Stadion Maksimir (Zagreb)

Stadion Maksimir (Maksimir Stadium) is a football stadium in the Croatian capital of Zagreb. It takes its name from the surrounding neighbourhood of Maksimir. The venue is primarily the home of Dinamo Zagreb, the top club of the country with 18 league titles. Is also the home venue of the Croatia national football team. First opened in 1912, it has undergone many facelifts. The stadium also sometimes hosts other events such as rock concerts.

General information

Arena capacity: 35,123 spectators

Address: Maksimirska cesta 128, Zagreb, Croatia

GPS coordinates for the navigator: 45°49′7.89″N 16°1′5.08″E

Year of construction: 5 May 1912

Field: Hybrid grass lawn with dimensions of 105 x 68 m

Seating plan of Stadion Maksimir

For a stadium that regularly hosts the national side’s games Stadion Maksimir has an interesting design. Built in the ‘English Style’, there is no roof and a large gap between the stands and the pitch meaning you feel miles away from the action. Here’s some info on each stand.

1. North Tribune — Capable of housing 10,000 supporters over two tiers, the North Tribune is actually quite an impressive structure to look at. It’s set behind the Northern goal and has a floodlight either side of the stand.
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2. East Tribune — Also capable of holding a significant number of people, the East Tribune runs along the side of the pitch and is a single-tier structure.
3. South Tribune — The South Tribune is a curved stand that is different in style from the other stands in the ground. Perhaps a nod to the days when there was an athletics track running around the playing surface, this is the smallest section of the stadium.
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4. West Tribune — This is the main stand of the ground, capable of housing over 11,000 supporters over two tiers. The chief facilities such as the dressing rooms, dugout and players’ tunnel are also to be found here.

Away fans

Away fans are usually housed within the south stand which is the curved one.

There isn’t really a set allocation of away tickets for domestic matches as games rarely sell out, however for European games you’re looking at a minimum of 1,900 based on UEFA’s 5% policy.

The south stand is often split into two sides, with the away fans usually occupying the “desno” section which means the one on the right.

When choosing a place in the stadium, use the Stadion Maksimir scheme above.

Where to buy tickets?

Croatia Ticket Prices

International match ticket prices tend to be decided by the governing body of the competition the game is being played in. If you’re hoping to see the Croatia national side play in a game in a competition such as the World Cup then it’s be FIFA that will be deciding what you’ll pay. Likewise UEFA makes the decision for European Championship matches. If it’s a friendly then prices will likely be set by the Croatian Football Association.

How to get Croatia tickets

The best way to get tickets to see a national side is to contact their Football Association. Big FAs normally have decent websites and Croatia is no exception. If you’re hoping to see the Croatian national side then there’s little point contacting the stadium.

Dinamo Zagreb Ticket Prices

Zagreb charge different amounts of money depending on where in the ground you’d like to sit. They also alter the amount they ask for if the opposition is likely to be a popular one. There is a strong rivalry with Hajduk Split that is referred to as the Eternal Derby, so prices will be higher when they come to town.

Likewise if you’re looking to attend a match in a different competition that merely the Prva HNL then that might cost more too. For the Champions League group stage matches in the 2016-2017 season tickets cost 200 KUNA for the North Tribune, 250 KRUNA for the East Tribune and 300 KUNA for the West Tribune. You can become a club member and get tickets for slightly cheaper if you’d like to.

How to get Dinamo Zagreb tickets

As is the case with most top clubs throughout the world in the modern age, the best bet for tickets is to head to the official Dinamo Zagreb website. You can get tickets from the box office at the stadium in the week or so before a game and there is also a ticket office you can call if your Croatian is up to scratch. One thing to bear in mind is that tickets rarely sell-out, so you should be fine as long as you’re not trying to see one of the club’s more popular matches.

How to get there?

Zagreb is the capital of Croatia so there are a number of decent travel options to get there. Here’s some info on reaching the city and the stadium itself.

Trum

The Zagreb Electric Tram, or ZET, is an excellent service that departs every 5-10 minutes. The closest stop to the ground is Bukovačka and you can get trams numbered 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 11, 12, 13 and 14.

Bus

If you’re not a fan of trams then you might want to get the bus instead. The 203, 226, 227 and 228 will all take you close to the ground.

Car

If you’re thinking about driving to the ground then grab yourself a sat-nav and put the address of the stadium into it. That will give you far more accurate instructions than we can.

Taxi

A taxi from the main train station to the ground will take just over ten minutes and will probably cost something like 40 KUNA.

Parking near Stadion Maksimir

There’s only one car park at the ground. It’s small and it’s reserved for special guests on a match day, so you might want to try to find some on-street parking nearby.

Stadion Maksimir Hotels

Much like with the transport, the fact that Zagreb is the country’s capital means that there are plenty of hotels about. Here are some of the best.

Best Western Hotel Stella — £50+

Nadinska 27, Zagreb, 10010

This member of the Best Western chain of hotels boasts 43 smoke-free rooms. There’s also a fitness centre, a conference centre, a terraced area and a bar. There’s a hot and cold breakfast buffet included in the cost of the room, free Wi-Fi and free parking.

Hotel Slisko — £60+

Buniceva 7, Zagreb, 10000

This three-star hotel has a restaurant and is a short walk from the local archeological museum. There’s a terrace, a garden, meeting rooms and a bar. There’s also a buffet breakfast included in the room price. There’s self-parking and Wi-Fi here too.

Sheraton Zagreb Hotel — £75+

Kneza Borne 2, Zagreb, 10000

The Sheraton in Zagreb is a luxury hotel with all of the trappings. There are two restaurants, a fitness suite with a sauna and indoor swimming pool. There’s also a casino on-site and free Wi-Fi.

Pubs & Bars Near Stadion Maksimir

Croatia and Zagreb in particular is well-known for its nightlife. Here are some of the bars and pubs you might want to head to for your pre-match pint.

Oliver Twist

Ul. Ivana Tkalčića 60, 10000, Zagreb

The Oliver Twist is one of Zagreb’s most popular pubs. Decorated in deep woods and brass ornaments, there are two floors and an excellent beer garden in the front. There’s beer on tap and in bottles and a couple of TVs dotted around.

The Hole In One

10000, Zagreb

The Hole In One has the feel of a classical English pub. There are loads of decent food options and some good drinks to choose from, too. It’s well worth heading here if you fancy a drink before heading to the ground

The Old Pharmacy Pub

Ul. Andrije Hebranga 11, 10000, Zagreb

Not a name that immediately suggests itself to be a good place for football fans to head to. The Old Pharmacy Pub is a drinking hole with real personality. In one part there is a big room that looks like an old English house, complete with leather chairs, whilst in another part there is a large room that faces towards a big screen for all the important football matches. Food and drink both on offer here, too.

Facilities

The stadium was given something of a facelift in 2011, but at the same time the city were considering moving elsewhere back then so it’s not exactly the best stadium in Croatia. There are no roofs on the stands so you’ll be depending on the elements to be on your side too. It’s not a terrible place to watch a match, but it ain’t the Ritz either.

Hospitality

There are a number of executive seating options in the West Tribune at Stadion Maksimir, so that is where you’ll be based if you opt for one of the club’s hospitality packages. There is also a hospitality section in between both tiers of the stands so there is plenty of space for you if you want to watch Dinamo Zagreb in style.

Private hire

Much like with the hospitality seating, the main areas that would be available for private hire are in the West Tribune. If you’d like some more information about where you can go and what you can do then your best bet is to contact the club directly and let them know what sort of event you’re hoping to host.

History

The stadium was first opened on 5 May 1912. On 26 May 1941, a representative of the Ustashe fascist government of the Independent State of Croatia addressed young Zagreb students at their meeting at the Maksimir Stadium, and at one point ordered the Serbian and Jewish students to be segregated, but the children disobeyed. Soon afterwards, in June 1941, rebel youths burned the stadium down. In 1977, a movie Operation Stadium was made to commemorate the segregation incident.

When the UEFA Euro 1976 final tournament was held in SFR Yugoslavia, Maksimir hosted the Netherlands v. Czechoslovakia semi-final match and the Netherlands v. Yugoslavia third place match.

Maksimir was the central venue for the 1987 Summer Universiade hosted by the city of Zagreb.

In 1990, several events happened at Maksimir. On 13 May, the Dinamo Zagreb–Red Star Belgrade riot took place, an infamous riot involving Dinamo Zagreb and Red Star Belgrade supporters. The last match of the Yugoslavia national football team was hosted at Maksimir on 3 June. On 17 October of the same year, Croatia played the United States in what was Croatia’s first match in the modern era.

In 1998, plans were made for a massive renovation, and the first phase started the same year. The old northern stand was demolished and a new one built within a year. This renovation increased Maksimir’s seating capacity to 38,079.

After 1992, for 16 years the Croatian football team had a proud unbeaten record at this stadium in any competitive match, however on 10 September 2008 (two years after suffering a 2-0 defeat at the same venue) England became the first team to beat Croatia in Zagreb, winning 4-1, ending a thirty match undefeated streak.

In the summer of 2011, a little, but much needed “facelifting” was made on the stadium. All seats were replaced, a new drainage system, under-soil heating and automatic watering were installed along with a new turf, the athletic track was covered with blue artificial grass and all brick surfaces were covered in blue cloth.