Franso Hariri Stadium ( Kurdish: یاریگای فرانسۆ ھەریری, Yarîgay Franso Herîrî;

Arabic Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C. E.Watson; Walter ...

: ملعب فرانسوا حريري) is a

multi-purpose stadium A multi-purpose stadium is a type of stadium designed to be easily used by multiple types of events. While any stadium could potentially host more than one type of sport or event, this concept usually refers to a specific design philosophy tha ...

in Erbil,

Kurdistan Region Kurdistan Region ( ku, هەرێمی کوردستان, translit=Herêmî Kurdistan; ar, إقليم كردستان), abbr. KRI, is an autonomous region in Iraq comprising the four Kurdish-majority governorates of Erbil, Sulaymaniyah, Duhok ...

Iraq Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to the north, Iran to the east, the Persian Gulf and K ...

. It is currently used mostly for football matches by

Erbil SC Erbil Sports Club ( ar, نادي أربيل الرياضي, ) is a sports club based in the city of Erbil, Kurdistan Region that plays in the Iraqi Premier League, the first-tier of Iraqi football. The club is also known as "Yaney Hewlêr", th ...

who plays in the

Iraqi Premier League The Iraqi Premier League ( ar, الدوري العراقي الممتاز) is the top level of the Iraqi football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it is operated by the Iraq Football Association (IFA) and operates on a system of promotion ...

. The stadium also has facilities for athletics. The stadium has a capacity of 25,000. It was built on an old airfield in 1956 and was redeveloped in 1992. The stadium was home to the old Brusk club (renamed Al-Shurta Erbil) and was named ''Erbil Stadium'' until 2001. It was renamed the Martyr Franso Hariri Stadium in honor of the assassinated Christian governor

Franso Hariri Franso Toma Hariri ( syr, ܦܪܢܣܘ ܚܪܝܪܝ; 1937 – February 18, 2001), was a Iraqi Assyrian politician, and a high-ranking and long-standing Kurdistan Democratic Party member and head of the KDP block of the Kurdistan Region Parliament. ...

, who supported efforts to renovate the stadium. In July 2009 Franso Hariri Stadium became Iraq national football team's home venue after the green-light from AFC to host the Iraqi national and clubs teams in Erbil. On 23 February 2022, an all-star line-up of international football legends including Brazil's

Roberto Carlos Roberto Carlos da Silva Rocha (born 10 April 1973), commonly known as Roberto Carlos, is a Brazilian former professional footballer who now works as a football ambassador. He started his career in Brazil as a forward but spent most of his car ...

and

Barcelona Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ci ...

striker

Patrick Kluivert Patrick Stephan Kluivert (; born 1 July 1976) is a Dutch former football player, coach and sporting director. He played as a striker, most notably for AFC Ajax, FC Barcelona and the Netherlands national team. He was part of Ajax's Golden Gen ...

participated in a historic

exhibition match An exhibition game (also known as a friendly, a scrimmage, a demonstration, a preseason game, a warmup match, or a preparation match, depending at least in part on the sport) is a sporting event whose prize money and impact on the player's or ...

at Franso Hariri stadium against Iraqi national team stars who won the 2007 AFC Asian Cup including Noor Sabri,

Mahdi Karim Mahdi Karim Ajeel ( ar, مهدي كريم عجيل, born December 10, 1983 in Iraq) is a former Iraqi footballer. He last played as a winger for Al-Talaba in Iraq and the Iraq national football team. Player info Mahdi Kareem Ajeel's successfu ...

and

Ahmed Mnajed Ahmed Mnajed Abbas ( ar, أحمد مناجد) (born 13 December 1981) is a former Iraqi footballer. He last played for Sulaymaniya FC in Iraq and the Iraq national football team. He usually played the second striker position. Biography Ahmed Me ...

Events

* 2012 – AFC Cup Final * 2019 – West Asian Football Federation Championship * 2021 –

Pope Francis Pope Francis ( la, Franciscus; it, Francesco; es, link=, Francisco; born Jorge Mario Bergoglio, 17 December 1936) is the head of the Catholic Church. He has been the bishop of Rome and sovereign of the Vatican City State since 13 March 2013. ...

gave mass during his visit.

Notes

External links

Iraq Football Association
(in Arabic) Football venues in Iraq Football venues in Iraqi Kurdistan Athletics (track and field) venues in Iraq Multi-purpose stadiums in Iraq Buildings and structures in Erbil 1956 establishments in Iraq Sports venues completed in 1956 {{Iraq-sports-venue-stub

Events

See also

Notes

External links