The Etihad Stadium, located in Manchester, England is also known as the City of Manchester Stadium. It became the 50th stadium to host an England international football.
It is the home ground of Manchester City Football Club with a domestic football capacity of 55,097, the fourth largest in the Premier League and eighth largest in the United Kingdom.
The stadium design has received much praise and many accolades, including an award from the Royal Institute of British Architects in 2004 for its innovative building design.
History
The construction of the stadium began in January 2000. The stadium was built by Laing Construction at a cost of £112 million and was designed and engineered by Arup Sport Associates. £77 million was provided by Sport England, while the remaining amount was funded by Manchester City Council.
The stadium initially provided a seating capacity of 38,000, and subsequently extended to 41,000 through the installation of additional temporary trackside seating along the east and south stands.
The first public event at the stadium was the opening ceremony of the 2002 Commonwealth Games in July 2002. The tens days of Commonwealth Games hosted track and field events and rugby matches.
Major matches
The first football match at the stadium was a friendly match between the home team Manchester City and Barcelona FC on 10 August 2003.
The stadium hosted its first competitive match four days later, a UEFA Cup match between Manchester City and The New Saints.
The record attendance was 54,693 in a match between Manchester City and Leicester City on 6 February 2016.
The other major matches this stadium has hosted are 2005 UEFA Women’s Championship, 2008 UEFA Cup final, 2008 IBO World Title, 2015 Rugby Union World Cup, Rugby Magic Weekend from 2012 to 2014.
Other Events
The stadium also hosted the 2008 UEFA Cup final, where Zenit Saint Petersburg defeated Rangers. It has hosted several major football matches in addition to Manchester City's home fixtures.
