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Stade Vélodrome
	; Stade Vélodrome entrance
Full name	Stade Vélodrome
Location	Marseille, Bouches-du-Rhône, France
Coordinates	43°16′11″N 5°23′45″E / 43.26972°N 5.39583°ECoordinates: 43°16′11″N 5°23′45″E / 43.26972°N 5.39583°E
Built	1937
Opened	June 1937
Renovated	1984 and 1998
Owner	City of Marseille
Surface	Grass
Architect	Henri Ploquin
Capacity	60,013
Tenants
	Olympique de Marseille

The Stade Vélodrome is a 60,013 capacity stadium in Marseille, France. It is the home ground of top French football club Olympique de Marseille and was also a venue in the 1998 FIFA World Cup. It is the largest club football ground in France. The stadium is also used regularly by the French rugby union team.

The record attendance for a club game at the Stade Vélodrome was of 58,897, for a UEFA Cup semi-final against Newcastle United in 2004. The stadium also featured as a Football World Cup venue when the 1938 finals were held in France. The first ever match to be played was between Marseille and Torino in 1937. There are plans to increase the capacity to 80,000 and build a roof to cover all four stands, plans that are contingent on a possible sale of the Football Club. The stadium was used for the 2007 Rugby World Cup.

The French rugby union team started an impressive run of victories at the stadium in the early 2000s. In November 2000 they defeated the All Blacks 42 to 33, the following year defeating Australia by one point. In 2002 one match was played there again, a win over the Springboks, which was followed by a win over England in 2003. However, their run of luck was broken in 2004, when they lost 14 to 24 to Argentina. The venue was used by France in November 2009 when the French played the New Zealand All Blacks.^[1] France are not the only rugby team to have used the Vélodrome in recent years. On April 18, 2009, Toulon took their home fixture in the Top 14 against Toulouse to the Vélodrome, drawing 57,039^[2] to see a 14–6 Toulon win that played a key role in the Toulonnais' successful fight against relegation in the 2008–09 season.^[3]

[edit] History

The Stade Velodrome, since its initial construction, has hosted two soccer World Cups, two European Championships, two Challenges Champions, two World Cups of rugby league and ten arrivals Tour de France and a World Championships in track cycling. Thirteen games for the France team football and nine of the team France rugby union took place there.

In 1935, architects and Pollack Ploquin are designated to build a large stadium in Marseille. Henry Ploquin who has designed three years ago the Municipal Stadium in Vichy is projected on the Olympics and plans for Marseilles in addition to stage a Palace of Sports. For economic reasons, only Stade Velodrome will be realized. On April 28, 1935 [1], the first stone of the Velodrome is asked by the Mayor of Marseilles, Dr Ribot on a site located between downtown and suburban areas of St. Giniez and Sainte-Marguerite, on land Military City [2].

The chamber's Stadium was inaugurated on 13 June 1937. On this occasion played a friendly match between the Olympique de Marseille and the Italians from Torino Football Club, which concludes with the score of 2 to 1 for Olympians [3].

The Stade Velodrome is so aptly named, cycling competitions being held there. Over the years, the bleachers replaced the bike path along the ground. Over the years, the bleachers replaced the bike path along the ground. It less and less common over the years, is still famous for the fans of Marseille football this sloping runway which extended the stands of giant slide served to them to invade the pitch at the end of games.

The OM is very long in hostile Stade Velodrome, "stage of the City Council. For fans of the Olympians Between the wars, the real point of the OM is the stage of Huveaune property of the OM and Whose construction was financed by supporters in gallery the early 1920s. The war put an end to this problem, because after the conflict, the OM no longer owns the Stadium of Huveaune. Looking for support from the City of Marseille, hitherto absent, the chairman Marcel Leclerc rekindles war stages in the late 1960s by repeating play in OM Huveaune. The City Council gives in and accepts the OM then move to the Velodrome.

The OM shares the stage during the 1970s with the club rugby league in the city, Marseille Leopards.

During the 1998 World Cup, the stadium was completely renovated (after another renovation in 1984) and see its capacity increased from 42,000 to 60,031 seats, or 32 miles of benches. On 4 December 1997 to place the draw of the World inside the Velodrome.

The Stade Velodrome hosts seven games of the World 98 with the first game of the France team against the South Africa, a quarter-final Argentina - Netherlands and the semi-final Brazil - Netherlands.

The record attendance (58 897 spectators) was in receipt of Newcastle United in the semi-final second leg UEFA Cup, May 6, 2004 (2-0).

During the World Cup Rugby 2007, the Velodrome hosts six games including two quarterfinals (Australia / England and South Africa / Fiji).

Very criticized and unloved by the Marseilles [5] including his architecture (no roof, no acoustic resonance), the Stade Velodrome is the subject since 2003 of several projects to modernize the (coverage) and even enlarge. The latest project from 2005, followed by Thomas Longeault, would cover it and increase its capacity of 60 031 to 80 500 seats. However, there is nothing concrete though the subject is discussed regularly by both the mayor of Marseilles by club officials.

In July 2009, following an extraordinary council of the City of Marseille at the Town Hall where the renovation project was the order of the day, several discussions were put to a vote with the launch of the procedure of contract Public-Private Partnership (PPP). Despite some reluctance of the Greens, the Board voted the project. Five days later, the City Council agrees to the city and its partnerships to launch the renovation of the Velodrome Stadium, a new capacity of 65 000 seats, modern and covered with several new lodges. The stadium would be 5 stars and UEFA would be delivered in 2014.

On July 16, 2009, during preparations for a Madonna concert, following the failure of one of the four winches used to hoist the structure of the scene, his 60-ton roof fell, crushing the passage of one cranes and leaving two dead and five wounded.

[edit] Average attendances

In 2002 Division 1 was rebranded as Ligue 1. Average attendance for every season since 2000–01.

Season	Average	Division
2000–01	50,755	Division 1
2001–02	50,030	Division 1
2002–03	48,233	Ligue 1
2003–04	51,785
2004–05	52,996
2005–06	49,731
2006–07	49,005
2007–08	52,600
2008–09	52,276
2009–10	...

[edit] 1938 FIFA World Cup matches

Date	Time (CET)	Team #1	Res.	Team #2	Round	Spectators
5 June 1938	17:00	Italy	2-1 (a.e.t.)	Norway	First Round	18,000
16 June 1938	18:00	Italy	2-1	Brazil	Semi Finals	30,000

[edit] 1998 FIFA World Cup matches

Date	Time (CET)	Team #1	Res.	Team #2	Round	Spectators
12 June 1998	21:00	France	3-0	South Africa	Group C	55,077
15 June 1998	14:30	England	2-0	Tunisia	Group G	54,587
23 June 1998	21:00	Brazil	1-2	Norway	Group A	55,000
27 June 1998	16:00	Italy	1-0	Norway	Round of 16	55,000
4 July 1998	16:00	Netherlands	2-1	Argentina	Quarter Finals	55,000
7 July 1998	21:00	Brazil	1-1 (4-2 pen.)	Netherlands	Semi Finals	54,000

[edit] Structure

1	Tribune Jean Bouin
2	Virage Sud Chevalier Roze
3	Tribune Ganay
4	Virage Nord De Peretti
5	Places for the disabled (258 seats)
6	Press Gallery
7	Loges
8	Rostrum
9	VIP Hall
10	Projectors
11	Local
12	Closets
13	Offices
14	TV Studio
15	Big Screens

The four stands of the stadium are named after athletes (the runner Jean Bouin, the cyclist of the 1920s Gustave Ganay), a historical figure of the plague of 1720 (Turn South Chevalier Roze), and a boxer Marseilles beautiful day, turns North Ray Grassi has been renamed after a bear charismatic (Patrice De Peretti, said "Depe, died suddenly in July 2000).

[edit] Future

For the future, The Stand Velodrom will increase in capacity for the 2016 UEFA Cup. It will be called Nouveau Stade Vélodrome (New Stade Vélodrome) and it will still be holding games for Olympique de Marseille. Currently it holds 60,031 spectators, but after its construction it will be able to hold 80,000 seats (the same as the Stade de France). The cost of all of this will be €140 million.