Ullevi

About

Ullevi, sometimes known as Nya Ullevi (Swedish: [(ˈnŷːa) ˈɵ̂lːɛˌviː], New Ullevi), is a multi-purpose stadium in Gothenburg, Sweden. It was built for the 1958 FIFA World Cup, but since then has also hosted the World Allround Speed Skating Championships six times; the 1995 World Championships in Athletics and the 2006 European Athletics Championships; the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup finals in 1983 and 1990; the UEFA Euro 1992 final, the UEFA Cup final in 2004; and annually hosted the opening ceremony of the Gothia Cup, the world's largest football tournament in terms of the number of participants. IFK Göteborg has also played two UEFA Cup finals at the stadium, in 1982 and 1987, but then as "home game" in a home and away final. The stadium has hosted several events, including football, ice hockey, boxing, racing, athletics and concerts. The stadium is one of the biggest in the Nordic countries, with a seating capacity of 43,000 and a total capacity of 75,000 for concerts.

The ground opened for the 1958 FIFA World Cup held across Sweden. It hosted four matches in Group D, including a play-off. It also held a quarter-final, a semi-final and the third-place match. The stadium's record attendance for football is 52,194, set on 3 June 1959 when Örgryte IS played against IFK Göteborg. The stadium hosted the 1983 European Cup Winners' Cup Final, which saw Scotland's Aberdeen defeat Spanish giants Real Madrid 2–1 after extra time. It also hosted the first leg of the 1987 UEFA Cup Final between IFK Göteborg and Dundee United of Scotland. The hosts won the game 1-0 thanks to a goal from Stefan Pettersson. The Swedish side would go on to lift the trophy for the second time in their history after a 1–1 draw at Tannadice Park, Dundee in the second leg.

It was also the venue for the first game between National Football League teams to be played on the European continent, organised by Swedish motor company Volvo. In a pre-season game on 14 August 1988, the Minnesota Vikings won 28–21 against the Chicago Bears. The 1990 European Cup Winners' Cup Final was also held at the stadium. It saw Sampdoria of Italy defeat Anderlecht of Belgium 2-0 after extra-time.

Ullevi held three Group B matches at UEFA Euro 1992 as well as a semi-final, and the final itself on 26 June in which Denmark won the trophy against Germany. The 2004 UEFA Cup Final was held at the stadium on 19 May of that year. Valencia of Spain defeated Marseille of France, 2–0. The annual Världsungdomsspelen (translation: World Youth Games) track and field competition is held at the stadium and the mass event has around 3000 athletes competing each year.

Ullevi nearly collapsed during a Bruce Springsteen concert on 8 June 1985 due to the rhythmic movement of tens of thousands of people in the audience and the clay soil on which the stadium is built. The concert also caused nearly £3 million in damages, while David Bowie 's Glass Spider Tour in June 1987 was relocated from Ullevi to Eriksberg because of fears about the safety of the structure. Since then, the concrete pillars supporting the stadium have been extended down to the bedrock. Springsteen has performed at the stadium on subsequent tours in 2003, 2008, 2012, 2016, and 2023.

Pink Floyd performed at Ullevi on 27 August 1994 as part of their The Division Bell Tour. [ citation needed ] Michael Jackson came to Ullevi on 16 August 1997, as part of his HIStory World Tour, performing for a crowd of 50,000 people. [ citation needed ] Elton John hosted a sell-out concert in 1998. [ citation needed ] It was part of the Face-To-Face Tour with Billy Joel, although Joel was unable to perform because of illness. John played for over three hours. [ citation needed ] Tina Turner came to Ullevi on 0 August 1996, as part of her Wildest Dreams Tour and 5 August 2000, as part of her Twenty Four Seven Tour with a sold-out crowd of 55,180. [ citation needed ]

The "big four" of thrash metal ( Slayer, Anthrax, Megadeth and Metallica ) played in the stadium on 3 July 2011. [ citation needed ] U2 have performed at the stadium four times: the first occasion was on 2 August 1997 during their PopMart Tour, in front of a crowd of 46,658 people. The second was on 29 July 2005 during their Vertigo Tour, in front of a sold-out crowd of 58,478 people. The third and the fourth were on 31 July and 1 August 2009 during their U2 360° Tour, in front of a total sold-out crowd of 119,297 people. The performance of " The Unforgettable Fire " from the first 2009 show was recorded for the group's live album U22. [ citation needed ]

Foo Fighters performed at the venue on 12 June 2015 on the Sonic Highways World Tour. However, Dave Grohl fell off stage during the second song of the concert, breaking his leg. He was treated in the stadium before returning to the stage to continue the rest of the concert sitting down in a chair while a medic applied a cast. Despite Grohl's injuries, the band was able to complete the concert.

Iron Maiden performed at the stadium five times. The first was on 9 July 2005 during their Eddie Rips Up the World Tour. The second time was on 26 July 2008 during their Somewhere Back in Time World Tour. The third time was on 1 July 2011 during The Final Frontier World Tour. The fourth time was on 17 June 2016 during The Book of Souls World Tour. The fifth time was on 22 July 2022 as a part of Legacy of the Beast Tour before more than 60,000 fans.

The Swedish artist Håkan Hellström has in 2014, 2016 and 2022 broken the attendance record thanks to a small stage which gave room for more spectators.

The Gothenburg-raised artist Laleh became the first Swedish female to headline Ullevi, with a concert held on her 40th birthday on 10 June 2022. When the tickets were released, 15,000 were sold in the first hour. The concert, which featured orchestration from the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra, was broadcast on SVT1 on 2 January 2023 and made available on SVT Play on 28 December 2022. An accompanying documentary directed by Sara Aren going behind the scenes of the concert preparations was also broadcast on SVT2 on 30 December 2022 under the title Laleh – välkommen hem. She played a second concert at Ullevi on 26 August 2023 as part of a national summer tour.

In March 2007, Ullevi installed what whas then one of Sweden's largest solar power plants, consisting of 600m² of photovoltaic panels situated on the roof of the luxury boxes section. The peak power is 86.4 kW and the yield is supposed to cover the total power used by the artificial lighting for events, with a surplus.

The ground opened for the 1958 FIFA World Cup held across Sweden. It hosted four matches in Group D, including a play-off. It also held a quarter-final, a semi-final and the third-place match. The stadium's record attendance for football is 52,194, set on 3 June 1959 when Örgryte IS played against IFK Göteborg. The stadium hosted the 1983 European Cup Winners' Cup Final, which saw Scotland's Aberdeen defeat Spanish giants Real Madrid 2–1 after extra time. It also hosted the first leg of the 1987 UEFA Cup Final between IFK Göteborg and Dundee United of Scotland. The hosts won the game 1-0 thanks to a goal from Stefan Pettersson. The Swedish side would go on to lift the trophy for the second time in their history after a 1–1 draw at Tannadice Park, Dundee in the second leg.

It was also the venue for the first game between National Football League teams to be played on the European continent, organised by Swedish motor company Volvo. In a pre-season game on 14 August 1988, the Minnesota Vikings won 28–21 against the Chicago Bears. The 1990 European Cup Winners' Cup Final was also held at the stadium. It saw Sampdoria of Italy defeat Anderlecht of Belgium 2-0 after extra-time.

Ullevi held three Group B matches at UEFA Euro 1992 as well as a semi-final, and the final itself on 26 June in which Denmark won the trophy against Germany. The 2004 UEFA Cup Final was held at the stadium on 19 May of that year. Valencia of Spain defeated Marseille of France, 2–0. The annual Världsungdomsspelen (translation: World Youth Games) track and field competition is held at the stadium and the mass event has around 3000 athletes competing each year.

Ullevi nearly collapsed during a Bruce Springsteen concert on 8 June 1985 due to the rhythmic movement of tens of thousands of people in the audience and the clay soil on which the stadium is built. The concert also caused nearly £3 million in damages, while David Bowie 's Glass Spider Tour in June 1987 was relocated from Ullevi to Eriksberg because of fears about the safety of the structure. Since then, the concrete pillars supporting the stadium have been extended down to the bedrock. Springsteen has performed at the stadium on subsequent tours in 2003, 2008, 2012, 2016, and 2023.

Pink Floyd performed at Ullevi on 27 August 1994 as part of their The Division Bell Tour. [ citation needed ] Michael Jackson came to Ullevi on 16 August 1997, as part of his HIStory World Tour, performing for a crowd of 50,000 people. [ citation needed ] Elton John hosted a sell-out concert in 1998. [ citation needed ] It was part of the Face-To-Face Tour with Billy Joel, although Joel was unable to perform because of illness. John played for over three hours. [ citation needed ] Tina Turner came to Ullevi on 0 August 1996, as part of her Wildest Dreams Tour and 5 August 2000, as part of her Twenty Four Seven Tour with a sold-out crowd of 55,180. [ citation needed ]

The "big four" of thrash metal ( Slayer, Anthrax, Megadeth and Metallica ) played in the stadium on 3 July 2011. [ citation needed ] U2 have performed at the stadium four times: the first occasion was on 2 August 1997 during their PopMart Tour, in front of a crowd of 46,658 people. The second was on 29 July 2005 during their Vertigo Tour, in front of a sold-out crowd of 58,478 people. The third and the fourth were on 31 July and 1 August 2009 during their U2 360° Tour, in front of a total sold-out crowd of 119,297 people. The performance of " The Unforgettable Fire " from the first 2009 show was recorded for the group's live album U22. [ citation needed ]

Foo Fighters performed at the venue on 12 June 2015 on the Sonic Highways World Tour. However, Dave Grohl fell off stage during the second song of the concert, breaking his leg. He was treated in the stadium before returning to the stage to continue the rest of the concert sitting down in a chair while a medic applied a cast. Despite Grohl's injuries, the band was able to complete the concert.

Iron Maiden performed at the stadium five times. The first was on 9 July 2005 during their Eddie Rips Up the World Tour. The second time was on 26 July 2008 during their Somewhere Back in Time World Tour. The third time was on 1 July 2011 during The Final Frontier World Tour. The fourth time was on 17 June 2016 during The Book of Souls World Tour. The fifth time was on 22 July 2022 as a part of Legacy of the Beast Tour before more than 60,000 fans.