Stade de France

Stade de France is the official home of the French national team and is one of the biggest stadiums in the world. Constructed in 1988, this colossus structure ended up costing close to €300 million but it has been worth the time and effort. This ground stands tall as one of the largest in Europe with a capacity of over 80,000. The stadium was constructed primarily for the 1998 World Cup but it has been serving the French national team in different forms. Stade de France is also the home of the national rugby team.

Paris is an extremely vibrant city with several options for food, drink, and stay. A visiting supporter is likely to be spoilt for choice considering the immense possibilities, which run into the thousands quite easily. Some of the top pubs that away supporters can visit would be:

Little Temple Bar

This is a place that is named as a reference to the iconic drinking location in Dublin. There is plenty of Guinness on offer while supporters can also watch matches on large television screens.

Eden Park

This place was started in 1992 and it offers an excellent option for watching sports. The menu is good, wines are excellent, and there is also a happy hour to the boost.

All visiting supporters are unlikely to be cornered into one section of the stadium. Since the ground hosts the domestic matches with an equal split, it is difficult to define an away section on this ground. If the travelling contingent happens to be large, then additional blocks of seats would be allocated in one of the goal ends. Stade de France manages to offer world-class facilities.

How to get there by car & Where to park?

Situated in the heart of France, Stade de France is a well-developed destination for reaching by car. The stadium is about 10 km away from Paris city centre. There are detailed instructions about the directions and exits that one has to take to reach the stadium. One has to be prepared for some crazy traffic and driving on the way to the stadium, as the city is quite famed in this regard. There are two motorways – A1 and A86 – located close to the stadium. For those on the A1, the exit 2 has to be used while the exit 9 is applicable for those on the A86.

After getting to the stadium, one has to purchase a parking ticket while a car park booking page can also be accessed from the official site. The car park will be open for specific times of the day depending on the event type.

By train or metro

The train network available in Paris is excellent and this applies to the suburban network as well. One can get to the Stade de France from various parts of Paris using the strong suburban rail network. It takes around four minutes to get from Gare du Nord to the La Plaine Stade de France, while it is just 10 minutes from Châtelet. For those planning to come from the St Denis station, the journey will only take five minutes.

The closest station to the stadium happens to be the Saint-Denis – Porte de Paris. This is on the Light Blue line 13. Paris is extremely well-connected with all parts of Europe and there are even several high-speed train networks. It only takes a few hours to reach the city from most parts of Europe.

There are numerous events that take place at the Stade de France, as the French rugby team also use it for the home matches. Furthermore, there are several events that take place in the stadium and they come with their own pricing structure. If the ticket is for a high-profile game like the European Championship, one can expect to pay top dollar. The seating position and quality of the opposition are factors that decide the price of tickets to watch the French national team.

Stade de France has a lot to focus on disabled individuals. The stadium has several facilities dedicated for such individuals including a disability card, which can be availed by anyone with more than 80% disability. There are such cards available for parking access as well. If anyone has 80% or more disability or long withstanding difficulties, they can pick up the disabled priority card.

The attention to such individuals can also be seen in the tours section, as guided tours are offered even for those on wheelchairs.

France Fixture List (redirects you to the BBC site)

Guingamp v Rennes in 2009: 80,832