Parc des Princes () is an

all-seater An all-seater stadium is a sports stadium in which every spectator has a seat. This is commonplace in professional association football stadiums in nations such as the United Kingdom, Spain, and the Netherlands. Most association football a ...

football

stadium A stadium ( : stadiums or stadia) is a place or venue for (mostly) outdoor sports, concerts, or other events and consists of a field or stage either partly or completely surrounded by a tiered structure designed to allow spectators to stand o ...

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. Si ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

, in the south-west of the French capital, inside the 16th arrondissement, near the Stade Jean-Bouin and Stade Roland Garros. The stadium, with a

seating capacity Seating capacity is the number of people who can be seated in a specific space, in terms of both the physical space available, and limitations set by law. Seating capacity can be used in the description of anything ranging from an automobile tha ...

of 47,929 spectators, has been the home of Paris Saint-Germain since 1974. Before the opening of the

Stade de France The Stade de France (, ) is the national stadium of France, located just north of Paris in the commune of Saint-Denis. Its seating capacity of 80,698 makes it the sixth-largest stadium in Europe. The stadium is used by the France national foo ...

in 1998, it was also the home of the

France national football team The France national football team (french: Équipe de France de football) represents France in men's international football matches. It is governed by the French Football Federation (FFF; ), the governing body for football in France. It is ...

and France national rugby union team. The Parc des Princes pitch is surrounded by four covered all-seater stands, officially known as Tribune Borelli, Tribune Auteuil, Tribune Paris, and Tribune Boulogne. Conceived by architect Roger Taillibert and Siavash Teimouri, the current version of the Parc des Princes officially opened on 25 May 1972, at a cost of 80–150 million francs. The stadium is the third to have been built on the site, the first opening its doors in 1897 and the second in 1932. PSG registered its record home attendance in 1983, when 49,575 spectators witnessed the club's 2–0 win over Waterschei in the

UEFA Cup Winners' Cup The UEFA Cup Winners' Cup was a European football club competition contested annually by the winners of domestic cup competitions. The cup was, chronologically, the second seasonal inter-European club competition organised by UEFA. The tourn ...

quarter-finals. However, the France national rugby union team holds the stadium's absolute attendance record. They defeated

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...

, 31–12, in the

1989 Five Nations Championship The 1989 Five Nations Championship was the 60th series of the rugby union Five Nations Championship. Including the previous incarnations as the Home Nations and Five Nations, this was the 95th series of the northern hemisphere rugby union champion ...

in front of 50,370 spectators.

History

Original stadium (1897–1932)

Originally called Stade Vélodrome du Parc des Princes, the stadium was inaugurated on 18 July 1897. Situated in the 16th arrondissement of Paris, the area was a forested parkland used by the royal family before the

French Revolution The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are conside ...

. This gave the Parc des Princes its name. With more than 3,000 seats, the velodrome had a 728-yard track. The director of the stadium,

Henri Desgrange Henri Desgrange (31 January 1865 – 16 August 1940) was a French bicycle racer and sports journalist. He set twelve world track cycling records, including the hour record of on 11 May 1893. He was the first organiser of the Tour de France. ...

, was a former racing cyclist and founder of the cycling magazine ''L'Auto'' (predecessor of ''

L'Équipe ''L'Équipe'' (, French for "the team") is a French nationwide daily newspaper devoted to sport, owned by Éditions Philippe Amaury. The paper is noted for coverage of association football, rugby, motorsport, and cycling. Its predecessor ...

''). ''Le Parc'' marked the finish of the Tour from its first edition in 1903 until 1967. The

1900 UCI Track Cycling World Championships The 1900 UCI Track Cycling World Championships were the World Championship for track cycling. They took place in Paris, France from 12 to 18 August 1900. Four events for men were contested, two for professionals and two for amateurs. Apart fr ...

was held at the Parc des Princes. In 1903, an English side easily defeated a team composed by the best Parisian players (11–0) in front of 984 paying spectators, in what was the first international football played at the Parc des Princes. In 1905, the

contested its first ever home match against

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

, winning 1–0 at ''le Parc''. Subsequently, the stadium welcomed further prestigious friendly games, but also four USFSA French Championship finals, as well as the 1919 Coupe de France Final between CASG Paris and Olympique de Paris in front of 10,000 spectators. ParcdesPrinces1908

PSG's home also boasts a long history as an international rugby venue. In 1906, the France national rugby union team played their debut international, against the

New Zealand national rugby union team The New Zealand national rugby union team, commonly known as the All Blacks ( mi, Ōpango), represents New Zealand in men's international rugby union, which is considered the country's national sport. The team won the Rugby World Cup in 19 ...

. Other tenants included the Racing Club de France. The stadium capacity was increased to 20,000 by the start of the

1924 Summer Olympics The 1924 Summer Olympics (french: Jeux olympiques d'été de 1924), officially the Games of the VIII Olympiad (french: Jeux de la VIIIe olympiade) and also known as Paris 1924, were an international multi-sport event held in Paris, France. The o ...

, held in Paris. However,

Stade Olympique Yves-du-Manoir The Stade Yves-du-Manoir (officially Stade olympique Yves-du-Manoir, also known as the Stade olympique de Colombes, or simply Colombes to the locals) is a rugby, track and association football stadium in Colombes, near Paris, France. History ...

, which had been expanded to 60,000 seats, hosted the event.

Second stadium (1932–1972)

In the 1930s, ''L'Auto'' founder

and his business partner Victor Goddet carried out a thorough reconstruction of the Parc des Princes and expanded it so that the sports arena had seats for 45,000 visitors, including 26,000 covered. The new stadium opened on 19 April 1932. Its capacity, however, was quickly reduced to 38,000 seats to improve comfort. ''Le Parc'' hosted the opening match of the

1938 FIFA World Cup The 1938 FIFA World Cup was the third edition of the World Cup, the quadrennial international football championship for senior men's national teams and was held in France from 4 June until 19 June 1938. Italy defended its title in the final, be ...

between

and

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwee ...

as well as the victory of

Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Cr ...

in the semi-final against

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic countries, Nordic c ...

. But

continued to be more important, hosting the 1938 FIFA World Cup Final in which

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

beat the Hungarians 4–2 to claim its second consecutive world title. Following the

Liberation of Paris The liberation of Paris (french: Libération de Paris) was a military battle that took place during World War II from 19 August 1944 until the German garrison surrendered the French capital on 25 August 1944. Paris had been occupied by Nazi Ger ...

in August 1944 and the end of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

in September 1945, the French football championship returned, with big Parisian clubs Stade français-Red Star and Racing Paris regularly playing at the Parc des Princes. Still equipped with a cycling track of 454 metres, the Tour de France was not the only major sporting event hosted at this stadium. ''Le Parc'' also hosted the 1954 Rugby League World Cup Final, which saw

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It ...

defeat hosts

in the inaugural staging of the Rugby League World Cup; Real Madrid's win over Stade de Reims in the first ever European Cup final in 1956; and the 1960 European Nations' Cup Final, which saw the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nationa ...

claim the first edition of the tournament after beating

Yugoslavia Yugoslavia (; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Jugoslavija, Југославија ; sl, Jugoslavija ; mk, Југославија ;; rup, Iugoslavia; hu, Jugoszlávia; rue, label= Pannonian Rusyn, Югославия, translit=Juhoslavij ...

Current stadium (since 1972)

Design

Conceived by French architect Roger Taillibert and Iranian artist Siavash Teimouri, the design of the third and current Parc des Princes was innovative for the time, allowing spectators to enjoy excellent sight-lines, with no seat being further than 45 metres from the pitch. It was also the first stadium with lighting systems integrated onto its elliptical roof, and to this day is praised for its unique acoustics and its distinctive concrete ribs or razors. Described in French as a 'caisse de résonnance' ('box of sound') due to its tight dimensions and the pressure-cooker atmosphere created by its home fans, it is one of the continent's most emblematic and historic venues. Its raw concrete exterior may not be as extraordinary today, in the era of multimedia stadiums. But the razors supporting the concrete shell remain an icon of local skyline and the structure has aged with grace. It is a landmark and legally protected icon of French architecture. Furthermore, the seating bowl provides two continuous tiers without obstructed views, though some obstructions were introduced due to additional fencing of the away enclosure. Distance of end zones from the field is a disadvantage, because the stadium was designed with rugby in mind and left too much room for a football configuration.

Opening and Paris Saint-Germain

The inauguration of the Parc des Princes took place on 25 May 1972 on the occasion of the football match between France and

USSR The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nati ...

. The new stadium hosted the

1972 Coupe de France Final The 1972 Coupe de France Final was a football match held at Parc des Princes, Paris on 4 June 1972, that saw Olympique de Marseille defeat SEC Bastia 2–1 thanks to goals by Didier Couécou and Josip Skoblar. Match details See also * Co ...

between Olympique de Marseille and Bastia on 4 June 1972. That same year, Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) – a fusion between Paris Football Club (PFC) and

Stade Saint-Germain Stade Saint-Germain was a French football club active between 1904 and 1970, at which time it merged with Paris FC in 1970 to form Paris Saint-Germain. It was based in the town of Saint-Germain-en-Laye. The club's best performance in the Coupe ...

– went through a bitter divorce. Paris FC remained in Ligue 1, while PSG kept their name but were administratively demoted to Division 3. PSG played their first game at the Parc des Princes against Ligue 2 promotion rivals Red Star on 10 November 1973, as a curtain-raiser for that season's league season between PFC and Sochaux. PSG won 3–1 as

Othniel Dossevi Othniel Dossevi (born 13 January 1947) is a Togolese former professional Association football, footballer who played as a Midfielder#Winger, winger and Forward (association football), forward. Career Dossevi started playing football in France ...

scored the club's first goal at the stadium. PSG returned to Ligue 1 in 1974, ironically the same year that Paris FC (PFC) were relegated. They immediately moved into the Parc des Princes, which up until that point had been the home stadium of PFC. Before that, PSG had been playing at several grounds including the Stade Municipal Georges Lefèvre, the Stade Jean-Bouin, the

Stade Bauer The Stade Bauer (also called the Stade de Paris) is a 10,000-capacity football stadium in Saint-Ouen-sur-Seine in the northern suburbs of Paris. The stadium is mainly used by Red Star F.C. who currently play in Championnat National but have tas ...

, and even the Parc des Princes a few times that season despite the reluctance of PFC. Thereafter, Paris FC and Racing Paris also played at the Parc des Princes while they were in Ligue 1 (until 1990), but never reaching the numbers of attendance leaders PSG. Paris - Orthophotographie - 2018 - Parc des Princes et Jean Bouin 01

Paris - Orthophotographie - 2018 - Parc des Princes et Jean Bouin 01

Following its opening, the Parc des Princes finally became France's biggest stadium. This was where the national and international cup finals took place, including every single Coupe de France from 1972 to 1997, and three European club finals: the

1975 European Cup Final The 1975 European Cup Final was a football match between Bayern Munich of West Germany and Leeds United of Yorkshire, England, played on 28 May 1975 at the Parc des Princes in Paris. It was the final match of the 1974–75 season of Europe's pre ...

, the 1978 European Cup Winners' Cup Final and the 1981 European Cup Final. Most importantly, ''le Parc'' saw

defeat

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = '' Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , ...

in the

UEFA Euro 1984 Final The UEFA Euro 1984 Final was the final match of Euro 1984, the seventh European Football Championship, UEFA's top football competition for national teams. The match was played at Parc des Princes in Paris, France, on 27 June 1984 and was cont ...

to claim its first-ever title. In 1992, France was named to host the 1998 World Cup. It was the country's first since 1938 and construction of a new arena began in May 1995, at the same time that Parc des Princes hosted the

1995 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup Final The 1995 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup Final was a football match on 10 May 1995 contested between cup holders Arsenal of England and Zaragoza of Spain. The final was held at Parc des Princes in Paris. It was the final match of the 1994–95 UEFA Cup Wi ...

. Inaugurated in January 1998, the

was the stadium of the future, while ''le Parc'' hosted its last international final that same year: the 1998 UEFA Cup Final. ''Les Bleus'' have only played twice at the Parc des Princes since 1998: against

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to ...

during the UEFA Euro 2008 qualifiers in September 2007, and versus

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...

in a friendly match in October 2013. Nonetheless, the stadium has still staged games at the 1998 FIFA World Cup, 2007 Rugby World Cup, UEFA Euro 2016 and

2019 FIFA Women's World Cup The 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup was the eighth edition of the FIFA Women's World Cup, the quadrennial international Women's association football championship contested by 24 women's national teams representing member associations of FIFA. I ...

Renovation and expansion

In November 2013, PSG reached an agreement with the Paris City Council, owner of the Parc des Princes, to extend their stadium lease for a further 30 years until 2043, based on a fixed rent plus a variable share of their income. Subsequently, under the guidance of American architect Tom Sheehan, PSG completed a three-year €75 million upgrade of the Parc des Princes (2012, 2013–2014, 2015–2016) ahead of the UEFA Euro 2016 in France. Two additional rows of seats were added, allowing the ground to remain at a capacity of 48,000, despite now boasting larger and more comfortable seats. Hospitality capacity went from 1,200 to 4,500, and new substitutes' benches and spacious, modern changing rooms that include warm-up and treatment rooms were installed. Carrying out this renovation work saw PSG's stadium revenue swell from €20m to €100m. PSG are also looking to increase the capacity of their home to 60,000 in the coming years. From the start of their ownership at the capital club,

Qatar Sports Investments Qatar Sports Investments (QSi) is a closed shareholding organization founded in 2005 and based in Doha, Qatar. Revenues generated from ventures of QSi are reinvested into Qatar's sport, leisure and entertainment sectors. QSi is led by Chairman ...

(QSI) made it clear that a larger stadium is one of the means to establish PSG as one of leading European clubs. Originally, there were two options under consideration: move to the

or expand the Parc des Princes. The former was discarded following the redevelopments made to ''le Parc'' ahead of the Euro 2016. Expansion before the tournament proved impossible, but according to PSG deputy CEO

Jean-Claude Blanc Jean-Claude Blanc (; born 9 April 1963 in Chambéry, France) is a French general manager and former marketing executive of Paris Saint-Germain F.C. and former CEO of Juventus Football Club. Education Blanc holds an International Business and M ...

the club's plans have not changed. There have also been rumours that QSI are interested in buying the Parc des Princes for a fee believed to be around €150m.

Major tournament matches

1938 FIFA World Cup matches

1954 Rugby League World Cup matches

1960 European Nations' Cup matches

1972 Rugby League World Cup matches

UEFA Euro 1984 matches

1991 Rugby World Cup matches

1998 FIFA World Cup matches

2007 Rugby World Cup matches

UEFA Euro 2016 matches

2019 FIFA Women's World Cup matches

Concerts

Since its musical debut in June 1988, when

Michael Jackson Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and philanthropist. Dubbed the " King of Pop", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. Over ...

took the stage, the Parc des Princes has often hosted major concerts. The King of Pop played again there in 1997. The stadium was also graced with all-time greats like

The Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for six decades, they are one of the most popular and enduring bands of the rock era. In the early 1960s, the Rolling Stones pioneered the gritty, rhythmically dr ...

and

Prince A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. ...

in 1990, before French icon Johnny Hallyday's first performance in 1993. Following the 1997 shows of

David Bowie David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known professionally as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer-songwriter and actor. A leading figure in the music industry, he is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the ...

, as part of the Rock Festival in Paris, and then U2, the venue had a six-year musical hiatus. Johnny Hallyday's second coming in June 2003, with three concerts to celebrate his 60th anniversary, reactivated the music scene at the Parc des Princes. Between 2003 and 2009, it welcomed legendary acts such as Red Hot Chili Peppers (2004),

Metallica Metallica is an American heavy metal band. The band was formed in 1981 in Los Angeles by vocalist/guitarist James Hetfield and drummer Lars Ulrich, and has been based in San Francisco for most of its career. The band's fast tempos, instrume ...

(2004), Moby (2005),

Iron Maiden Iron Maiden are an English heavy metal band formed in Leyton, East London, in 1975 by bassist and primary songwriter Steve Harris. While fluid in the early years of the band, the lineup for most of the band's history has consisted of Harr ...

(2005),

Robbie Williams Robert Peter Williams (born 13 February 1974) is an English singer and songwriter. He found fame as a member of the pop group Take That from 1990 to 1995, and achieved commercial success after launching a solo career in 1996. His debut stud ...

(2006),

Muse In ancient Greek religion and mythology, the Muses ( grc, Μοῦσαι, Moûsai, el, Μούσες, Múses) are the inspirational goddesses of literature, science, and the arts. They were considered the source of the knowledge embodied in ...

(2007),

Genesis Genesis may refer to: Bible * Book of Genesis, the first book of the biblical scriptures of both Judaism and Christianity, describing the creation of the Earth and of mankind * Genesis creation narrative, the first several chapters of the Book of ...

(2007),

Bruce Springsteen Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen (born September 23, 1949) is an American singer and songwriter. He has released 21 studio albums, most of which feature his backing band, the E Street Band. Originally from the Jersey Shore, he is an originato ...

(2008) and Coldplay (2009). In June 2010, French hip hop group Suprême NTM and American rock band

Green Day Green Day is an American rock band formed in the East Bay of California in 1987 by lead vocalist and guitarist Billie Joe Armstrong, together with bassist and backing vocalist Mike Dirnt. For most of the band's career, they have been a ...

marked the last music chapter at the stadium in a long time. In June 2022,

DJ Snake William Sami Étienne Grigahcine (born 13 June 1986), known by his stage name DJ Snake, is an Algerian French music producer and DJ, first achieving international recognition in 2013 by releasing an instrumentation-oriented single called " Turn D ...

became the first artist to perform at the Parc des Princes in twelve years. He was followed by French singer Dadju later that same month.

Gallery

References

External links

Official websites

PSG.FR - Site officiel du Paris Saint-Germain
{{DEFAULTSORT:Parc des Princes 1938 FIFA World Cup stadiums Stadiums that have hosted a FIFA World Cup opening match 1960 European Nations' Cup stadiums UEFA Euro 1984 stadiums 1998 FIFA World Cup stadiums UEFA Euro 2016 stadiums 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup stadiums Football venues in France Paris Saint-Germain F.C. 16th arrondissement of Paris Rugby union stadiums in France Rugby league stadiums in France Rugby World Cup stadiums Rugby League World Cup stadiums Sports venues in Paris Velodromes in France Sports venues completed in 1972 Venues of the 2024 Summer Olympics Olympic football venues UEFA European Championship final stadiums 1972 establishments in France