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Estádio da Luz

Coordinates: 38°45′10″N 9°11′05″W / 38.7527°N 9.1847°W / 38.7527; -9.1847
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
This article is about the current home ground of S.L. Benfica. For the previous one, see Estádio da Luz (1954). For the home ground of Sunderland A.F.C., see Stadium of Light.

Estádio da Luz
UEFA
Map
Full nameEstádio do Sport Lisboa e Benfica
AddressAv. Eusébio da Silva Ferreira, 1500-313
LocationLisbon, Portugal
Coordinates38°45′10″N 9°11′05″W / 38.7527°N 9.1847°W / 38.7527; -9.1847
Public transitLisbon Metro  Azul  at Alto dos Moinhos
Lisbon Metro  Azul  at Colégio Militar/Luz
OwnerS.L. Benfica
OperatorS.L. Benfica
Executive suites156
Capacity65,592
Record attendanceOfficial match: 64,591[2]
(13 May 2017)
All-time: 65,400
(25 October 2003)
Field size105 x 68 m
SurfaceGrass
ScoreboardYes
Construction
Broke ground2003
Opened25 October 2003
Construction cost€162 million[1]
ArchitectHOK Sport (now Populous)
Tenants
Benfica (2003–present)
Benfica B (2003–2006, 2012–2013)
Benfica women's (2018–present; selected matches)
Portugal national football team (selected matches)
Website
slbenfica.pt

The Estádio da Luz (Portuguese pronunciation: [ɨˈʃtaðju ðɐ ˈluʃ]), officially named Estádio do Sport Lisboa e Benfica, is a multi-purpose stadium located in Lisbon, Portugal. It is used mostly for association football matches, hosting the home games of Portuguese club Benfica, its owner.

Opened on 25 October 2003 with an exhibition match between Benfica and Uruguayan club Nacional, it replaced the original Estádio da Luz, which had 120,000 seats. The seating capacity of the new stadium is currently set at 64,642.[3] The stadium was designed by HOK Sport Venue Event (now Populous) and had a construction cost of €162 million.[1]

A UEFA category four stadium and one of the biggest stadiums by capacity in Europe (the biggest in Portugal), Estádio da Luz hosted several matches of the UEFA Euro 2004, including its final, as well as the 2014 and 2020 finals of the UEFA Champions League. It was elected the most beautiful stadium of Europe in a 2014 online poll by L'Équipe.[4][5][6] By its fifteenth birthday, Estádio do Sport Lisboa e Benfica Luz had welcomed more than 17 million spectators.[7] The stadium is one of the potential venues for the 2030 FIFA World Cup, which Portugal will co-host along with Morocco and Spain.

Naming

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While the previous Benfica stadium was also officially named "Estádio do Sport Lisboa e Benfica", both the old and the new stadia are invariably referred to by their unofficial name, Estádio da Luz. Luz is the name of the neighborhood the stadium was built on, on the border between the parishes of Benfica and Carnide, which itself derives its name from the nearby Igreja de Nossa Senhora da Luz (Church of Our Lady of Light). This unofficial name caught on soon after the original stadium's construction;[8] the people of Lisbon used to simply call it a Luz ("the Light"). Therefore, the stadium's common name became "Estádio da Luz", which is usually anglicised to "Stadium of Light".[9] This translation, however, could be argued to be inaccurate, since Luz refers not to "light" but to the original address of the stadium: Estrada da Luz ("Road of Light").[10][11]

Characteristics

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Architect Damon Lavelle,[12] from HOK Sport Venue Event (now Populous), designed the stadium to focus on light and transparency. Its polycarbonate roof allows the sunlight to penetrate the stadium in order to illuminate it. The roof, which is supported by tie-beams of four steel arches, seems to float on the underlying tribunes. The arches are 43 metres (141 feet) high and help define the look of the stadium, after having been shaped to be similar to the wavy profile of its three tiers. According to Lavelle, the seating capacity may be increased up to 80,000.[13] However, the most realistic option is to expand by selling standing places, which would require a change in the law.[14]

In June 2024, Sport Lisboa e Benfica announced that it would increase the stadium's capacity to nearly 66,000 spectators (65,592) by adding 950 seats in a row of seats around the stadium reserved for people with motor disabilities.[15]

A panorama of the Estádio da Luz on 30 July 2009

Notable matches

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Opening game

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Benfica Portugal2–1Uruguay Nacional
Nuno Gomes 7', 47' Report Mello 11'
Attendance: 65,400

In the opening match, Benfica beat Uruguayan side Nacional 2–1 with goals from Nuno Gomes, who became the first ever scorer at the Estádio da Luz.

UEFA Euro 2004 Final

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Main article: UEFA Euro 2004 Final
Portugal 0–1 Greece
Report Charisteas 57'
Attendance: 62,865
Referee: Markus Merk (Germany)

2014 UEFA Champions League Final

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Main article: 2014 UEFA Champions League Final
Real Madrid Spain4–1 (a.e.t.)Spain Atlético Madrid
Ramos 90+3'
Bale 110'
Marcelo 118'
Ronaldo 120' (pen.)		 Report Godín 36'
Attendance: 60,976[16]

Highest attendance official match

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Benfica Portugal5–0Portugal Vitória de Guimarães
Cervi 11'
Jiménez 16'
Pizzi 37'
Jonas 43', 67' (pen.)		 Report
Attendance: 64,591
Referee: Jorge Sousa (Porto)

On round 33 of the 2016–17 Primeira Liga, in a match where Benfica were crowned national champions for a fourth consecutive season (a new achievement for them), Estádio da Luz recorded its best attendance in official matches.[2]

2019–20 UEFA Champions League

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Quarter-finals

Main article: FC Barcelona 2–8 FC Bayern Munich
Barcelona Spain2–8Germany Bayern Munich
 Report
Attendance: 0[17][a]

Final

Main article: 2020 UEFA Champions League Final
Paris Saint-Germain France0–1Germany Bayern Munich
Report Coman 59'
Attendance: 0[a]

International matches

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Entrance of the stadium during UEFA Euro 2004

Portugal national team matches

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The following national team matches were held in the stadium.

# Date Score Opponent Competition
1 16 June 2004 2–0  Russia Euro 2004 Group Stage
2 24 June 2004 2–2[18]  England Euro 2004 Quarter-Finals
3 4 July 2004 0–1  Greece Euro 2004 Final
4 4 June 2005 2–0  Slovakia 2006 World Cup qualification
5 8 September 2007 2–2  Poland Euro 2008 qualifying
6 10 October 2009 3–0  Hungary 2010 World Cup qualification
7 14 November 2009 1–0  Bosnia and Herzegovina 2010 World Cup UEFA play-offs
8 17 November 2010 4–0  Spain Friendly
9 4 June 2011 1–0  Norway Euro 2012 qualifying
10 15 November 2011 6–2  Bosnia and Herzegovina Euro 2012 qualifying play-offs
11 2 June 2012 1–3  Turkey Friendly
12 7 June 2013 1–0  Russia 2014 World Cup qualification
13 15 November 2013 1–0  Sweden 2014 World Cup UEFA play-offs
14 29 March 2015 2–1  Serbia Euro 2016 qualifying
15 8 June 2016 7–0  Estonia Friendly
16 25 March 2017 3–0  Hungary 2018 World Cup qualification
17 10 October 2017 2–0   Switzerland
18 7 June 2018 3–0  Algeria Friendly
19 10 September 2018 1–0  Italy 2018–19 UEFA Nations League
20 22 March 2019 0–0  Ukraine Euro 2020 qualifying
21 25 March 2019 1–1  Serbia
22 11 November 2020 7–0  Andorra Friendly
23 14 November 2020 0–1  France 2020–21 UEFA Nations League
24 14 November 2021 1–2  Serbia 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification
25 17 June 2023 3–0  Bosnia and Herzegovina UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying
26 5 September 2024 2–1  Croatia 2024–25 UEFA Nations League
27 8 September 2024 2–1  Scotland

Euro 2004 matches

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Date Team #1 Result Team #2 Round Attendance
13 June 2004  France 2–1  England Group B 62,487
16 June 2004  Russia 0–2  Portugal Group A 59,273
21 June 2004  Croatia 2–4  England Group B 57,047
24 June 2004  Portugal 2–2 (6–5 on pen.) Quarter-finals 62,564
4 July 2004 0–1  Greece Final 62,864

Benfica matches in UEFA competitions

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Further information: S.L. Benfica in international football
As of match played 23 October 2024
  • All-time statistics
115 matches: 71 wins, 21 draws, 23 losses
197 goals scored, 102 goals conceded

Concerts

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Date Artist/band Concert tour Total audience
1–2 June 2019 Ed Sheeran[19] ÷ Tour 120,716[20]
26 June 2023 Rammstein[21] Rammstein Stadium Tour 50,000[22]
24–25 May 2024 Taylor Swift[23] The Eras Tour 120,000[24]
26 June 2025 Imagine Dragons[25] Loom World Tour

See also

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Notes

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  1. ^ a b The match was played behind closed doors to comply with restrictions during the COVID-19 pandemic.

References

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  1. ^ a b "Vender jogadores para gerar receitas" [Selling players to generate revenue]. Record (in Portuguese). 29 April 2015. Retrieved 8 November 2018.
  2. ^ a b "History has been made". S.L. Benfica. 13 May 2017. Retrieved 29 April 2018.
  3. ^ "fsd150611.pdf" (PDF). CMVM (in Portuguese). S.L. Benfica. 14 April 2016. pp. 81–82. Archived from the original (PDF) on 18 November 2017. Retrieved 25 July 2016.
  4. ^ "Estádio da Luz é o mais bonito da Europa" [Estádio da Luz is the most beautiful of Europe]. Record (in Portuguese). 22 October 2014. Archived from the original on 24 October 2014. Retrieved 18 June 2016.
  5. ^ "Luz considerado o estádio mais bonito" [Luz considered the most beautiful stadium]. SAPO Desporto (in Portuguese). 22 October 2014. Retrieved 30 May 2017.
  6. ^ Tavares da Silva, Hugo (22 October 2014). "Estádio da Luz é o mais bonito da Europa" [Estádio da Luz is the most beautiful of Europe]. Observador (in Portuguese). Retrieved 30 May 2017.
  7. ^ "Luz recebeu mais de 17 milhões de espectadores em 15 anos" [Da Luz welcomed more than 17 million spectators in 15 years]. A Bola (in Portuguese). 25 October 2018. Archived from the original on 26 October 2018. Retrieved 26 October 2018.
  8. ^ Silveira, João Pedro. "Luz: a Catedral" [Luz: the Cathedral]. zerozero (in Portuguese). Retrieved 8 May 2019.
  9. ^ Lutz, Tom (20 March 2012). "Benfica's Stadium of Light to host 2014 Champions League final". The Guardian. Retrieved 30 August 2017.
  10. ^ "Estádio do Sport Lisboa e Benfica (Luz)". Sport Lisboa e Benfica - Site Oficial. Archived from the original on 30 August 2017. Retrieved 20 April 2016.
  11. ^ Hunter, James (20 April 2017). "The Princess Diana Stadium? Sir Bob Murray reveals request to rename the Stadium of Light". ChronicleLive. Retrieved 28 December 2018.
  12. ^ "15 Best Football Stadiums in the World". twelfthman blog. 10 December 2019. Archived from the original on 10 December 2019. Retrieved 10 December 2019.
  13. ^ "Arquiteto da Luz admite alargamento para 80 mil lugares" [Da Luz' architect admits enlargement to 80 thousand seats]. Bancada (in Portuguese). 29 October 2020. Retrieved 17 June 2023.
  14. ^ Moreira, António Vasconcelos (18 September 2019). "Expansão do Estádio da Luz pode passar pela venda de bilhetes para assistir aos jogos de pé". O Jornal Económico (in European Portuguese). Retrieved 29 November 2024.
  15. ^ "Notícia Record: Benfica aumenta lotação da Luz em 950 lugares". www.record.pt (in European Portuguese). Retrieved 29 November 2024.
  16. ^ "Full-time report" (PDF). UEFA.com. Union of European Football Associations. 24 May 2014. Retrieved 24 May 2014.
  17. ^ "Full Time Summary Quarter-finals – Barcelona v Bayern Munich" (PDF). UEFA.com. Union of European Football Associations. 14 August 2020. Retrieved 14 August 2020.
  18. ^ 6–5 after penalty shoot-out.
  19. ^ "As imagens do concerto de Ed Sheeran no estádio da Luz" [The pictures of Ed Sheeran's concert at Estádio da Luz]. Renascença (in Portuguese). 2 June 2019. Retrieved 28 June 2023.
  20. ^ "Ed Sheeran à beira de bater recorde em Portugal". Jornal Expresso (in European Portuguese). Retrieved 29 November 2024.
  21. ^ "Rammstein: a Luz com labaredas (as fotos)" [Rammstein: Luz with flames (the photos)]. M80 (in Portuguese). 28 June 2023. Retrieved 28 June 2023.
  22. ^ Cardoso, Joana Amaral (26 June 2023). "Rammstein quase esgotam o Estádio da Luz, com cantor suspeito de agressão sexual". PÚBLICO (in Portuguese). Retrieved 29 November 2024.
  23. ^ "Taylor Swift The Eras Tour". taylorswift.com. Retrieved 5 July 2023.
  24. ^ Portugal, Rádio e Televisão de (26 May 2024). "Taylor Swift em Lisboa. Mais de 120 mil pessoas assistiram aos dois concertos". Taylor Swift em Lisboa. Mais de 120 mil pessoas assistiram aos dois concertos (in Portuguese). Retrieved 29 November 2024.
  25. ^ "Imagine Dragons no Estádio da Luz em 2025". Blitz (in Portuguese). 9 September 2024. Retrieved 9 September 2024.
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Estádio da Luz.
Preceded by UEFA European Championship
Final venue
2004 		Succeeded by
Preceded by UEFA Champions League
Final venue
2014 		Succeeded by
Preceded by UEFA Champions League
Final venue
2020 		Succeeded by
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