France at home in Saint-Etienne

The renovated Stade Geoffroy-Guichard hosted its first international match since refurbishment on Sunday night, with more than 38,000 fans soaking up the vibrant atmosphere as UEFA EURO 2016 hosts France beat Denmark 2-0.

The game was Les Bleus' seventh at 'Le Chaudron' – The Cauldron – home ground of AS Saint-Étienne, and the first since a friendly loss to Nigeria in 2009. The Stade Geoffroy-Guichard is one of ten venues for UEFA EURO 2016 – it will stage three group matches and a round of 16 tie between 14 and 25 June next year – and Sunday's atmosphere augured well for the newly modernised arena.

The ground's four famous stands have been updated – and the last one to be completed, the Faurand stand, was reopened in January. "It sounds like an English stadium," said an enthusiastic Christian Jeanpierre, host on national channel TF1.

With St-Étienne's Stéphane Ruffier replacing Steve Mandanda in goal after France's 3-1 defeat by Brazil on Thursday, the home crowd were vocal in their support from the first whistle. "It was a standing ovation each time he touched the ball," said coacoh Didier Deschamps of Ruffier's reception.

A goal in each half from Alexandre Lacazette – also given substantial backing despite playing his club football with St-Étienne's local rivals Olympique Lyonnais – and Olivier Giroud ensured the home fans were rewarded for their efforts, with even Denmark's Simon Kjær able to appreciate the new-look venue. "I played here last Sunday," said the LOSC Lille centre-back. "It's a great football stadium, the crowd is so close to the pitch."

The view from the new Pierre Faurand stand©AFP/Getty Images

Ruffier aside, five former St-Étienne players featured in the game, Dimitri Payet – who represented Les Verts between 2007 and 2011 – saying: "It's a bit like being at home here and that enabled me to play with freedom. The atmosphere here is always something special, even more so now the stadium has been renovated and the stands are much closer to the pitch. It always makes me happy to come and play here."

That view will have been shared by everyone in attendance on Sunday evening. With work still going on around the stadium to further improve access, Les Verts' Stade Geoffroy-Guichard has the green light already, more than a year before UEFA EURO 2016.