From June 12 to July 2, Euro 2020 matches will be held in St. Petersburg, which was postponed due to the pandemic. There will be seven matches in total, including one quarter finals. Other matches will be hosted by 10 more European cities, and the final will take place in London on 11 July. During the championship, St. Petersburg will become the base for the teams of three countries – Russia, Finland and Slovakia. The Finnish national team will be accommodated at the base-stadium in the city of Zelenogorsk, territorially related to St. Petersburg, by the way, which until 1946 was named Terijoki in Finnish. During the period of the Russian Empire by the end of the 19th century, approximately equal numbers of Finns and Russians lived there. Slovak players will occupy the training base of the St. Petersburg club Zenith, located in the huge landscape park Udelny between two metro stations Pionerskaya and Udelnaya. Near the latter, by the way, is the largest and most famous flea market in the city. The Russian team will be preparing for matches at the historic Petrovsky Stadium in the very center on Petrovsky Island in the Malaya Neva, hence the name. Built already in 1925, the stadium has undergone several renovations, but still retains its original architectural appearance. Currently, Zenit children’s football school trains on it.

The matches of Euro 2020 in St. Petersburg will be held at the new arena, the home stadium of the Zenit club, which is called the Gazprom Arena. It also hosted the games of the 2018 World Cup. The arena is located on the western tip of Krestovsky Island in the central part of St. Petersburg, most of which is occupied by the Primorsky Victory Park. The neighboring island of Elagin, which can be reached via a pedestrian bridge, is completely occupied by a huge landscape park with ponds, the main green zone of the city center; in total, two parks occupy an area of 100 hectares. The stadium’s capacity varies from 56 to 80 thousand spectators, depending on the event. At the end of 2018, a record of 81 thousand spectators was recorded during the Russia-Finland hockey match.

Fan zones UEFA

Those fans who cannot get to the stadium will still be able to enjoy the festive atmosphere. There will be several places in the city where you can watch football or just have fun.

For starters, these are the three official fan zones of Euro 2020, which are the responsibility of the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA). One of them will be located on Konyushennaya Square and will be called the Football Village. A public viewing area for playoff matches will be located on Palace Square. The third point will be the fan zone in the Yubileiny Sports Palace. But that’s not all. By order of the Culture Committee, three venues will be built in the city, where entertainment events for fans will be held. One of them will be located on Moskovskaya Square near the Fountain Complex, the second – on Nevsky Prospekt near the Central Portico of Bolshoy Gostiny Dvor, and the third – in Primorsky Victory Park on the territory adjacent to the football stadium in the western part of Krestovsky Island (on the central square of Battery Road near the fountain ). The first and second sites will be open daily from 2pm to 7pm without a break. As for the site at the Gazprom Arena, it will function on match days for at least five hours. The concert program at the stadium on match days will begin one and a half hours before the start of the match and end one and a half hours after its completion.

Be sure to check it out!

Museum “Apartment No. 60” dedicated to football. The exhibition space, aka an impromptu Soviet living space, is located at Konyushennaya Square, 2b.

  • The art installation is dedicated to the victory of the USSR national team in 1960. Our team then became the European champion for the first time. On July 10, 1960, the USSR national team defeated the Yugoslav national team in the final of the European Championship with a score of 2: 1. In this apartment from the times of the Soviet Union, football rarities are collected: things, posters, cups, sports equipment, books, magazines and much more. The atmosphere and themes of the exhibition space are supported by Soviet household itemss. The main exhibits are an official copy of the Euro Cup and the original Golden ball.
  • TROPHY EURO. The main prize of the European Football Championships was named in honor of the first UEFA Secretary General Henri Delaunay, who put forward the idea of European championships back in 1927 and did not live to see its implementation for 5 years. The trophy, made in the form of an antique silver amphora, was first presented in June 1958 during the draw for the upcoming Cup, and two years later the USSR national team became its first owner. The award, which Igor Netto raised above his head, weighed 6 kilograms – 2 less than the current one.
  • GOLDEN BALL. Lev Yashin surprised contemporaries with his willingness to play not only on the goal line, but in the entire penalty area. The status of the best goalkeeper in history is confirmed by the Golden Ball – the Euro 1960 champion is still the only goalkeeper to receive this award. The final world recognition of the innovative footballer was consolidated by his game for the world team against the British in October 1963. Two months later, he beat Gianni Rivera and Jimmy Greaves in the France Football vote.