Millennium Stadium
The Millennium Stadium is the national stadium of Wales, located in the capital Cardiff. It is the home of the Wales national rugby union team and the Wales national football team but is also host to many other large scale events, such as Wales Rally Great Britain stage of the World Rally Championship, Speedway Grand Prix of Great Britain, boxing and many music concerts, including Tina Turner, Madonna, The Rolling Stones and Tsunami Relief concert. It was built ready for Cardiff to host the 1999 Rugby World Cup.
The stadium opened in June 1999, and the first major event to be held was an international rugby union match on 26 June 1999, when Wales beat South Africa in a friendly by 29-19, before a test crowd of 29,000. It is the second largest stadium in the world with a fully retractable roof and was only the second stadium in Europe to have this facility. It is the fourth largest stadium in the Six Nations Championship behind Twickenham, Stade de France and Croke Park, which is the largest.
Millennium Stadium Features
The all-seater stadium has the capacity for 74,500 supporters and features a retractable roof, only the second stadium of its type in Europe, and the largest such stadium in the world with this feature, by capacity. Additional seating is sometimes added for special events such as a rugby Test against the New Zealand All Blacks, or for the FA Cup Final. The current record attendance is 74,576, recorded at Wales’ 30–15 victory over Scotland in the 2008 Six Nations Championship on 9 February 2008.
The natural grass turf is a made up of a modular system installed by GreenTech ITM. It features built in irrigation and drainage. The pitch itself is laid on top of some 7,412 pallets which can be moved so the stadium can be used for concerts, exhibitions and other events.
The four ends of the ground are called; the North Stand, the West Stand, the South Stand and the BT Stand (east). The South Stand was previously known as the Hyder Stand, until Hyder plc was sold. The stadium has 3 tiers of seating with the exception of the North Stand, which has 2 tiers. The lower tier holds approximately 23,500 spectators, the middle tier holding 18,000 and the upper tier holding 33,000 spectators.
Events
The stadium has also been used for a variety of musical events, the most famous being the Manic Street Preachers concert held on Millennium Eve, and, on the following day, a recording of the BBC’s Songs of Praise, which attracted an attendance of 60,000. Tina Turner performed a sold-out concert at the stadium during her highly successful Twenty Four Seven Tour in 2000.] At the end of January 2005, the stadium hosted a tsunami relief concert in aid of the victims of the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami, with Eric Clapton headlining the event. The stadium has also been host to Madonna on two occasions, the first in July 2006 when she opened the UK leg of her Confessions Tour, and most recently in August 2008 when she kicked off her Sticky & Sweet Tour at the stadium. Other performers who have played at the stadium include Robbie Williams, U2, Red Hot Chili Peppers, The Rolling Stones, Bon Jovi, R.E.M., and The Police. As well, in late 2005 the stadium welcomed rock band Oasis during their Don’t Believe the Truth Tour and will again in their summer of 2009 stadia tour. In 2008 the stadium hosted Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band as part of their 2008 summer tour promoting Springsteen’s 23rd album Magic, along with Neil Diamond. U2 will close the European leg of their U2 360° Tour in the stadium on 22 August 2009.
