UEFA EURO 2016 venues

Stade de Bordeaux (Bordeaux)
UEFA capacity: 42,000
Tenants: FC Girondins de Bordeaux
Opened: May 2015

• The construction of the €184m Stade de Bordeaux began at the start of 2013 and was completed 26 months later, the stadium hosting its first game on the last weekend of the 2014/15 Ligue 1 season.

• It has been designed by Swiss firm Herzog & de Meuron, the team behind the Fußball Arena München, and features a 'floating' roof supported by 900 stanchions, designed to resemble local Landes-pine posts.

• Located between a man-made lake and the Garonne river in north Bordeaux, it has replaced the Stade Chaban-Delmas – venue for games at the 1938 and 1998 FIFA World Cups – as home for the Girondins.

Stade Bollaert-Delelis (Lens)
UEFA capacity: 35,000
Tenants: RC Lens
Reopened: August 2015 (original opened in June 1933)

• One of France's most iconic football landmarks, the ground was originally named after the former commercial director of the Lens Mining Company, Félix Bollaert. The suffix Delelis was officially added in September 2012, a few days after the death of André Delelis – mayor of the city from 1966 to 1998 and a diehard supporter of the club.

• Built by unemployed miners, the venue originally possessed an oval shape but began to take on a rectangular form when the first of four new stands was unveiled in 1976.

• The stadium underwent renovation work and improvements ahead of both the 1984 UEFA European Championship and 1998 FIFA World Cup, and was also used during the 2007 Rugby World Cup. The rebuilding programme ahead of UEFA EURO 2016 will last until late 2015.

Stade Pierre Mauroy (Lille)
UEFA capacity: 50,000
Tenants: LOSC Lille
Opened: August 2012

• Located in the suburb of Villeneuve d'Ascq, 6km south-east of Lille city centre, the stadium was constructed by the company behind the Millau Viaduct in Aveyron.

• The arena's retractable roof can be opened or closed in 30 minutes, while half of the pitch can be raised above the other for use in music performances and other sports.

• The capacity is more than double that of LOSC's previous homes, Stade Grimonprez-Jooris and Stadium Lille Métropole.

Stade de Lyon (Lyon)
UEFA capacity: 59,000
Tenants: Olympique Lyonnais
Due to open: 9 January 2016, Ligue 1 match v Troyes

• Located in the commune of Decines-Charpieu, 10km east of central Lyon, the stadium will form part of a complex stretched over 50 hectares and featuring a training ground for OL as well as hotels and office buildings.

• Constructed under the project name Grand Stade OL, the finished venue will consist of three tiers.

• The arena replaces the Stade de Gerland, Lyon's home since 1950 and among seven venues for the 1984 UEFA European Championship, hosting Denmark's semi-final loss on penalties to Spain. The Stade de Gerland was also a venue for the 1998 FIFA World Cup, staging Croatia's 3-0 quarter-final victory against Germany.

Stade Vélodrome (Marseille)
UEFA capacity: 67,000
Tenants: Olympique de Marseille
Reopened: October 2014 (original opened June 1937)

• Famously open to the elements in the past, the renovated stadium now features a roof. The estimated €267m makeover was carried out with the team still playing matches there and was completed in September 2014.

• As its name suggests, Stade Vélodrome possessed a cycling track when it first opened in 1937, though the new venue's opening ceremony was capped by a football match between Marseille and Italian side Torino. The stadium has also hosted athletics, rugby, boxing, tennis, hockey and even motorsports, though its days as an all-purpose arena ended when the cycling track was removed in 1985.

• Stade Vélodrome staged matches at the 1938 and 1998 FIFA World Cups, with its capacity increased to 60,000 for the latter tournament; it also hosted games at the 1960 and 1984 UEFA European Championships.

Stade de Nice (Nice)
UEFA capacity: 35,000
Tenants: OGC Nice
Opened: September 2013

• The ecofriendly Stade de Nice threw open its doors for OGC Nice's 4-0 Ligue 1 win against Valenciennes FC on 22 September 2013. The crowds descended on the stadium over four hours before kick-off, with the four stands – Garibaldi, Ray, Ségurane and Sud – being officially inaugurated with a spectacular pyrotechnic display.

• Drawing over three times its own energy requirements from more than 4,000 solar panels, and with its own geothermal installation for heating, it uses rain water channelled from the stadium roof into four collection reservoirs for pitch watering.

• The sixth largest football stadium in France also houses the Musée National du Sport (National Sport Museum), which moved to the Côte d'Azur from Paris. More than 45,000 pieces and 400,000 documents, comprising one of the largest collections in the world, are now on show in the venue designed by Jean-Michel Wilmotte.

Parc des Princes (Paris)
UEFA capacity: 45,000
Tenants: Paris Saint-Germain
Opened: May 1972

• Situated in the south-west of the French capital, the Parc des Princes owes its name to its location on terrain used as a royal hunting ground in the 18th century. The current stadium is the third to have been built on the site, the first opening its doors in 1897 and the second in 1932.

• The Parc des Princes was the finishing point of the Tour de France from 1903 to 1967; it also boasts a long history as an international rugby venue. It has hosted six European club football finals, including the first ever European Champion Clubs' Cup showpiece in 1956 when Real Madrid beat Reims 4-3; in addition to staging games at the 1938 and 1998 FIFA World Cups, the stadium was the venue for the 1960 and 1984 UEFA European Championships finals.

• The stadium has been renovated for UEFA EURO 2016, the first part of the renovations being completed in summer 2014, with two new rows of seats added closer to the pitch, as well as new substitutes' benches and brand new executive boxes and lounges.

Stade de France (Saint-Denis)
UEFA capacity: 80,000
Tenants: France national team
Opened: January 1998

• Constructed ahead of the 1998 FIFA World Cup, the Stade de France has hosted major events in football, rugby, athletics, motorsport and concerts from artists ranging from André Rieu to AC/DC. U2 held three dates of their 360° Tour at the Stade de France in 2009 and 2010, attracting an aggregate attendance of 283,084.

• The venue features movable seating, which can be retracted to uncover part of the athletics track, while the elliptical roof was designed to protect spectators while leaving the pitch uncovered.

• It has the unique distinction of having hosted World Cup finals for football (France 3-0 Brazil, 1998) and rugby (South Africa 15-6 England, 2007). The arena has staged two UEFA Champions League finals, Real Madrid's 3-0 win against Valencia in 2000 and Barcelona's 2-1 triumph over Arsenal six years later.

Stade Geoffroy Guichard (Saint-Etienne)
UEFA capacity: 42,000
Tenants: AS Saint-Étienne
Opened: September 1931

• Known affectionately as Le Chaudron (the Cauldron) due to its reputation for atmosphere, the stadium is named after the founder of the Casino retail chain, under whose auspices AS Saint-Étienne originally came into being. Situated to the north of the city centre, the ground was built on old mine tunnels and next to a steel factory, and in the early days, fumes from the plant's chimneys were known to drift across the pitch.

• The stadium originally incorporated an athletics track, though this was removed in 1956 ahead of rebuilding work that moved supporters closer to the action. The venue staged matches at the 1984 UEFA European Championship, 1998 FIFA World Cup and 2007 Rugby World Cup, undergoing renovation work in the run-up to each tournament.

• Famed in the past for an 'English-style' design due to its four separate stands, the ground has had a facelift that enlarged its capacity to 41,500 while also making the venue more eco-friendly. The work was done with Saint-Étienne in situ and was completed in late 2014.

Stadium de Toulouse (Toulouse)
UEFA capacity: 33,000
Tenants: Toulouse FC
Opened: 1937

• Situated on an island in the heart of Toulouse, the stadium was built specifically for the 1938 FIFA World Cup and was soon labelled 'mini Wembley' because of its resemblance to the iconic London venue.

• The biggest ground in the Midi-Pyrenees region, the stadium underwent considerable renovations in 1949 and 1997, the latter work coming ahead of the 1998 World Cup, when it hosted six matches. Following extensive repair efforts after a nearby chemical plant suffered a major explosion in 2001, further upgrading work took place ahead of UEFA EURO 2016.

• The arena has witnessed many of Toulouse's finest moments, including a UEFA Cup first round victory against Napoli in October 1986, when Diego Maradona fired against a post during the penalty shoot-out.