AEL FC Arena |
All
photographs featured on this page are presented in smaller size.
You may enlarge any of them and see it in full size by simply clicking on it. |
Capacity: 16,118 (seated) |
Location:
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The stadium is located in the city of Larissa, in central Greece.
Larissa, which does not have an airport (you may get there by train),
is 150 km south of Thessaloniki and 350 km north of Athens. The stadium
is in the southern part of Larissa, in a district called Neapolis.
To get there from the city centre, follow roadsigns
to "Karditsa". The road leading to this nearby town passes
by the stadium. On the other hand, if you are driving into Larissa
from the motorway, use exit "Larissa 1" (northbound)
or "Larissa 4" (southbound) and then follow roadsigns to
"Karditsa, Trikala". You will be driving along Larissa South
Peripheral Road and you will see the stadium on your left, 8 km after
leaving the motorway.
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Built in: 2010 |
Record attendance: 9,829 (A.E.Larissa FC vs PAOK FC - on 4/12/2010) |
Home of: A.E.Larissa FC have temporarily returned to Alkazar Stadium since 2013 |
More
data: AEL FC Arena replaced the historic Alkazar
Stadium as the home of A.E.Larissa FC. Its construction was first
proposed in 2005, with original
plans calling for an impressive arena, fully covered with a retractable
roof. Final
plans, unveiled in 2006, were very different though, presenting
an "english-type" football ground with four separate stands
and open corners.
All construction studies were completed in 2007. Following a year of delays, mostly having to do with the ownership transfer of the land plot from the Municipality of Larissa to the Greek State, the consession contracts between the State and the club were signed in late 2008. Works on the site commenced in September 2009 and lasted 15 months. The stadium was ready in November 2010, at a total cost of € 42,000,000. |
There
are 23 entrance gates leading to the 4 stands, which are all covered
by roof. Behind the west stand is the VIP building. It hosts a restaurant,
the club offices and the 38 VIP boxes, which provide access to the
specially designated VIP tier. The stadium also features two video-scoreboards.
If you want to get inside AEL FC Arena, click on the next icon -> |
The masterplan for the new stadium placed it in the centre of a leisure
complex, next to the existing Larissa
Neapolis Arena. The complex would include commercial areas of
16,000 sq m, an open-air theatre, 2 cinemas, 12 tennis courts, and
a sports hostel. To this day, however, the only things that have been
constructed apart from the football stadium are the tennis courts,
along with the planned open-air car park, which has space for 1,104
vehicles.
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Following
below are more photographs of the new stadium.
You may click on any of the thumbnails to see the relevant picture in full size. |
The
south stand, which houses AEL ultras
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The
crest of AEL in the south-east corner
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The
tier that is accessible only to VIPs
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The
football pitch, as seen from one of the VIP boxes
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The
interior of one of the VIP boxes
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Open-air
seating for restaurant patrons during off-season
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Vissini
Store sells official club merchandise
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The
stadium seen from Larissa South Peripheral Road
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The whole land plot where AEL FC Arena stands is owned by the Greek State. The use of the stadium was granted for 49 years (starting 2009) to A.E.Larissa amateur club. |