SALT LAKE STADIUM: Come, Know Me!

Football is a religion to swathes of fans across the globe. If football would have been a nation, it certainly would be the largest. Consequently, the stadiums which host the beautiful game need to up their ante to house the hordes of football fanatics.

One such name that the fans would love to recount is thy honorable Salt Lake Stadium in Kolkata, India.

Fact file

Established in 1984, I was then the largest football stadium in the world. I had a seating capacity of 120,000. But in 1989, the Rungrado May Day Stadium at Pyongyang claimed the top spot, usurping my stronghold.

Decades have passed since then and I have been through thick and thin. I have been rechristened as Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan. The seating capacity has reduced on account of extensive refurbishment. Currently, you can bring 68,000 mad caps to witness live football action.

The fans are an integral part of the history of my royalty. In 1997 in a Federation Cup semi-final match, a humongous attendance of 131,000 was recorded as East Bengal took on Mohun Bagan. The red and gold brigade emerged victorious, scoring 4 past their arch rivals.

Milestones

Since inauguration there have been several international tournaments and matches hosted by me.

Some of the matches of the 1986 FIFA World Cup qualification rounds were held here. The 3rd South Asian Games took place in 1987. Further, I played host to the Jawaharlal Nehru International Gold Cup in 1995.

Lionel Messi enthralled a packed audience at the venue. Image Course : www.news18.com

More recently, in 2011, FIFA added another feather to my cap, as I was selected as the venue to host a friendly between Argentina and Venezuela. It was a jubilant occasion for the people of Kolkata and I reverberated with glory. Lionel Messi took the field along with several others to mark the memorable date. I am sure Argentina and Manchester City centre back Nicolas Otamendi has a fond memory of the same, scoring his first international goal here.

I was honoured with Oliver Kahn’s official farewell match for Bayern Munich when they squared up against Mohun Bagan in a friendly fixture. The German champions won the match 3-0. In December 2012, an exhibition match was played between Brazil Masters and IFA All Stars. Brazil Masters won it 3-1. Beto scored twice and Bebeto scored one goal for Brazil Masters.

These are my moments of sheer euphoria and they continue to dazzle my record books.

Home ground

I am the home of a number of bigwigs of Indian football. Local clubs Mohun Bagan and East Bengal play their home fixtures here. Mohammedan S.C. is another heavyweight who is among my tenants. Many of the home games of the Indian Football Team are also played here. Since 2014, a new member in the form of Atlético de Kolkata (playing in the ISL) has joined the enviable list.

Trivia

The biggest news was most definitively the rumors of me being hosting the final of the FIFA U-17 World Cup. No official confirmation has been received on it, but the very proposition is as enchanting as it could get. Renovation work is on with gusto, with a plan of installing 85,000 bucket seats for the tournament. If I am indeed chosen as the venue for the final, this would certainly scale the zenith of my glory.

Closing scenes post a match during ISL 2015! Lights crossed!

With the FIFA World Cup 2022, scheduled in Qatar, you never know if 2026 might just be my turn.

Keeping my fingers, erm, floodlights crossed though!