Centenary Stadium

Centenary
Full name Centenary Stadium
Location Malta Ta' Qali, Attard, Malta
Coordinates 35°53′47.8″N 14°24′55.5″E / 35.896611°N 14.415417°E / 35.896611; 14.415417Coordinates: 35°53′47.8″N 14°24′55.5″E / 35.896611°N 14.415417°E / 35.896611; 14.415417
Owner Government of Malta
Operator Malta Football Association
Capacity 3,000[1]
Field size 100 m × 65 m (328 ft × 213 ft) [2]
Surface Artificial turf
Opened 13 August 1999
Tenants
Malta national under-21 football team
Malta women's national football team
Maltese football league

The Centenary Stadium (Maltese: il-Grawnd taċ-Ċentinarju) is a stadium located in Ta' Qali, Malta. The stadium, which is situated next to the National Stadium, houses the headquarters of the Malta Youth Football Association. It seats 3,000 and serves as the home stadium of the Malta national under-21 football team. The stadium, together with three other stadiums, also hosts matches of the Maltese Premier League, Maltese First Division and Maltese FA Trophy.

History

Background and early years

As early as back in 1985, the Malta Football Association was already looking to develop a new small stadium. This idea started to take shape on 11 October 1998, when the then President of Malta Dr Ugo Mifsud Bonnici laid the first stone of the stadium.[3] The development, which consisted in the construction of a main stand and a canopy, lasted less than a year as on 13 August 1999 the stadium was inaugurated by Dr Eddie Fenech Adami, Prime Minister of Malta, and Dr Joe Mifsud, the President of the Malta Football Association. In commemoration of the 100th anniversary of the Malta Football Association, the stadium was named the "Centenary Stadium". Besides a seating capacity of 3,000, the main stand also included a VIP and press area. Like the National Stadium, the Centenary Stadium replaced another stadium renowned for the gravel surface, the Pace Grasso Stadium in Tarxien.

The first competitive match held at the stadium was a group-stage encounter of the now-defunct Maltese 2nd and 3rd Knockout between Birżebbuġa St. Peter's and Ghaxaq on the 4th September 1999. The first goal was scored by Ghaxaq's Sandro Lapira on 34 minutes, which paved the way for a 2-1 win for his team.

Pitch Resurfacing

In 2007, the original pitch laid back in 1999[4] was replaced by a new FIFA Two-Star artificial turf. The resurfacing costed Lm35,000 and was inaugurated on 23 July 2007.[5].

In May 2017, the Malta Football Association announced that the stadium's pitch will be replaced by a new FIFA-quality pro pitch.[6]. The project, which also included the installation of new dug-outs and estimated to cost around €400,000, will mean that the stadium should now be able to host FIFA and UEFA matches

See also

References

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