Parc des Princes

The Parc des Princes ({{#invoke:IPA|main}}, Template:Lit) is an all-seater football stadium in Paris, France.<ref name="olympics">Template:Cite news</ref> It is located in the south-west of the French capital, inside the 16th arrondissement, near the Stade Jean-Bouin and Stade Roland Garros.<ref name="olympics"/><ref name="uefa">Template:Cite news</ref>

The stadium, with a seating capacity of 47,929 spectators, has been the home of football club Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) since 1974.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="real">Template:Cite news</ref> Before the opening of the Stade de France in 1998, it was the home stadium of France's national football team and national rugby union team.<ref name="real"/> The Parc des Princes pitch is surrounded by four covered all-seater stands, officially known as Tribune Borelli, Tribune Auteuil, Tribune Paris, and Tribune Boulogne.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Conceived by architect Roger Taillibert and Siavash Teimouri, the current version of the Parc des Princes officially opened on 25 May 1972, at a cost of 80–150 million francs.<ref name="PSG">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="infopsg">Template:Cite news</ref> The stadium is the third to have been built on the site, the first opening its doors in 1897 and the second in 1932.<ref name="uefa"/>

PSG registered its record home attendance in 1983, when 49,575 spectators witnessed the club's 2–0 win over Waterschei in the European Cup Winners' Cup quarter-finals.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> However, the France national rugby union team holds the stadium's absolute attendance record. They defeated Wales, 31–12, in the 1989 Five Nations Championship in front of 50,370 spectators.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

History

Original stadium (1897–1932)

File:ParcdesPrinces1908.jpg

The original Parc des Princes under the snow in 1908

Originally called Stade Vélodrome du Parc des Princes, the stadium was inaugurated on 18 July 1897. Situated in the 16th arrondissement of Paris, the area was a forested parkland used by the royal family before the French Revolution. This gave the Parc des Princes its name.<ref name="infopsg"/><ref name="blizzard">Template:Cite news</ref>

With more than 3,000 seats, the velodrome had a 728-yard track.<ref name="infopsg"/><ref name="blizzard"/> The director of the stadium, Henri Desgrange, was a former racing cyclist and founder of the cycling magazine L'Auto (predecessor of L'Équipe).<ref name="blizzard"/> The Parc des Princes marked the finish of the Tour from its first edition in 1903 until 1967.<ref name="real"/> The 1900 UCI Track Cycling World Championships was held at the Parc des Princes.<ref name="blizzard"/>

In 1903, an English side easily defeated a team composed by the best Parisian players (11–0) in front of 984 paying spectators, in what was the first international football played at the Parc des Princes.<ref name="infopsg"/> In 1905, the France national football team contested its first ever home match against Switzerland, winning 1–0 at the Parc des Princes.<ref name="infopsg"/><ref name="blizzard"/> Subsequently, the stadium welcomed further prestigious friendly games, but also four USFSA French Championship finals, as well as the 1919 Coupe de France Final between CASG Paris and Olympique de Paris in front of 10,000 spectators.<ref name="infopsg"/>

PSG's home also boasts a long history as an international rugby venue.<ref name="uefa"/> In 1906, the France national rugby union team played their debut international, against the New Zealand national rugby union team. Other tenants included the Racing Club de France.<ref name="blizzard"/>

The stadium capacity was increased to 20,000 by the start of the 1924 Summer Olympics, held in Paris. However, Stade Olympique Yves-du-Manoir, which had been expanded to 60,000 seats, hosted the event.<ref name="blizzard"/>

Second stadium (1932–1972)

File:1932 Le parc des princes v1.jpg

The second Parc des Princes in 1932

In the 1930s, L'Auto founder Henri Desgrange and his business partner Victor Goddet carried out a thorough reconstruction of the Parc des Princes and expanded it so that the sports arena had seats for 45,000 visitors, including 26,000 covered.<ref name="infopsg"/><ref name="blizzard"/> The new stadium opened on 19 April 1932.<ref name="uefa"/><ref name="infopsg"/> Its capacity, however, was quickly reduced to 38,000 seats to improve comfort.<ref name="infopsg"/> The Parc des Princes hosted the opening match of the 1938 FIFA World Cup between Switzerland and Germany as well as the victory of Hungary in the semi-final against Sweden. But Stade Olympique Yves-du-Manoir continued to be more important, hosting the 1938 FIFA World Cup final in which Italy beat the Hungarians 4–2 to claim its second consecutive world title.<ref name="blizzard"/>

Following the Liberation of Paris in August 1944 and the end of World War II in September 1945, the French football championship returned, with big Parisian clubs Stade français-Red Star and Racing Paris regularly playing at the Parc des Princes. Still equipped with a cycling track of 454 metres, the Tour de France was not the only major sporting event hosted at this stadium.<ref name="real"/><ref name="infopsg"/> The Parc des Princes also hosted the 1954 Rugby League World Cup final, which saw Great Britain defeat hosts France in the inaugural staging of the Rugby League World Cup;<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Real Madrid's win over Stade de Reims in the first ever European Cup final in 1956;<ref name="real"/> and the 1960 European Nations' Cup final, which saw the Soviet Union claim the first edition of the tournament after beating Yugoslavia.<ref name="uefa"/>

Current stadium (1972–present)

Conceived by French architect Roger Taillibert and Iranian artist Siavash Teimouri, the third and current Parc des Princes is one of the continent's most emblematic and historic venues.<ref name="real"/><ref name="blizzard"/> It is a landmark and legally protected icon of French architecture.<ref name="euro">Template:Cite news</ref> It was also the first stadium with lighting systems integrated onto its elliptical roof, and to this day is praised for its unique acoustics and its distinctive concrete ribs or razors.<ref name="olympics"/>

File:Paris, ortophotograph Parc des Princes.jpg

The current Parc des Princes seen from above

The inauguration of the Parc des Princes took place on 25 May 1972 on the occasion of the football match between France and USSR. The new stadium also hosted the 1972 Coupe de France Final between Olympique de Marseille and Bastia on 4 June 1972, and the 1972 Rugby League World Cup.<ref name="infopsg"/><ref name="blizzard"/><ref name="Rugby">Template:Cite news</ref> That same year, Paris Saint-Germain – a fusion between Paris FC and Stade Saint-Germain – went through a bitter divorce. Paris FC remained in Ligue 1, while PSG kept their name but were administratively demoted to Division 3.<ref name="psg70">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="pfc">Template:Cite news</ref>

PSG played their first game at the Parc des Princes against Ligue 2 promotion rivals Red Star on 10 November 1973, as a curtain-raiser for that season's league season between Paris FC and Sochaux. PSG won 3–1 as Othniel Dossevi scored the club's first goal at the stadium.<ref name="dossevi">Template:Cite news</ref> PSG returned to Ligue 1 in 1974, ironically the same year that Paris FC were relegated. They immediately moved into the Parc des Princes, which up until that point had been the home stadium of Paris FC.<ref name="psg70"/><ref name="pfc"/> Before that, PSG had been playing at several grounds including the Stade Georges Lefèvre, the Stade Jean-Bouin, the Stade Bauer, and even the Parc des Princes a few times that season despite the reluctance of Paris FC.<ref name="hechter">Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Thereafter, Paris FC and Racing Paris also played at the Parc des Princes while they were in Ligue 1 (until 1990), but never reaching the numbers of attendance leaders PSG.<ref name="infopsg"/>

Following its opening, the Parc des Princes finally became France's biggest stadium.<ref name="blizzard"/> This was where the national and international cup finals took place, including every single Coupe de France from 1972 to 1997, and three European club finals (the 1975 European Cup Final, the 1978 European Cup Winners' Cup Final, and the 1981 European Cup Final), and the 1991 Rugby World Cup.<ref name="uefa"/><ref name="blizzard"/><ref name="Rugby"/> Most importantly, the Parc des Princes saw France defeat Spain in the UEFA Euro 1984 Final to claim its first-ever title. In 1992, France was named to host the 1998 World Cup. It was the country's first since 1938 and construction of a new arena began in May 1995, at the same time that Parc des Princes hosted the 1995 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup Final.<ref name="blizzard"/>

Inaugurated in January 1998, the Stade de France was the stadium of the future, while the Parc des Princes hosted its last international final that same year: the 1998 UEFA Cup Final.<ref name="blizzard"/> France have only played twice at the Parc des Princes since 1998: against Scotland during the UEFA Euro 2008 qualifiers in September 2007, and versus Australia in a friendly match in October 2013.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Nonetheless, the stadium has still staged games at the 1998 FIFA World Cup, 2007 Rugby World Cup, UEFA Euro 2016 and 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup.<ref name="uefa"/><ref name="real"/>

Renovation and expansion

In November 2013, PSG reached an agreement with the Paris City Council, owner of the Parc des Princes, to extend their stadium lease for a further 30 years until 2043, based on a fixed rent plus a variable share of their income.<ref name="blizzard"/><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="goal">Template:Cite news</ref> Subsequently, under the guidance of American architect Tom Sheehan, PSG completed a three-year €75 million upgrade of the Parc des Princes (2012, 2013–2014, 2015–2016) ahead of the UEFA Euro 2016 in France.<ref name="euro"/><ref name="goal"/>

Two additional rows of seats were added, allowing the ground to remain at its current capacity, despite now boasting larger and more comfortable seats.<ref name="goal"/> Hospitality capacity went from 1,200 to 4,500, and new substitutes' benches and spacious, modern changing rooms that include warm-up and treatment rooms were installed.<ref name="real"/><ref name="goal"/> Carrying out this renovation work saw PSG's stadium revenue swell from €20m to €100m.<ref name="goal"/>

PSG are also looking to increase the capacity of their home to 60,000 in the coming years.<ref name="goal"/> From the start of their ownership at the club, Qatar Sports Investments (QSI) made it clear that a larger stadium is necessary to establish PSG as one of the leading European clubs. Originally, there were two options under consideration: move to the Stade de France or expand the Parc des Princes. The former was discarded following the redevelopments made to the Parc des Princes ahead of the Euro 2016.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> There have also been rumours that QSI are interested in buying the Parc des Princes for a fee believed to be around €150m.<ref name="blizzard"/>

Major tournament matches

FIFA World Cup

File:Germany v Switzerland WC 1938 (2).jpg

Germany vs Switzerland at the 1938 FIFA World Cup

Date	Team #1	Result	Team #2	Round	Attendance	Edition
4 June 1938	Template:Fb	1–1 (a.e.t.)	Template:Fb	Round of 16	27,152	1938 FIFA World Cup
9 June 1938	Template:Fb	2–4	Template:Fb	Round of 16 replay	20,025
16 June 1938	Template:Fb	5–1	Template:Fb	Semi-finals	20,000
15 June 1998	Template:Fb	2–0	Template:Fb	Group stage	45,500	1998 FIFA World Cup
19 June 1998	Template:Fb	1–0	Template:Fb	Group stage	45,500
21 June 1998	Template:Fb	5–0	Template:Fb	Group stage	45,500
25 June 1998	Template:Fb	1–1	Template:Fb	Group stage	45,500
28 June 1998	Template:Fb	4–1	Template:Fb	Round of 16	45,500
11 July 1998	Template:Fb	1–2	Template:Fb	Third place play-off	45,500

FIFA Women's World Cup

File:Match ouverture Coupe Monde féminine football 2019 France Corée Sud 7 juin 2019 Parc Princes Paris 37.jpg

France vs South Korea at the 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup

Date	Team #1	Result	Team #2	Round	Attendance	Edition
7 June 2019	Template:Fbw	4–0	Template:Fbw	Group stage	45,261	2019 FIFA Women's World Cup
10 June 2019	Template:Fbw	0–0	Template:Fbw	Group stage	25,055
13 June 2019	Template:Fbw	0–1	Template:Fbw	Group stage	20,011
16 June 2019	Template:Fbw	3–0	Template:Fbw	Group stage	45,594
19 June 2019	Template:Fbw	3–3	Template:Fbw	Group stage	28,205
24 June 2019	Template:Fbw	1–0	Template:Fbw	Round of 16	38,078
28 June 2019	Template:Fbw	1–2	Template:Fbw	Quarter-finals	45,595

UEFA European Championship

File:Port aut em2016 3.jpg

Portugal vs Austria at UEFA Euro 2016

Date	Team #1	Result	Team #2	Round	Attendance	Edition
6 July 1960	Template:Fb	4–5	Template:Fb	Semi-finals	26,370	1960 European Nations' Cup
10 July 1960	Template:Fb	2–1 (a.e.t.)	Template:Fb	Final	17,966
12 June 1984	Template:Fb	1–0	Template:Fb	Group stage	47,570	UEFA Euro 1984
20 June 1984	Template:Fb	0–1	Template:Fb	Group stage	47,691
27 June 1984	Template:Fb	2–0	Template:Fb	Final	47,368
12 June 2016	Template:Fb	0–1	Template:Fb	Group stage	43,842	UEFA Euro 2016
15 June 2016	Template:Fb	1–1	Template:Fb	Group stage	43,576
18 June 2016	Template:Fb	0–0	Template:Fb	Group stage	44,291
21 June 2016	Template:Fb	0–1	Template:Fb	Group stage	44,125
25 June 2016	Template:Fb	1–0	Template:Fb	Round of 16	44,342

UEFA Champions League

Date	Team #1	Result	Team #2	Round	Attendance	Edition
13 June 1956	Template:Fbaicon Real Madrid	4–3	Template:Fbaicon Reims	Final	38,239	1955–56 European Cup
28 May 1975	Template:Flagicon Bayern Munich	2–0	Template:Flagicon Leeds United	Final	48,374	1974–75 European Cup
27 May 1981	Template:Fbaicon Liverpool	1–0	Template:Fbaicon Real Madrid	Final	48,360	1980–81 European Cup

UEFA Cup Winners' Cup

Date	Team #1	Result	Team #2	Round	Attendance	Edition
3 May 1978	Template:Flagicon Anderlecht	4–0	Template:Flagicon Austria Wien	Final	48,679	1977–78 European Cup Winners' Cup
10 May 1995	Template:Flagicon Arsenal	1–2	Template:Flagicon Zaragoza	Final	42,424	1994–95 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup

UEFA Europa League

Date	Team #1	Result	Team #2	Round	Attendance	Edition
6 May 1998	Template:Flagicon Lazio	0–3	Template:Flagicon Inter Milan	Final	44,412	1997–98 UEFA Cup

UEFA Super Cup

Date	Team #1	Result	Team #2	Round	Attendance	Edition
15 January 1997	Template:Flagicon Paris Saint-Germain	1–6	Template:Flagicon Juventus	Final	29,519	1996 UEFA Super Cup

Latin Cup

Date	Team #1	Result	Team #2	Round	Attendance	Edition
29 June 1952	Template:Flagdeco Barcelona	1–0	Template:Flagdeco Nice	Final	Unknown	1952 Latin Cup
26 June 1955	Template:Flagdeco Real Madrid	2–0	Template:Flagdeco Reims	Final	Unknown	1955 Latin Cup

Rugby World Cup

File:Italie Portugal 19-09-07 (5).jpg

Italy vs Portugal at the 2007 Rugby World Cup

Date	Team #1	Result	Team #2	Round	Attendance	Edition
19 October 1991	Template:Ru	10–19	Template:Ru	Quarter-finals	48,500	1991 Rugby World Cup
9 September 2007	Template:Ru	59–7	Template:Ru	Pool stage	46,575	2007 Rugby World Cup
19 September 2007	Template:Ru	31–5	Template:Ru	Pool stage	45,476
28 September 2007	Template:Ru	36–20	Template:Ru	Pool stage	45,085
30 September 2007	Template:Ru	15–30	Template:Ru	Pool stage	45,450
19 October 2007	Template:Ru	10–34	Template:Ru	Bronze final	45,958

Rugby League World Cup

Date	Team #1	Result	Team #2	Round	Attendance	Edition
30 October 1954	Template:Rl	22–13	Template:Rl	Group stage	13,240	1954 Rugby League World Cup
13 November 1954	Template:Rl	12–16	Template:Rl	Final	30,368
1 November 1972	Template:Rl	9–5	Template:Rl	Group stage	8,000	1972 Rugby League World Cup

European Rugby Champions Cup

Date	Team #1	Result	Team #2	Round	Attendance	Edition
19 May 2001	Template:Flagicon Stade Français	30–34	Template:Flagicon Leicester Tigers	Final	44,000	2000–01 Heineken Cup

Summer Olympics

File:Uzbekistan vs. Spain, 2024 Summer Olympic men's association football, 2024-07-24 (266).jpg

Uzbekistan vs Spain at the 2024 Summer Olympics

Date	Team #1	Result	Team #2	Round	Attendance	Edition
24 July 2024	Template:Fbu	1–2	Template:Fbu	Men's group C	33,732	2024 Summer Olympics
24 July 2024	Template:Fbu	1–1	Template:Fbu	Men's group D	10,637
27 July 2024	Template:Fbu	2–4	Template:Fbu	Men's group D	28,887
28 July 2024	Template:Fbw	1–2	Template:Fbw	Women's group C	40,918
30 July 2024	Template:Fbu	1–1	Template:Fbu	Men's group C	30,475
30 July 2024	Template:Fbu	1–0	Template:Fbu	Men's group D	35,736
2 August 2024	Template:Fbu	4–0	Template:Fbu	Men's quarter-finals	42,868
3 August 2024	Template:Fbw	1–0 Template:Aet	Template:Fbw	Women's quarter-finals	43,004
9 August 2024	Template:Fbu	3–5 Template:Aet	Template:Fbu	Men's final	44,260
10 August 2024	Template:Fbw	0–1	Template:Fbw	Women's final	43,813

Concerts

Since its musical debut in June 1988, when Michael Jackson took the stage, the Parc des Princes has often hosted major concerts. Jackson played there again in 1997. The stadium was also used as a venue by other major artists, including The Rolling Stones and Prince in 1990, Johnny Hallyday in 1993, and David Bowie in 1997, as part of the Rock Festival in Paris. Following a show from U2 in 1997, the venue had a six-year musical hiatus.<ref name="Concerts">Template:Cite news</ref>

Johnny Hallyday's second stint in June 2003, with four concerts to celebrate his 60th anniversary, reactivated the music scene at the Parc des Princes. He remains the singer who performed the most live concerts, seven in total. It subsequently welcomed the likes of Red Hot Chili Peppers (2004), Metallica (2004), Moby (2005), Iron Maiden (2005), Robbie Williams (2006), Muse (2007), Genesis (2007), Bruce Springsteen (2008), and Coldplay (2009). In June 2010, French hip hop group Suprême NTM and American rock band Green Day marked the last music chapter at the stadium in a long time.<ref name="Concerts"/>

In June 2022, DJ Snake became the first artist to perform at the Parc des Princes in twelve years. He was followed by French singer Dadju later that same month.<ref name="Concerts"/>

Gallery

• Paris Parc des Princes 3.jpg

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• 2016-06-17 Paris-Parc des Princes.jpg

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See also

• Camp des Loges
• Stade Georges Lefèvre
• Campus PSG

External links

• PSG.FR - Site officiel du Paris Saint-Germain

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