Pancho Aréna
| File:Pancho Arena, Felcsut; Ungarn.jpg | |
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| Location | Felcsút, Hungary |
|---|---|
| Owner | Felcsúti Utánpótlás Neveléséért Alapítvány |
| Operator | Puskás Akadémia FC |
| Capacity | 3,865 |
| Field size | 105x68m |
| Surface | Grass Field |
| Construction | |
| Broke ground | 2012 |
| Opened | 21 April 2014 |
| Construction cost | HUF 3.8 billion |
| Architect | Imre Makovecz Tamás Dobrosi |
| Structural engineer | László Pongor |
| Tenants | |
| Puskás Akadémia FC Fehérvár FC (2016–2018) | |
Pancho Aréna is a stadium in Felcsút, Hungary. It is primarily used for football matches and serves as the home stadium for Puskás Akadémia FC. Between 2015 and 2018, the stadium also hosted the three-time champions Fehérvár FC due to the reconstruction of Sóstói Stadion.
History
[edit | edit source]The stadium officially opened on 21 April 2014, featuring the final of the 2014 Puskás Cup.[1][2]
On 26 April 2014, the first Hungarian League match was played at the stadium between Puskás Akadémia and Videoton. The match ended with 3–1 away win.[3]
On 30 June 2016, the first UEFA Europa League match took place at the stadium when Videoton FC, now MOL Fehérvár FC, and FC Zaria Bălți met in the qualifying rounds of the Europa League. It occurred in Pancho Aréna due to the demolition of Videoton's home stadium, Sóstói Stadion.[4]
Pancho Aréna was listed among the top three most beautiful stadiums of the world according to stadiumdb.com: "The wood-lined curved interior to the stand gives spectators the feeling that they are attending a Sunday church service, not a football match. The 3,500 seater stadium opened in 2014 and was the brainchild of local architect Imre Makovecz".[5]
On 26 March 2018, the first international match was played at the stadium when Bulgaria hosted Kazakhstan in a friendly match. The match ended with a 2–1 win for Bulgaria.[6]
On 31 October 2023, it was announced that the Israel national football team would play their remaining UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying matches against Switzerland and Romania at the stadium, a decision influenced by the ongoing Gaza war.[7][8] On 15 November 2023, Israel hosted Switzerland and drew at the stadium.[9] On 18 November 2023, Israel hosted Romania in the UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying match.[10] Romania beat Israel 2-1 and qualified for the UEFA Euro 2024.[11]
Controversy
[edit | edit source]Many allegations of corruption have surfaced regarding the stadium,[citation needed] as Hungary's current prime minister, Viktor Orbán (known for his passion for football), spent much of his childhood in the village. Pancho Arena was built just meters away from his Felcsút estate.[12] Although the stadium was not constructed directly using government funds, companies that provided the majority of the funding won several high-value public procurement procedures during Orbán's prime ministership. Additionally, Orbán's government passed laws granting benefits to companies supporting sports investments. Allegations were fueled by the fact that the stadium seats 3,500 people, while the total population of the village is under 1,700.[citation needed]
Milestone matches
[edit | edit source]
| 26 April 2014 | Puskás Akadémia Hungary | 1–3 | Hungary Videoton | 2013–14 Nemzeti Bajnokság I First Nemzeti Bajnokság I match |
| Tischler File:Soccerball shade.svg 63' | (Report) | Nikolić File:Soccerball shade.svg 20' Zé Luís File:Soccerball shade.svg 74' Filipe OliveiraFile:Soccerball shade.svg 78' |
Attendance: 3,633 Referee: Viktor Kassai (Hungary) |
| 24 September 2015 | Puskás Akadémia Hungary | 0–2 | Hungary Debrecen | 2014–15 Magyar Kupa (First Magyar Kupa match) |
| (Report) | Szakály File:Soccerball shade.svg 53' Kulcsár File:Soccerball shade.svg 94' |
Referee: Csaba Pintér (Hungary) |
| 30 June 2016 | Videoton Hungary | 3–0 | Moldova Zaria Bălți | 2016–17 UEFA Europa League (First UEFA Europa League match) |
| [(Report)] | Attendance: 2,321 Referee: Enea Jorgji (Albanian) |
| 17 July 2018 | MOL Vidi Hungary | 2–1 | Luxembourg F91 Dudelange | 2018–19 UEFA Champions League (first UEFA Champions League match) |
| 20:15 | Report | Attendance: 2,514[citation needed] Referee: Donald Robertson (Scotland) |
Milestone matches (youth squad)
[edit | edit source]
| 21 April 2014 | Puskás Akadémia Hungary | 0–1 | Spain La Fábrica | 2014 Puskás Cup Final (First match) |
| (Report) | Miguel Garcia File:Soccerball shade.svg 49' | Attendance: 4,000 Referee: Viktor Kassai (Hungary) |
| 4 November 2015 | Puskás Akadémia Hungary | 1–0 | Scotland Celtic | 2015–16 UEFA Youth League (First international match) |
| Damásdi File:Soccerball shade.svg 20' | (Report) | Attendance: 1,230 Referee: Vadims Direktorenko (Latvia) |
International
[edit | edit source]
| 24 March 2018 | Bulgaria Bulgaria | 2–1 | Kazakhstan Kazakhstan | Friendly |
| Popov File:Soccerball shade.svg 23' Bodurov File:Soccerball shade.svg 90+4' |
(Report) | File:Soccerball shade.svg 55' Tungyshbayev | Attendance: 100 Referee: Hungary Bognár |
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| 15 November 2023 | Israel Israel | 1–1 | Switzerland Switzerland | UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying Group I |
| Weissman File:Soccerball shade.svg 88' | Report | File:Soccerball shade.svg 36' Vargas | Referee: England Taylor |
| 18 November 2023 | Israel Israel | 1–2 | Romania Romania | UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying Group I |
| Referee: France Letexier |
Attendances
[edit | edit source]- As of 21 December 2018
Puskás Akadémia only played three matches at the Pancho Aréna during the 2013–14 season.[13] This table includes only domestic league matches.
| Season | Puskás Akadémia FC | Ref | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | GP | Average | Change | Highest Gate | Lowest Gate | ||||
| 2014–15 | NB I | 15 | 1,649 | – | 3,812 | vs Ferencváros | 704 | vs Szombathelyi Haladás | [14] |
| 2015–16 | NB I | 16 | 1,699 | +3.0% | 3,798 | vs Ferencváros | 708 | vs Paks | [15] |
| 2016–17 | NB II | 15 | 818 | –49.5% | 1,537 | vs Balmazújváros | 460 | vs Budaörs | [16] |
| 2017–18 | NB I | 16 | 1,199 | +46.6% | 3,127 | vs Ferencváros | 200 | vs Debrecen | [17] |
| 2018–19 | NB I | 17 | 1,340 | +11.8% | 3,865 | vs Ferencváros | 120 | vs Kisvárda | [18] |
Gallery
[edit | edit source]-
Aerial view
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The main entrance
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The Pancho Aréna from the Főutca of Felcsút
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The interior
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The view of Pancho Aréna from the Vál-völgyi train
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The roof of the Pancho Aréna
References
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