The Shahid Shiroudi Stadium (), formerly known as Amjadieh Stadium (), is a sports stadium in
Tehran
Tehran (; , ''Tehrân'') is the capital and largest city of Iran. It is the capital of Tehran province, and the administrative center for Tehran County and its Central District (Tehran County), Central District. With a population of around 9. ...
,
Iran
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...
. It is currently used for
athletics
Athletics may refer to:
Sports
* Sport of athletics, a collection of sporting events that involve competitive running, jumping, throwing, and walking
** Track and field, a sub-category of the above sport
* Athletics (physical culture), competitio ...
and held
football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...
matches until 2009.
The stadium is able to seat 30,000 people and was opened in 1942. It was called Amjadieh Stadium () until the
Iranian Revolution
The Iranian Revolution (, ), also known as the 1979 Revolution, or the Islamic Revolution of 1979 (, ) was a series of events that culminated in the overthrow of the Pahlavi dynasty in 1979. The revolution led to the replacement of the Impe ...
.
In September 2015 it was announced the stadium and the complex would undergo a massive renovation.
History
The stadium is one of the oldest sports stadiums in Iran. It was built in 1942 and was located in the northern part of Tehran at the time of opening, while it is now in the center of Tehran. In 1934, French architect
Maxime Siroux
Maxime Siroux (25 October 1907 – 26 January 1975) was a French architect and archaeologist.
He worked with Andre Godard in Iran for many years. Ali Asghar Hekmat states that he commissioned Andre Godard to design the national library, Siroux's ...
began designing and constructing Amjadieh Stadium with the capacity of 15,000.
Reza Shah
Reza Shah Pahlavi born Reza Khan (15 March 1878 – 26 July 1944) was shah of Iran from 1925 to 1941 and founder of the roughly 53 years old Pahlavi dynasty. Originally a military officer, he became a politician, serving as minister of war an ...
approved and ordered similar stadiums across Iran. Siroux later designed and constructed the
Hafezieh Stadium
The Hafeziyeh Stadium () is a multi-purpose stadium in Shiraz, Iran. It is currently used mostly for football (soccer), football matches and is the home stadium of Persian Gulf League side, Fajr Sepasi F.C. The stadium also is used for some mat ...
in
Shiraz
Shiraz (; ) is the List of largest cities of Iran, fifth-most-populous city of Iran and the capital of Fars province, which has been historically known as Pars (Sasanian province), Pars () and Persis. As of the 2016 national census, the popu ...
. The stadium has played host to many sporting, cultural, and national events as well as political meetings. Ever since
Iran national football team
The Iran national football team (), recognised as IR Iran by FIFA since 2018, represents Iran in men's international senior Association football, football and is governed by the Football Federation Islamic Republic of Iran (FFIRI).
At the cont ...
was formed, they played their home matches in Amjadieh Stadium before
Aryamehr Stadium
The Azadi Stadium (, ), opened as the Aryamehr Stadium (), is an all-seater football stadium in Tehran, Iran. The stadium was designed by Abdol Aziz Mirza Farman-Farmaian Architects and Associates (AFFA) with other parts of the sports complex ...
was constructed. It was also home to
Taj S.C. (Esteghlal F.C.) and
Persepolis F.C.
Persepolis Football Club () is an Iranian professional football club based in Tehran that competes in the Persian Gulf Pro League. Persepolis F.C. is the football club of the multisport Persepolis Athletic and Cultural Club. The club was ...
before Azadi Stadium was built. It was also home to
Shahin F.C. before and after the
Iranian Revolution
The Iranian Revolution (, ), also known as the 1979 Revolution, or the Islamic Revolution of 1979 (, ) was a series of events that culminated in the overthrow of the Pahlavi dynasty in 1979. The revolution led to the replacement of the Impe ...
.
It has also hosted the
1968 AFC Asian Cup
The 1968 AFC Asian Cup was the 4th edition of the men's AFC Asian Cup, a quadrennial international football tournament organised by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). The finals were held in Iran between 10 and 19 May 1968, with five teams ...
finals.
The Asian Club Championship was also held in Amjadieh Stadium in 1970. Additionally, Amjadieh stadium along with Aryamehr Stadium and
Apadana Stadium (under the name of Persepolis stadium) was the host of preliminary round of the football matches at the
1974 Asian Games
The 7th Asian Games (), also known as Tehran 1974 (), were held from 1 to 16 September 1974 in Tehran, Iran. The Aryamehr Sports Complex was built for the Games. This marked the first time the Asian Games were hosted in the Middle East. Tehran, t ...
. The stadium has also been the venue for the
AFC Youth Championship 2000
The 2000 AFC Youth Championship was held between November 12 and 26 in Iran. It was won by Iraq 2–1 over Japan.
Participants
* Iran (qualified as hosts)
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
The teams that reached the semi-final qualified for the 2001 FIFA Worl ...
.
Cultural, political and military operations
* During the Coronation of the
Mohammad Reza Shah
Mohammad Reza Pahlavi (26 October 1919 – 27 July 1980) was the last Shah of Iran, ruling from 1941 to 1979. He succeeded his father Reza Shah and ruled the Imperial State of Iran until he was overthrown by the Iranian Revolution, which ...
and the
Shahbanou
''Shahbanu'' (, ) was a title for empress regnant or empress consort in Persian and other Iranian languages. The title was specifically used by Farah Pahlavi, the wife of Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, the last Shah of Iran (Persia).
During Sassanid t ...
of Iran in 1967, many events took place in Amjadieh Stadium, including the Coronation Parade.
* The stadium was to be the final departing site for
Operation Eagle Claw
Operation Eagle Claw ( Persian: عملیات پنجه عقاب) was a failed U.S. Department of Defense attempt to rescue 52 embassy staff held captive by Revolutionary Iran on 24 April 1980. It was ordered by US President Jimmy Carter afte ...
and, after its failure,
Operation Credible Sport
Operation Credible Sport was a joint project of the United States Armed Forces, U.S. military in the second half of 1980 to prepare for a second rescue attempt of the Iran hostage crisis, hostages held in Iran. The concept included using a Loc ...
, the aborted missions to rescue 52 American hostages being held in Tehran during the
Iran Hostage Crisis
The Iran hostage crisis () began on November 4, 1979, when 66 Americans, including diplomats and other civilian personnel, were taken hostage at the Embassy of the United States in Tehran, with 52 of them being held until January 20, 1981. Th ...
. The proposed extraction would have involved a rescue force being transported to the embassy, releasing the hostages, and then escorting the hostages across the main road in front of the embassy to the stadium, where helicopters (Eagle Claw) or a modified
C-130
The Lockheed C-130 Hercules is an American four-engine turboprop military transport aircraft designed and built by Lockheed Corporation, Lockheed (now Lockheed Martin). Capable of using unprepared runways for takeoffs and landings, the C-130 w ...
(Credible Sport) would have retrieved the entire contingent.
* On February 24, 1981, the
Mojahedin-e-Khalq party held its public meeting in Tehran at the Amjadieh Stadium, around 40,000 people attended.
Naming
The stadium was named after Shahid (), a
Cobra
COBRA or Cobra, often stylized as CoBrA, was a European avant-garde art group active from 1948 to 1951. The name was coined in 1948 by Christian Dotremont from the initials of the members' home countries' capital cities: Copenhagen (Co), Brussels ...
helicopter pilot who was killed in the
Iran–Iraq War
The Iran–Iraq War, also known as the First Gulf War, was an armed conflict between Iran and Iraq that lasted from September 1980 to August 1988. Active hostilities began with the Iraqi invasion of Iran and lasted for nearly eight years, unti ...
.
Gallery
File:Amjadie Stadium.jpg, Amjadieh Stadium in 1940s
File:Tajgozari at Amjadieh Stadium.jpg, Parts of the Coronation ceremony of Mohammad Reza Shah
Mohammad Reza Pahlavi (26 October 1919 – 27 July 1980) was the last Shah of Iran, ruling from 1941 to 1979. He succeeded his father Reza Shah and ruled the Imperial State of Iran until he was overthrown by the Iranian Revolution, which ...
and Farah Pahlavi
Farah Pahlavi (; []; born 14 October 1938) is the former Queen and last Empress () of Pahlavi Iran and is the third wife and widow of the last List of monarchs of Iran, Shah of Iran, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi.
She was born into a prosperous Ira ...
held in Amjadieh Stadium
File:Persepolis Taj Amjadieh.jpg, Persepolis
Persepolis (; ; ) was the ceremonial capital of the Achaemenid Empire (). It is situated in the plains of Marvdasht, encircled by the southern Zagros mountains, Fars province of Iran. It is one of the key Iranian cultural heritage sites and ...
- Taj derby
Derby ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area on the River Derwent, Derbyshire, River Derwent in Derbyshire, England. Derbyshire is named after Derby, which was its original co ...
in Amjadieh
File:Amjadieh Staduim-October 1948.jpg, High school students in a Ceremony in Amjadieh Stadium, Tehran, 1948
File:Sedarati and Ghiasi.jpg, Maryam Sedarati and Teymour Ghiasi in 1973 during a practice in the Amjadieh Stadium
File:Shaboon Jafari.jpg, Shaban Jafari
Shaban Jafari (; 19 August 1921 – 21 March 2006), often known as Pahlevan Shaban Jafari() by Pahlavi supporters or Shaban the Crown-Bestower () by Pahlavi opponents , was an Iranian political activist and practitioner of Pahlevani and zoor ...
during the performance of Pahlevani and zoorkhaneh rituals
Pahlevani and zourkhaneh rituals is the name inscribed by UNESCO for Warzesh-e pahlavāni (, "heroic sport") or Warzeŝe Bāstāni (; , "ancient sport"), a traditional system of athletics and a form of martial arts originally used to train wa ...
in Amjadieh Stadium
References
{{Persepolis FC
Football venues in Iran
Sports venues in Tehran
Multi-purpose stadiums in Iran
Sports venues completed in 1939
1939 establishments in Iran