The stadium was previously known as theCity Park Stadium (Macedonian:Cтадион Градски парк; Stadion Gradski Park) until 2009 andPhilip II National Arena (Macedonian:Национална арена "Филип Втори") until 2019. By an executive decision ofthe government ofNorth Macedonia adopted on 9 April 2019, the National Arena was renamed "National Arena Todor Proeski" in honour of the Macedonian pop iconTodor "Toše" Proeski and as result of thePrespa agreement's obligation tode-antiquization.[1][2][3][4][5] With the capacity of just over 33,000, the National Arena is the largest stadium in the country and one of the largest inSoutheastern Europe.[6]
The project for the City Park stadium was designed in 1975 by architects Dragan Krstev and Todorka Mavkova fromBetonConstruction Company. The South Stand started with construction in 1977. Construction of the South stand took 2 years and it was finished in 1978. The whole stadium was supposed to be finished the same year. Somehow the money from the budget were transferred to the federal budget and used for other projects. The reconstruction and expansion started after a long delay in project implementation in January 2008. The construction of a new north stand was finished in August 2009 and was put in use on 2 August 2009, theMacedonian national holiday "Ilinden". Ten days later, on 12 August, theNorth Macedonia national football team played a friendly match against then European ChampionsSpain, as part of the 100-year anniversary of football in the country.[8]
The reconstruction of the southern stand started in 2009, which was put into operation on 30 July of that year for the match betweenFK Rabotnički andLiverpool FC.[9]
On 8 September 2009, the construction of the new western and eastern stands started. The two new stands were open for the public on 24 April 2011.[5] By mid July 2012, the majority of the stadium was completed with the reconstruction of the new pitch and athletic track. On 25 July 2012,FK Vardar playedFC BATE Borisov in the second qualifying round of theUEFA Champions League to re-open the stadium.[10][11] On 8 September 2012, the Independence Day of Macedonia, a celebration was held when almost 50,000 visitors attended the event (in the stands and on the field).[5] This event set the record of attendance for the stadium.[5]
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Since 2008, the stadium has seen investment of about two billiondenari, or €32 million. The second phase, which got underway in November 2011, saw the reconstruction of the pitch and athletic track. The athletic track around the pitch, from the original 6 was extended to 8 running tracks and it usesTartan track surface. Total cost for this phase is €3.5 million.[12] The stadium was finished in 2013 with the completion of a new illuminated outer facade. The total construction cost for all actions related to the stadium in the period 2008–2013 reached over €60 million.[13]
^Dymitrow, M. (2020). Cultural Atavism in the Face of an Environmental Disaster: Skopje 2014 in the limelight. In: Mihaylov, V. (eds) Spatial Conflicts and Divisions in Post-socialist Cities. The Urban Book Series. Springer, Cham.https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-61765-3_8
^However, the Prespa agreement not only stipulates a new name for Macedonia, but Article 8 also requires that Macedonia ‘review the status of the monuments, public buildings and infrastructures on its territory […] insofar as they refer in any way to ancient Hellenic history and civilization’ and effectively ban the Vergina flag from public usage. Article 8(2) demands a six months period in which the Second Party will re-examine the status of its monuments, public buildings and infrastructure on its territory to determine if they, in any way, call upon the ancient Hellenic history and civilization. The Second Party will then have to correct these objects to ensure respect for the Greek cultural heritage and history. For more see: Reef, Paul. "Macedonian Monument Culture Beyond ‘Skopje 2014’" Comparative Southeast European Studies, vol. 66, no. 4, 2018, pp. 451-480.https://doi.org/10.1515/soeu-2018-0037
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