The new Tehelné Pole stadium is the home to Slovan Bratislava and is also the Slovakian national stadium. The project to demolish the old stadium and replace it with the new was beset with problems. Plans were first instigated in 2006. The old stadium which had been on the site since the 1940s closed in 2009 but was not demolished until 2013 and construction work on the new building did not commence until the second half of 2016. Once finally started, the construction proceeded smoothly and the new 22,500 capacity Tehelné Pole opened in March 2019 - the stadium was rotated through 90 degrees, in order to prevent sunlight from being in the goalkeepers' eyes. The South Eastern corner of the stadium is domianted by the 20 storey Tower 5 complex built as part of the stadium project. The 20 storey tower boasts 19,600 square meters of office space and 2,900 square meters of retail space. To the North of the stadium, another development - Byty Tehelné pole, a 24 storey complex houses 334 flats and apartments and commercial spaces. Although its financing is still a matter of legal wrangling even today, these developments are designed to serve to underpin the economic viability of the stadium itself. Whilst the presence of such a massive structure as Tower 5 in one corner may feel incongruous, it does give the place character and identity so often lacking in new developments. The new stadium is curved and covered on three sides with a translucent white outer membrane which is lit in the blue colours of the home team, an asymmetrical design with the tower dominating one corner. The the western stand, similarly curved but with an almost metallic grey membrane, it is outwardly smaller than the other stands - almost slotting into the arms of the northern and southern stands as they wrap around the ground. There are 42 boxes, 900 VIP seats and an executive lounge, so the modern hospitality requirement is not entirely forgotten - but parts of the stadium are pretty functional. In spite of it being listed on the stadium's website, there is no superstore - possibly still to be developed but a surprising omission at this stage with so much retail and commercial enabling development as part of the facility. The concourses could be improved in spaciousnes and comfort. Whilst it lacks in some aspects, what puts this stadium above others in our view is the seating bowl which is after . Across three sides the stadium is split into two tiers with the lower bowl all seater and the larger upper bowl features safe standing rail seats all the way around the ground. The lower bowl continues onto the fourth stand but the upper section is comprised of four floors where you will find the VIP seats and boxes. The seating is kept as close to the action as permitted by UEFA regulations The stadium also makes great use of technology. Lit with powerful LEDs to conserve energy, and with 50% of its energy use self sustained through heat exchange the stadium boasts that it is the most environmentally friendly in Europe. With biometric turnstiles, IPTV relaying the action on the pitch to screens throughout the stadium and magnetic loop audio systems for the hearing impaired. Tehelné Pole is another 'nearly' stadium overall. It's a good stadium that is a few simple design tweaks away from being great. Watch any Slovan game and you'll see that no-one is sitting down in the lower tier behind the goal, so a single bank of safe standing there would make more sense. A bit more thought going into the design of the concourses and comfort away from the executive areas and the stadium would be higher in our list.. but it does have an individuality and a character to it that we like - and lots of safe standing. What we like ✅ Safe standing on three sides ✅ Unique character and identity ✅ Sustainability built in What we'd change ❎ Better concourses and more comfort ❎ Single tier rather than split tier behind the goal7. Tehelné Pole Stadium, Bratislava
