Stade de France

|- | colspan=" 2" style=" text-align: left; padding: 0.5em; " bgcolor=" white" | |- | Inauguration | bgcolor=#EEEEEE| January 28th 1998 |- | Cost construction | bgcolor=#EEEEEE|745 million EURO |- | Owner | bgcolor=#EEEEEE| Consortium Stade de France |- | Capacity | bgcolor=#EEEEEE| 80.000 places |- | Record | bgcolor=#EEEEEE| 80.430 places -
- |- | Dimensions | bgcolor=#EEEEEE| 105 X 70 m |- | Colors of the Seats | bgcolor=#EEEEEE| gray |- | Platforms: | bgcolor=#EEEEEE| |- | Official | bgcolor=#EEEEEE| West |- | Side | bgcolor=#EEEEEE| Is |- | Popular south | bgcolor=#EEEEEE| South |- | Popular north | bgcolor=#EEEEEE| North |- | Places VIP | bgcolor=#EEEEEE| 6.000 places |- | Address | bgcolor=#EEEEEE| Zac of Cornillon Nord
93200 Saint-Denis |}

The Stade de France is the greatest French stage with 80.000 places in configuration football/Rugby. It was inaugurated the January 28th 1998 at the time of the football game France - Spain. Built for the needs for the World cup of Football in France, it was also conceived to accommodate various sports events (football, Rugby, athletics, automobile races), in the concerts, the large spectacles and animations (dream of snow and the beach at the stage). This stage is in the district of the Plaine Saint-Denis at Saint-Denis (Seine-Saint-Denis) at the north of Paris.

It bore temporarily the name of Stade de France - Paris 2012 (because it would have been the Olympic stadium of Paris 2012) until the designation of London for the Olympic Games of summer of 2012.

Its capacity evolves/moves between 70.000 (athletics) and 80.000 places (football, Rugby, concerts and spectacles) thanks to retractable low platforms.

Since 1998, the finales of the Coupe de France and Cut of the Football league, the matches of the Tournament of the six nations and the finale of the championship of France of Rugby proceed there. It also accommodated the Championnats of the world of athletics in 2003 and the final of the Ligue of the Champions of football in 2000 and 2006. In 2006, it beat the world records of multitude for a match of championship of Rugby in regular season with 79.604 spectators for the meeting French Stade - Biarritz. The best multitude of the stage was reached on Saturday, June 2, 2007 for the football game of the eliminating heats of the euro 2008 France - Ukraine with 80.051 spectators.

On July 9th and 10th 2005, the concerts of the group U2 gathered 160.349 spectators. July 28th, 2006, the Rolling Stones were acclaimed by 62.761 people, and more recently, the British group The Police played its tubes in front of 157.906 spectators September 29th and 30th 2007. The stage can accommodate as well concerts rock'n'roll (ex: Paul McCartney, Bruce Springsteen…) that large spectacles (ex: the Ben-Hur of Robert Hossein).

History

The July 2nd 1992 the International federation of football association (FIFA) chooses the France to organize the Football world cup of 1998. N the other hand, the France is committed building a stage of a capacity of 80.000 places, sitting and covered. There is more than 70 years that the State had not built a Stage (Olympic stadium Yves-of-Manor with Colombes for the Olympic Games of summer of 1924), letting the cities only operate in the field.

Only the State could lead an investment of this scale. The Concession is the best answer to the importance of the cost. The principle, new for the construction of an sports equipment, is the following: the dealer takes responsibility for his the construction and the exploitation of the stage, and obtains in exchange of the State a 30 years concession and a financial participation with his investment. This principle, under consideration as of 1988, had important consequences on the choice of the site (which was to be well served and close to Paris) and on the versatility of the program (high level competitions in football, Rugby and athletics, spectacles and demonstrations of great scale). After the choice of the manufacturers and the signature of the permit building (the April 30th 1995), there remained nothing any more but 31 months to build the Stage.

The building site begins the May 2nd 1995 but the installation of the first stone takes place the September 6th 1995. The construction of the Stade de France called at the same time upon techniques of public works (structures of the steps, stay and anchoring of the roof) and of building (interior buildings, livable spaces under the steps, frontages glazed). One of the characteristics of this building site was its speed of execution. 40.000 plans were necessary. The 800.000 m ² of earthwork were carried out in 5 months and the 180.000 m ³ of concrete run in one year. Technical installations, the installation of the roof, the installation of the mobile platform of 25.000 places were also carried out in one year.

Named a long time “Great Stage”, the enclosure is baptized “Stade de France” the December 4th 1995 by a jury joined together especially to find a name to him: " The stage until whole France waited since so a long time… will quite simply call Stade of France." A contest of ideas had been launched by the Ministry for the Sports, and the name of Michel Platini was generally quoted. The jury drew aside however the names of people and chose “Stade de France”.

The stage was inaugurated the January 28th 1998 at the time of the football game France - Spain.

The cost

Total costs of realization of the Stade de France east of 745 million € HT including 290 million € HT of work divided into:
  • 500 € million of carcass work heavy castings;
  • 45 € million of roof;
  • 200 € million of secondary trades (equipment, lighting, ventilation, wiring for sound, preparing, seats, lawn, etc).

Means of access

Although located at the crossroads of the highways A1 and A86, it is very disadvised going there by car, except when one has a reserved carpark.

Indeed, the stage was built voluntarily with a number of bays parking very reduced, and it more than is advised to go there in public transport:

  • the RER B, by the station the Plain - Stade de France
  • the RER D, by the station of Stade de France - Saint-Denis
  • Line 13, by the station Saint-Denis - Door of Paris
  • 253, by the station Delaunay-Rimet
The days of great matches, of the river shuttles are ensured by the Canal Saint-Denis

Structure and town and country planning

This construction aimed also to make known and to develop the zone of the Plaine Saint-Denis, an old industrial waste land in the course of restoration: new residential districts, new tertiary sector. The Stade de France makes it possible to give a gravitational face to the address of the companies. This zone profits from the good service road of the stage: 2 stations the RER (lines B and D), a station of subway, correspondences of bus with north, the west and the center of Paris, a highway crossroads with accesses to the A1 and the A86.

Conceived with the assistance of a software of simulation of crowd, the Stade de France practically allows an evacuation without mob compared with that of stages however smaller than him.

The team of the architects having conceived it is made up of Michel Macary, Aymeric Zublena, Michel Régembal and Claude Costantini (association of agencies SCAU and C.R. Architecture). Management is entrusted by it since the beginning with a consortium including/understanding the groups having taken part has its construction: Bouygues, engine, a subsidiary company of Vinci and STF.

The roof

True floating aureole of 42 meters above the lawn, the roof is one of the most remarkable aspects of the Stade de France. Its shape in ellipse symbolizes the universality of the sport. Its surface (6 hectares) and its weight (13 000 tons) constitutes a technical prowess. It protects the 80.000 spectators without covering the adventure playground. All the equipment of lighting and wiring for sound (550 projectors and 36 blocks of 5 speakers) is placed inside not to obstruct the visibility. The canopy tinted in the center attenuates contrasts and distributes the natural light. It filters the red and infra-red radiations but passes the blue ones and the greens necessary to the health of the grass.

Interior of the Stage

Cloakrooms

The Stade de France offers to the sportsmen the best conditions of reception ever met in France. All the installations, which are reserved to them, located at the level of the lawn, the west, and are directly accessible by the buses from the players. They include/understand buildings of reception and control, two cloakrooms of 1.200 m ² each one (foot and Rugby), a cloakroom of athletics of 400 m ², two cloakrooms of referees, two rooms of call, two rooms of heating, offices for the delegates, of the buildings for the jury, an infirmary, control rooms antidopage. Spaces are also especially conceived for the artists: cabins and living rooms, a room of repetition for the musicians, choruses, observers, a room of storage for the costumes, a space relaxation, buildings for the decorations and instruments…

Platforms

The Stade de France is the greatest flexible stage of the world. It is articulated around three platforms.

The low platform is a mobile platform of 25.000 places. One reaches it by level 1. It can move back of 15 meters to let appear the totality of the track of athletics and the saltires. It preserves 22.000 places then. Displacement lasts 80 hours, mobilizes 40 people 20:00 /24h, and is carried out by ten elements distinct from 700 tons each one.

The access to the intermediate platform is done thanks to 22 footbridges and makes it possible to be found on level 3 where concentrate the restaurants, spaces of animation, the shops and the central station of safety.

18 monumental staircases lead the spectators to the higher platform which is at level 6.

The evacuation of the 80.000 spectators on the square is carried out in less than 15 minutes.

The lawn

Located at 11 meters below the square, the playing field has a surface of 9.000 m ² for a turfed surface of 11.000 m ². Nearly a billion seeds were sown to generate the first lawn, in 1997. Today, the lawn is delivered in rollers of 1,20 m X 8 Mr. the change of the lawn asks for 3 days of preparation and 5 days of installation. The change is carried out several times per annum, according to the programming of the Stage. It in addition was voluntarily built on a ground curvature for a better drainage.

Giant screens

Within the framework of its policy of renewal of its infrastructures, the Stade de France obtained 2 new giant screens in September 2006. Of a surface of 196 m ² each one, these screens are them larger installed in a stage in Europe . The new screens have a surface upper of 58% than the old giant screens installed at the Stade de France in 1998. True concentrates of technology, the new giant screens are made up each one of: 4423680 LED (Electroluminescent diode) autonomous for one returned of the images more fluid, faster, and especially more luminous! Whatever its position in the Stage, each spectator will have a perfect vision of the images… The image is of a quality and an exceptional clearness, of a level of realism ever reached in a sporting enclosure .

Events

Memorable matches

  • January 28th, 1998: -: 1-0
    • Friendly match of inauguration of the Stade de France
      • : 78836 spectators

  • July 12th, 1998: -: 3-0

    • Final of the World cup 1998
      • : 75000 spectators

  • May 24th, 2000: -: 3-0

    • Final of the League of the Champions 1999-2000
      • : 70000 spectators

  • November 2nd, 2005: -: 1-0

    • 4th day of the hen phase League of the Champions 2005-2006
      • : 66470 spectators: record for a home match of a French club out of cut of Europe (beaten then by LOSC-Benfica)

  • May 17th, 2006: -: 2-1

    • Final of the League of the Champions 2005-2006
      • : 77500 spectators

  • June 2nd, 2007: -: 2-0

    • Match cash for the qualifications for the Euro 2008
      • : 80051 spectators

  • October 20th, 2007: -: 15-6

    • Final of the World cup of Rugby to XV 2007
      • : 80430 spectators: record of multitude for a match of Rugby at the Stade de France

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