1. Rungrado 1st of May Stadium / Pyongyang, North Korea. Image via Viktoria Gaman / Shutterstock.com
In 776 BC, the Olympic Games of antiquity were hosted at the Olympia stadium in Peloponnese, Greece, an arena widely believed to be the world’s oldest stadium. The elongated U-shaped track and stand had a capacity of up to 45,000 people.
Almost 3000 years later, and the typology of the sports stadium continues to act as a gathering place for tens of thousands of eager spectators. As populations, and indeed revenue generated from sporting events continues to increase around the world, the design of sports stadiums is destined to follow suit.
Below, we have rounded up the 25 largest active sports stadiums in the world in terms of total capacity. The list spans 10 countries, with an impressive 15 out of 25 stadiums located within the United States. Note that this list does not include race tracks, closed or inactive stadiums, or figures attained from temporary spectator capacity.
1. Rungrado 1st of May Stadium / Pyongyang, North Korea
1. Rungrado 1st of May Stadium / Pyongyang, North Korea. Image via Viktoria Gaman / Shutterstock.com
Architect: Unknown
Capacity: 114,000
Tenant: Korea DPR national football team
2. Michigan Stadium / Ann Arbor, MI, USA
2. Michigan Stadium / Ann Arbor, MI, USA. Image courtesy of flickr user mgoblog. Licensed under CC BY-NC 2.0
Architect: Bernard L. Green / HNTB
Capacity: 107,600
Tenant: Michigan Wolverines football
3. Beaver Stadium / State College PA, USA
3. Beaver Stadium / State College PA, USA. Image courtesy of flickr user drocpsu. Licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0
Architect: Michael Baker Jr., Inc. / HOK Sport
Capacity: 106,600
Tenant: Penn State Nittany Lions football
4. Ohio Stadium / Columbus OH, USA
4. Ohio Stadium / Columbus OH, USA. Image courtesy of flickr user fensterbme. Licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0
Architect: Howard Dwight Smith
Capacity: 104,900
Tenant: Ohio State Buckeyes football
5. Kyle Field / College Station, Texas, USA
5. Kyle Field / College Station, Texas, USA. Image courtesy of flickr user eschipul. Licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0
Architect: F.E. Geisecke / Lockwood, Andrews & Newnam / Populous
Capacity: 102,700
Tenant: Texas A&M Aggies football
6. Neyland Stadium / Knoxville, Tennessee, USA
6. Neyland Stadium / Knoxville, Tennessee, USA. Image courtesy of flickr user kmoliver. Licensed under CC BY-NC 2.0
Architect: McCarty Holsaple McCarty
Capacity: 102,400
Tenant: Tennessee Volunteers football
7. Tiger Stadium / Baton Rouge, Louisiana, USA
7. Tiger Stadium / Baton Rouge, Louisiana, USA. Image courtesy of flickr user 23881321@N03. Licensed under CC BY-NC 2.0
Architect: Wogan and Bernard / Trahan Architects
Capacity: 102,300
Tenant: LSU Tigers football
8. Bryant-Denny Stadium / Tuscaloosa, Alabama, USA
8. Bryant-Denny Stadium / Tuscaloosa, Alabama, USA. Image courtesy of flickr user 23881321@N03. Licensed under CC BY-NC 2.0
Architect: Davis
Capacity: 101,800
Tenant: Alabama Crimson Tide football
9. Darrell K Royal – Texas Memorial Stadium / Austin, Texas, USA
9. Darrell K Royal – Texas Memorial Stadium / Austin, Texas, USA. Image courtesy of flickr user wesbrowning. Licensed under CC BY-NC 2.0
Architect: Herbert M. Greene
Capacity: 100,100
Tenant: Texas Longhorns football
10. Melbourne Cricket Ground / Melbourne, Australia
10. Melbourne Cricket Ground / Melbourne, Australia. Image via Scottt13 / Shutterstock.com
Architect: Ancon
Capacity: 100,000
Tenant: Melbourne Cricket Club
11. Camp Nou / Barcelona, Spain
11. Camp Nou / Barcelona, Spain. Image via Iakov Filimonov / Shutterstock.com
Architect: Francesc Mitjans
Capacity: 99,300
Tenant: FC Barcelona
12. Soccer City / Johannesburg, South Africa
12. Soccer City / Johannesburg, South Africa. Image courtesy of flickr user kartaba. Licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0
Architect: Boogertman & Partners / Populous
Capacity: 94,700
Tenant: South African national football team
13. Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum / Los Angeles, California, USA
13. Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum / Los Angeles, California, USA. Image courtesy of flickr user skinnylawyer. Licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0
Architect: John and Donald Parkinson / DLR Group
Capacity: 93,600
Tenant: USC Trojans football, Los Angeles Rams
14. Sanford Stadium / Athens, Georgia, USA
14. Sanford Stadium / Athens, Georgia, USA. Image courtesy of flickr user geekstar. Licensed under CC BY-NC 2.0
Architect: TC Atwood / Heely International
Capacity: 92,700
Tenant: Georgia Bulldogs football
15. Rose Bowl / Pasadena, California, USA
15. Rose Bowl / Pasadena, California, USA. Image
Architect: Myron Hunt
Capacity: 92,500
Tenant: UCLA Bruins football
16. Cotton Bowl Stadium / Dallas, Texas, USA
16. Cotton Bowl Stadium / Dallas, Texas, USA. Image courtesy of flickr user williamaddington. Licensed under CC BY-NC 2.0
Architect: Mark Lemmon / George Dahl / Hellmuth Obata & Kassalbaum
Capacity: 92,100
Tenant: City of Dallas
17. Wembley Stadium / London, UK
17. Wembley Stadium / London, UK. Image courtesy of Nigel Young
Architect: Populous / Foster + Parters / Nathaniel Lichfield and Partners
Capacity: 90,000
Tenant: English national football team
18. Ben Hill Griffin Stadium / Gainesville, Florida, USA
18. Ben Hill Griffin Stadium / Gainesville, Florida, USA. Image courtesy of flickr user greatdegree. Licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0
Architect: Rudolph Weaver
Capacity: 88,500
Tenant: Florida Gators football
19. Jordan-Hare Stadium / Auburn, Alabama, USA
19. Jordan-Hare Stadium / Auburn, Alabama, USA. Image courtesy of flickr user australianshepherds. Licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0
Architect: Warren, Knight, and Davis
Capacity: 87,400
Tenant: Auburn Tigers football
20. Bukit Jalil National Stadium / Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
20. Bukit Jalil National Stadium / Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Image courtesy of flickr user phalinn. Licensed under CC BY 2.0
Architect: Arkitek FAA / Weidleplan Consulting Gmbh / Shlaich Bergermann Partner / Populous
Capacity: 87,400
Tenant: Malaysia national football team
21. Estadio Azteca / Mexico City, Mexico
21. Estadio Azteca / Mexico City, Mexico. Image courtesy of flickr user Jymlii Manzo. Licensed under CC BY 2.0
Architect: Pedro Ramirez Vazquez
Capacity: 87,000
Tenant: Club America, Cruz Azul, Mexico national football team
22. Memorial Stadium / Lincoln, Nebraska, USA
22. Memorial Stadium / Lincoln, Nebraska, USA. Image courtesy of flickr user asten. Licensed under CC BY-NC 2.0
Architect: John Latenser Sr. and Sons / Davis & Wilson
Capacity: 86,000
Tenant: Nebraska Cornhusker football
23. Borg El Arab / Alexandria, Egypt
23. Borg El Arab / Alexandria, Egypt. Image via Think Marketing Magazine
Architect: Egyptian Armed Forces Corps of Engineers
Capacity: 86,000
Tenant: Egypt national football team
24. Salt Lake Stadium / Kolkata, India
24. Salt Lake Stadium / Kolkata, India. Image wikimedia user Debnathsonu 1996. Licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0
Architect: Ballardie, Thompson & Matthews Pvt. Ltd / H.K. Sen & Associates
Capacity: 85,000
Tenant: India national football team
25. Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium / Norman, Oklahoma, USA
25. Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium / Norman, Oklahoma, USA. Image via wikimedia user Toniklemm. Licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0
Architect: Layton & Kicks / HOK Sport / 360 Architecture
Capacity: 84,400
Tenant: Oklahoma Sooners football