Friday, 17 June 2016

Stade Velodrome- Olympique de Marseille


Visits:1
France 2-0 Albania (European Championships Group A, June 15th 2016)
Stands I’ve Been in: Tribune Jean Bouin
Ticket Price (1st Visit): 80 Euros
Attendance (1st Visit): 63,670
Address: 3 Boulevard Michelet, 13008 Marseille, France

Transport

Marseille has a pretty thorough transport network, the number 2 metro line has two stops within 5 minutes walk of the ground.


Ground exterior

Food & Drink

Never ate anything in the ground, but they did have guys walking around the ceowd selling beer and coke! The Vieux Port in the city has loads of bars and places to eat and is only a couple of stops away from the ground on the metro. Loads outside the ground too.

  
Increased security outside the ground

Inside the Ground

Despite recent redevelopment, the Velodrome's curving ends are iconic. Both sides are now a bit more symmetrical, and it's an absolutely breathtaking venue. Our seats were actually classed as restricted view, but the only restriction was the barrier at the very front, which actually restricted very little. .  


Between 15-20k Albanian fans from all over Europe in the ground

Atmosphere

Incredible. Having so many Albanians present certainly helped, but the noise when either set of fans got going was deafening. Watching the host nation singing their national anthem in a ground that noisy was something else to see as well. 


French fans in the Virage Nord

Anything Else


Three sides of the ground erupt as France win the game late on

Overall

A ground Ive wanted to visit since I was a teenager. Well worth any chance you get to have a trip here.