broke ground	28 March 1954
Built	1954–1957
Opened	24 September 1957[1]
Renovated	1994, 2008
Expanded	1982
Owner	FC Barcelona
Operator	FC Barcelona
Surface	Grass
Scoreboard	Yes
Architect	Francesc Mitjans Josep Soteras Lorenzo García-Barbón
Capacity	98,787[2] (96,636 in Champions League)[1]
Field dimensions	105 × 68 m (115 × 74 yd)[1]
Tenants
FC Barcelona (1957–present)

Camp Nou (Catalan pronunciation: [kamˈnɔw], New Field) is a football stadium in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain which has been the home of Futbol Club Barcelona since 1957.

The Camp Nou seats 98,787,^[3] reduced to 96,336 in matches organised by UEFA,^[4] making it the largest stadium in Europe and the 11th largest in the world in terms of capacity. It has hosted numerous international matches at a senior level, including two UEFA Champions League finals and the football competition at the 1992 Summer Olympics.

History[link]

Construction[link]

The construction of Camp Nou started on 28 March 1954 as Barcelona's previous stadium, Camp de Les Corts, had no room for expansion. Although originally planned to be called Estadi del FC Barcelona, the more popular name Camp Nou was used. The June 1950 signing of László Kubala, regarded as one of Barcelona's greatest players, provided further impetus to the construction of a larger stadium.^[5][6][7]

Construction of Camp Nou began on 28 March 1954 before a crowd of 60,000 Barça fans. The civil governor of Barcelona, Felipe Acedo Colunga, presided at the laying in place of the first stone, with a blessing from the Archbishop of Barcelona, Gregorio Modrego. Construction took three years, going 336% over budget for a final cost of 288 million pesetas.^[7] The stadium was officially opened on 24 September 1957. Handel's Messiah was performed at the opening of the stadium.

The architects were a team made up of Francesc Mitjans, Josep Soteras, and Lorenzo García-Barbón.

Early years[link]

In May 1972, Camp Nou hosted its first European Cup Winners' Cup final between Rangers and Dynamo Moscow. Rangers won the match with a score of 3–2. The 1970s marked a turning point for Barcelona with the signing of a new player, Johan Cruyff, in 1973. Electronic scoreboards were installed in the stadium two years later.

One of the stands displaying Barcelona's motto, Més que un club, meaning "More than (just) a club".

The stadium underwent an expansion in 1980, in anticipation of the 1982 FIFA World Cup, which added boxes, VIP lounges, a new press area, new markers and the enlargement of the third tier by 22,150 seats for a total capacity of 115,000 spectators. The club raised funds for the remodeling by inscribing thousands of supporters’ names on bricks in return for a small set donation. This later became a topic of controversy when the news media in Madrid reported that the name of long-time Real Madrid chairman and Franco supporter, Santiago Bernabéu, had been commemorated in this way.^[8][9][10] The first important game played was the final of the Winners’ Cup featuring Barcelona against Standard Liège on 12 May 1982. Barcelona won the game 2–1 in front of an audience of 80,000.