# Baku Olympic Stadium

Baku Olympic Stadium (Azerbaijani: Bakı Olimpiya Stadionu) is a stadium, designed and constructed to meet the international standards for stadiums set by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA), the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA) and the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF). Having seating capacity for 69,870 people, it is the largest stadium in Azerbaijan. Despite the name, it has never hosted and is not scheduled to host any competition of the Olympic Games.
Construction of the 205,000-square-meter stadium on a 500,000-square-meter site was completed in February 2015. The six-storey, 60 meter structure near Boyukshor Lake, Baku, Azerbaijan, opened on 6 March 2015. The main tenant of the stadium is Azerbaijan's national football team, who moved from their previous home at the Tofiq Bahramov Republican Stadium. In June 2015, the stadium served as the main venue for the European Games, hosting the opening and closing ceremonies, and the athletic games. The venue hosted opening match of UEFA European Under-17 Championship in 2016, final match of 2018–19 UEFA Europa League, three group games and a quarterfinal at the UEFA Euro 2020 and Baku concert of Mercury World Tour. A green area is being developed around the stadium, which is accessible via public transport.

## History
### The foundation ceremony

The foundation of the Baku Olympic Stadium was laid on 6 June 2011 in a ceremony to mark the 100th anniversary of Azerbaijani football.
The ceremony was attended by the President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev and his spouse Mehriban Aliyeva, FIFA president Sepp Blatter, UEFA president Michel Platini, prominent members of the global football community, heads of various federations, football veterans and other guests. Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev was informed about the future plans for the construction of the stadium. Speaking at the ceremony, Blatter said:
    "This is really beautiful, grand building, and more than 60 thousand football fans coming to the stadium will be able to enjoy football."
Aliyev then placed a symbolic metal capsule inside a football. His son Heydar, scoring a goal in a symbolic gate, dropped the ball into the foundation. Presidents Aliyev with Blatter and Platini, operated a switch starting the concrete pour, and signed a football, which was preserved in memory of the ceremony.

### Construction

Despite the groundbreaking ceremony taking place in 2011, the construction of the stadium started only in November 2012 with the excavation and backfilling of the stadium area.
The stadium was completed on 28 February 2015, and the opening took place on 6 March 2015. President Aliyev participated in the opening ceremony.
The total layout of the stadium is 617,000m² and has a capacity for 68,700 people. It is six stories tall.
Baku was ready to host the first European Games in 2015.
The project was funded by the SOCAR. A Turkish company Tekfen Construction and Installation Co.,Inc, were given a design & build contract.
Along with the stadium, there were built a number of hotels, a parking venue (3,617 car places), and green space (81,574 square meters).

## Events

The stadium hosted athletics and ceremonies during 2015 European Games.
In 2016, opening match of UEFA European Under-17 Championship also took place here
Since 2017 Baku Olympic Stadium becomes one of the home stadium for Qarabag's. Thus, Qarabağ FK played here Champions League group stage matches in the 2017–18 UEFA Champions League, group stage matches of 2018–19 UEFA Europa League, first group stage match of 2021–22 UEFA Europa Conference League against FC Basel.
The stadium hosted the 2019 UEFA Europa League Final on 29 May 2019.
2 September 2023, Imagine Dragons was on the stage in Baku for the first time. The concert took place in the frame of Mercury World Tour.

### UEFA Euro 2020

The stadium hosted three group stage matches and one quarter-final's match at the UEFA Euro 2020, which was postponed to 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Europe.
| Date | Team #1 | Result | Team #2 | Round | Attendance |
| 12 June 2021 | Wales | 1–1 | Switzerland | Group A | 8,782 |
| 16 June 2021 | Turkey | 0–2 | Wales | Group A | 19,762 |
| 20 June 2021 | Switzerland | 3–1 | Turkey | Group A | 17,138 |
| 3 July 2021 | Czech Republic | 1–2 | Denmark | Quarter-finals | 16,306 |

### Notable matches

| Date | | Result | | Competition | Attendance |
| 10 October 2015 | Azerbaijan | 1–3 | Italy | UEFA Euro 2016 qualifying | 48,000 |
| 8 October 2016 | Azerbaijan | 1–0 | Norway | 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification | 35,000 |
| 27 September 2017 | Qarabağ | 1–2 | Roma | UEFA Champions League group stage | 67,200 |
| 18 October 2017 | Qarabağ | 0–0 | Atlético Madrid | UEFA Champions League group stage | 47,923 |
| 22 November 2017 | Qarabağ | 0–4 | Chelsea | UEFA Champions League group stage | 67,100 |
| 4 October 2018 | Qarabağ | 0–3 | Arsenal | UEFA Europa League group stage | 63,412 |
| 29 May 2019 | Chelsea | 4–1 | Arsenal | UEFA Europa League Final | 51,370 |