Today, I learned about:

There are so many interesting events organized in the world today, be it sports, cultural, religious, political etc. And although many of those can be watched on a distance, via internet, there is a special feeling being on the venue personally.

But, in order to not only make the event something to be remembered for a long time by the spectators, we also need to have a good solution to turn the venue into a reusable place for so many different activities. Of course, it is desirable that the arena has the possibility of a rectractable roof, so that it may be used under the best possible weather conditions all year round. But, what if you want to combine a superb lawn surface for an exciting football game, a popular consert and also permit icehockey games with a perfect ice rink?

I think that the German city of Gelsenkirchen has come up with a very appealing solution. Their own football team, Schalke 04, is currently playing in the second division of the German championships, Bundesliga, after having been relegated from the first division two years ago. The icehockey team, EHC Gelsenkirchen, plays in a minor league in the German championships, using a dedicated arena, but what if it manages to be promoted to the first division and needs to host games with a much larger audience?

The solution is called Veltins-Arena, a multipurpose arena built in 2001 and that has lent its name to the neigboring brewery since 2005. The arena has hosted significant events, including the 2004 UEFA Champions League final, five matches at the 2006 FIFA World Cup including a quarter-final, and the 2010 Ice Hockey World Championship. It has also been the venue for concerts and other sports events such as the German Speedway Grand Prix and the 2018 German Darts Masters. The arena has hosted concerts by major artists and bands, including The Rolling Stones, Bruce Springsteen, Bon Jovi, Metallica, AC/DC, Taylor Swift and Rammstein.

But what makes the Veltins-Arena so adequate for holding such a variety of events? Besides the retractable roof I mentioned above, it is possible to slide out the whole central part of the stadium. That way, it is e.g. possible to guarantee that the grass lawn gets the right conditions to recover for an import football game after a sold-out rock consert. Today´s header photo shows the lawn being rolled into place, which takes 4 hours. More about Veltins-Arena can be found in References # 1 and 2 below.

That’s what I learned in school today! 

Ref.:

1: Veltins-Arena

2: Modernes Stadion: Der mobile Rasen auf Schalke

*: What did you learn in school today?