Stadia Espana
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The stadiums here in Spain dwarf what we have back in Ireland. Naturally of course, seeing as the country has a population eleven times that of Ireland and the populace is mad about domestic football.
In La Liga, the maximum capacities of stadiums ranges from 17,700 in Getafe's Coliseum Alfonso Pérez to Barcelona's Camp Nou which can hold 98,722. Eight clubs have stadiums which range between 20,000 and 30,000. Only Osasuna and Getafe have stadiums which hold less than 20,000.
The other ten sides all have grounds which can hold 30,000+, with four having 50,000+ capacities (Real Madrid, Atlético de Madrid and Valencia, along with Barça).
Even of the 22 teams in the second tier, Las Palmas, Real Murcia, Elche, Real Sociedad, Celta Vigo and Hércules all have stadiums with 30,000+ capacity and Real Betis' Manuel Ruíz de Lopera has a capacity of 52,745.
Considering the immense size of the majority of Spanish stadiums, crowd control is essential and needs to be well-organised.
Before matches, some surrounding streets are cordoned off to accommodate the large swathes of fans and the numerous stands which pop up to sell sweets, food and all kinds of merchandise. This can be somewhat problematic at Atlético's Vicente Calderón where part of Madrid's motorway runs under the western stand.
The opposite occurs in northern Madrid where the massive Paseo de la Castellana is never closed, despite 80,000 fans surrounding the Santiago Bernabeú whenever Real play. Likewise in Sevilla, when Betis play, the adjacent Paseo de la Palmera remains open for traffic.
There is a large and highly visible police presence around every stadium on a match-day. There are several groups of police on horseback and many more who patrol the local areas on foot. The police are there mainly to quell any trouble which arises. They rarely accost people for public drinking, a common occurrence in Spanish society.
Every stadium is surrounded by several bars and many more people buy alcohol and drink it in plastic cups out on the street in full view of the police. However, anyone carrying a glass bottle around will have it removed for fear of it being thrown inside the stadium.
Similarly, in Betis' ground, the lids of plastic bottles are removed when going through the turnstiles and even when bottles are sold within the ground. Also, bags are thoroughly searched on entry at all grounds.
Every stadium has a section entirely given over to the club's ultras section. It is always behind one of the goals and, in some stadiums, they are considered no-go areas for non-ultras. One curiosity of Atlético's stadium is that the goal in front of the ultras section has a giant netting behind it so the ball won't land in there. No such netting is in place at the opposite end.
In Atlético and Rayo Vallecano's stadiums, the ultra sections are also fenced in, with gates on both side to control who goes in and out.
The away sections are always in the corner opposite the ultras end and are always the uppermost sections of each stand. Each away section is clearly marked as separate to the rest of that stand and, in some cases, the sections are walled off by eight-foot plastic walls, much different to League of Ireland stadiums.
The method of getting fans in and out of the stadium is also very well organised. You scan your ticket at the turnstiles and then go to a special area where you need to be to find your seat. Although everyone enters through the same turnstiles, the stairs you take to go up depends on what level your seat is in the stand.
Once the match is over, the turnstiles are folded in and all gates and stairwells are opened to allow for the greater flow of people to move quickly and safely.
One puzzling aspect of Spanish stadiums is the comparative lack of stewards as opposed to Irish grounds. There are probably the same amount of stewards there but the stadiums are much larger. Nobody stewards the ultras sections. There are also the same amount of police inside the ground.
In terms of design and comfort, the quality and positives differ vastly. For instance, in the Santiago Bernabeú, the stands are covered by the outreaching roofs and these roofs all contain heaters to keep the fans warm during the match. In Teresa Rivero (Rayo's stadium), the two main stands are covered but the end is open.
In the Vicente Calderón and the Manuel Ruíz de Lopera, only one stand is covered while all the others are exposed to the elements. If you happen to be in the upper sections of one of the open stands on a windy night, it can be painfully cold and reminiscent of a match spent standing in the railway side stand at the Carlisle Grounds.
In La Liga, the maximum capacities of stadiums ranges from 17,700 in Getafe's Coliseum Alfonso Pérez to Barcelona's Camp Nou which can hold 98,722. Eight clubs have stadiums which range between 20,000 and 30,000. Only Osasuna and Getafe have stadiums which hold less than 20,000.
The other ten sides all have grounds which can hold 30,000+, with four having 50,000+ capacities (Real Madrid, Atlético de Madrid and Valencia, along with Barça).
Even of the 22 teams in the second tier, Las Palmas, Real Murcia, Elche, Real Sociedad, Celta Vigo and Hércules all have stadiums with 30,000+ capacity and Real Betis' Manuel Ruíz de Lopera has a capacity of 52,745.
Considering the immense size of the majority of Spanish stadiums, crowd control is essential and needs to be well-organised.
Before matches, some surrounding streets are cordoned off to accommodate the large swathes of fans and the numerous stands which pop up to sell sweets, food and all kinds of merchandise. This can be somewhat problematic at Atlético's Vicente Calderón where part of Madrid's motorway runs under the western stand.
The opposite occurs in northern Madrid where the massive Paseo de la Castellana is never closed, despite 80,000 fans surrounding the Santiago Bernabeú whenever Real play. Likewise in Sevilla, when Betis play, the adjacent Paseo de la Palmera remains open for traffic.
There is a large and highly visible police presence around every stadium on a match-day. There are several groups of police on horseback and many more who patrol the local areas on foot. The police are there mainly to quell any trouble which arises. They rarely accost people for public drinking, a common occurrence in Spanish society.
Every stadium is surrounded by several bars and many more people buy alcohol and drink it in plastic cups out on the street in full view of the police. However, anyone carrying a glass bottle around will have it removed for fear of it being thrown inside the stadium.
Similarly, in Betis' ground, the lids of plastic bottles are removed when going through the turnstiles and even when bottles are sold within the ground. Also, bags are thoroughly searched on entry at all grounds.
Every stadium has a section entirely given over to the club's ultras section. It is always behind one of the goals and, in some stadiums, they are considered no-go areas for non-ultras. One curiosity of Atlético's stadium is that the goal in front of the ultras section has a giant netting behind it so the ball won't land in there. No such netting is in place at the opposite end.
In Atlético and Rayo Vallecano's stadiums, the ultra sections are also fenced in, with gates on both side to control who goes in and out.
The away sections are always in the corner opposite the ultras end and are always the uppermost sections of each stand. Each away section is clearly marked as separate to the rest of that stand and, in some cases, the sections are walled off by eight-foot plastic walls, much different to League of Ireland stadiums.
The method of getting fans in and out of the stadium is also very well organised. You scan your ticket at the turnstiles and then go to a special area where you need to be to find your seat. Although everyone enters through the same turnstiles, the stairs you take to go up depends on what level your seat is in the stand.
Once the match is over, the turnstiles are folded in and all gates and stairwells are opened to allow for the greater flow of people to move quickly and safely.
One puzzling aspect of Spanish stadiums is the comparative lack of stewards as opposed to Irish grounds. There are probably the same amount of stewards there but the stadiums are much larger. Nobody stewards the ultras sections. There are also the same amount of police inside the ground.
In terms of design and comfort, the quality and positives differ vastly. For instance, in the Santiago Bernabeú, the stands are covered by the outreaching roofs and these roofs all contain heaters to keep the fans warm during the match. In Teresa Rivero (Rayo's stadium), the two main stands are covered but the end is open.
In the Vicente Calderón and the Manuel Ruíz de Lopera, only one stand is covered while all the others are exposed to the elements. If you happen to be in the upper sections of one of the open stands on a windy night, it can be painfully cold and reminiscent of a match spent standing in the railway side stand at the Carlisle Grounds.
About Finbarr O'Sullivan
Currently working in Brazil, Finbarr will be giving his take on Brazilian football in his regular Extratime.ie column. Finbarr peviously studied in Spain and worked in the Czech Republic and had regular column pieces on … View Full Profile