Football Ground Map
Football Ground Map
For decades now, football clubs and international governing bodies have been racing to build bigger and more technologically advanced stadiums that will draw throngs of fans.
This has left some football enthusiasts and players bemoaning the loss of atmosphere that tightly packed and atmospheric old grounds used to have.
In this article, we take a look at the other end of the scale, for pitches and stadiums that shunned the mainstream and decided instead to pop up in some unlikely locations.
Here are some of the world's most remote and wacky football stadiums and pitches.
The days of stadiums being imposing places for visiting teams and fans is largely over, as clubs and national teams try their best to attract a broad range of fans to their games, meaning away results are more difficult for football tipsters to predict these days.
However, some grounds are daunting places to visit just because of where they are situated. Svangaskaro Stadium in the Faroe Islands is certainly a case in point, marooned as it is on the island of Toftir, somewhere out in the ocean wilds between Iceland and Scotland.
Any player who has set foot on the pitch knows about the exposure they sense there. That is probably why it has been the scene of some almighty international game upsets, often being a place where form guides and regular football tips go out the window.
Although the Faroe Islands now play their games at the more welcoming Torsvollur Stadium, they do now and again still treat visiting teams to a haunting ninety minutes at the Svangaskaro. When this happens, it leaves football punters looking to the experts in the field for their tips on how the pitch and its wild surroundings will impact the wary opposition.
Ottmar Hitzfeld is one of the most decorated players and managers in German football history, being part of the elite club of managers who have won the Champions League (or European Cup, as it used to be known) with two separate clubs.
Having coached in the Bundesliga for most of his career, Hitzfeld spent his later years leading the Swiss national side.
Upon retiring, his adopted country built a special football pitch in his honor, at an incredible 2,000m above sea level in the Swiss Alps.
FC Gspon is the local team who ply their trade there and there is even a cable car that gives players and training staff access to the pitch.
Thailand is a magical place, and so it makes sense that it plays host to one of the most incredible football pitches ever designed.
The floating football pitch at Koh Panyee is where Panyee FC play their home games, on a field that is literally floating on the sea.
The pitch was dreamed up by locals who were tired of not having enough flat land to build a playing field on, and so took things into their own hands.
You would think that Koh Panyee's pitch was unique, but alas it is not, because the pitch known as The Float in Singapore takes aquatic footy fields to the next level.
This pitch's artificial turf floats on the waters at Marina Bay, but spectators can take in all the action from stands, which have been erected on the nearby dock.
This makes for one of the most dramatic football settings to be found anywhere and gives a sense of remoteness despite being bang in the heart of a buzzing metropolis.
Tony Incenzo has been to over 2,000 football grounds - is he the world's barmiest football fan? Read about his love for Non-League football and groundhopping obsession, including watching a match in prison!
Taking my son to his first football match was one of the best experiences I've had as a father so far. I've written this article for Alex to read when he gets older.
All good things have to come to an end, and the same unfortunately has to be said for football stadiums too. This article looks at the grounds which are soon to host their last match, the stadiums whose days are numbered and where fans will be watching their football from next.
An in-depth look at the biggest football attendances ever recorded, from the 1950 World Cup to pre-season friendlies in the States and the Scottish ground with dozens of 100,000+ attendances