Bangalore Football Stadium

Stadium on a matchday
Interactive map of Bangalore Football Stadium
Location	Magrath Road,Bengaluru,Karnataka
Coordinates	12°58′08″N77°36′42″E / 12.968866°N 77.611585°E /12.968866; 77.611585
Public transit	Purple atMG Road
Owner	Karnataka State Football Association
Capacity	15,000 to 40,000 (1969–2013)[2][3] 8,400 (2013–)[4]
Surface	Artificial turf
Construction
Broke ground	1967[1]
Opened	1970–1971[1]
Tenants
Bengaluru FC B Bengaluru United Sporting Bengaluru Karnataka football team Bangalore Football League Karnataka Women's League [5][6][7]

TheBangalore Football Stadium is afootball stadium inBengaluru,Karnataka.^[8] It has served as a venue in three editions of theI-League, then top-tier football league in the country. The stadium was the home ofBengaluru FC for one season, when they won the I-League trophy in their first attempt. Now the stadium is currently used bySC Bengaluru for I-League matches which also hostedI-League 2 andGroup D ofI-League 3 matches for them.

Construction of the stadium began in 1967.^[1] Initially the stadium was going to be based on the famedEstádio do Maracanã inBrazil which had a capacity of 250,000 back then. The idea was to design and construct the Bengaluru Football Stadium like that but with a final capacity of 90,000 instead.^[1] After the first stands were completed around 1970 and 1971 thenFIFA presidentJoão Havelange made the trip to Bengaluru to see the progress and start of the construction of the main stands.^[1] He was left happy with what he heard about the stadium and reportedly said he would bring South American teams to India to play in the stadium.^[1]

However, eventually, problems started to arise about the cost of constructing the stadium skyrocketed. Materials such as steel and cement were stolen and due to the rise of costs the state football federation, theKarnataka State Football Association (KSFA), were left without the needed funds to complete the stadium.^[1] Even though an enquiry was started, the results were never published due to corruption within the Bengaluru system.^[1]

In order to raise some funds a leasing agreement was made with a private builder for two corner areas for his own buildings. The lease was revealed to be an 88-year agreement for 1 crore a year being given to the KSFA.^[1] Despite the agreement, the delay in construction meant one of the stands had to be re-constructed whileslum dwellers moved into the area where the southern stand would be. This led to problems with fans and players who found it tough to retrieve the ball from the area once it landed there.^[1]

In 1996–97, in an effort to have theNational Games of India hosted in Bengaluru the high court ordered the slum area of the stadium cleared, which thus happened.^[1] On 5 December 2004, the stadium was the site of the death of Brazilian footballerCristiano Júnior during aFederation Cup match between hisDempo andMohun Bagan. He collided with the Bagan andIndia international goalkeeperSubrata Pal while scoring his second goal for Dempo before collapsing to the ground. He was announced dead on arrival at the hospital.^[9]

In 2006 theAFC Youth Championship was held at the stadium partially.^[10]

In 2010 theI-League 2nd Division was hosted by the Bangalore Football Stadium which saw local Bengaluru sideHAL Bangalore promoted to theI-League, the top-tier football league in the country.^[11][12] The first everI-League match at the stadium was held on 3 January 2011 in which HAL Bangalore took onSalgaocar. The match ended 1–0 for Salgaocar. After two seasons of being in the I-League the Bangalore Football Stadium was removed as a venue for the league when HAL Bangalore were relegated and thus not included in the2012–13 season.^[13]

However, on 28 May 2013 it was officially announced thatBengaluru FC would be formed in the city for the2013–14 season.^[14] Then on 20 July the stadium hosted a mega-event which officially launched the club and the stadium was officially announced as the home for the club for the upcoming season.^[15] The team then played their first ever match againstMohun Bagan at the stadium. Ending in a 1–1 draw, the encounter was made memorable by the crowd which was almost full to capacity.^[16]

The final I-League match to be played at the stadium was between Bengaluru FC andPune on 28 March 2014. The match ended 1–1 withAnthony D'Souza scoring the final goal at the stadium.^[17] Overall, the average home attendance for Bengaluru FC at the stadium was 7,500.^[18]

The stadium in 2023, hosted matches of prestigiousStafford Challenge Cup.^[19][20]

On 5 December 2013 it was officially announced byFIFA that India would be the hosts of the2017 FIFA U-17 World Cup, the country's first FIFA international competition.^[21] It was also announced thatBangalore would be among the choices for being a host city for the tournament.^[22] In March 2014 it was announced that at the end of the2013–14 I-League season the stadium would be demolished and then a new stadium would be built on that exact spot.^[22][23]

However, as of 2023 the stadium had not built, having been postponed to a 2027 opening.

• Sree Kanteerava Stadium
• New Bangalore Football Stadium

• Bangalore Football Stadium game day at buzzingbubs.com

• 1970 establishments in Mysore State
• Sports venues completed in 1970
• 20th-century architecture in India
• Football venues in India
• Sports venues in Bengaluru
• Football in Karnataka
• Bengaluru FC
• FC Bengaluru United
• Hindustan Aeronautics Limited SC

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