Mỹ Đình National Stadium

Mỹ Đình National Stadium
Mỹ Đình National Stadium in 2022
Map
LocationNam Từ Liêm, Hanoi, Vietnam
Coordinates21°1′14″N 105°45′49.7″E / 21.02056°N 105.763806°E / 21.02056; 105.763806
OwnerVietnamese government
OperatorVietnam National Sports Complex
Capacity40,192
SurfaceGrass
Construction
Broke ground2002; 22 years ago (2002)
Built2002–2003
Opened2 September 2003; 20 years ago (2003-09-02)
Renovated7 September 2016; 7 years ago (2016-09-07)
Construction costUS$53 million
ArchitectHanoi International Group, HISG
Tenants
Vietnam national football team
Vietnam women's national football team (Selected matches)
Hanoi FC (2023–24 AFC Champions League)

The Mỹ Đình National Stadium (Vietnamese: Sân vận động Quốc gia Mỹ Đình) is a multi-purpose stadium in Nam Từ Liêm district, Hanoi, Vietnam. It has a capacity of 40,192 seats and is the centerpiece of Vietnam's National Sports Complex. It was officially opened in September 2003 and was the main venue for the Southeast Asian Games later that year, hosting the opening and closing ceremony as well as the men's football and athletics events.

The stadium is home to the Vietnam national football team, and hosts its home international matches. It was also the home venue of the football club Thể Công (now Viettel FC).

Located 10 kilometres north-west of central Hanoi, the 40,192-seat stadium is the second biggest in the country in terms of capacity and was built at a cost of US$53 million. Arched roofs cover the grandstands on the east and west sides of the arena, providing shelter for half of the seats. The area provides training facilities for the teams with two football training grounds located next to the stadium.

Since 2021, the stadium has attracted complaints mainly about the quality of the pitch, starting with its hosting of the Vietnam–Australia match in the third AFC qualification round of the 2022 FIFA World Cup. It has since come under further scrutiny after hosting Borussia Dortmund in an international friendly, of which the goalpost was broken mid-game, and Southeast Asian teams in the 2022 AFF Championship.

History

Ideas for a new national stadium in Vietnam were marked up in 1998 as the government conducted a prefeasibility study for a national sports complex. In July 2000, Vietnamese Prime Minister Phan Văn Khải approved a project of a stadium at the heart of Vietnam's National Sports Complex in preparation for hosting the 2003 Southeast Asian Games. Four firms, namely Hanoi International Group (HISG - China), Philipp Holzmann (Germany), Bouygues (France), and Lemna-Keystone (United States), participated in the bidding of the stadium's construction. The process was controversial due to violations of technical and financial requirements in HISG and Holzmann's bids, corruption allegations involving a French donation, and the intransparency in the panel's decision making. In the end, HISG won the bid and signed a commitment contract on August 14, 2001.

Construction on the stadium started in 2002. During the development phase, the stadium was referred to as Sân vận động Trung tâm ("central stadium"). The stadium was architecturally complete in June 2003. In August 2003, the stadium was officially named Mỹ Đình National Stadium, taking after the name of the commune area the stadium is located within. It was inaugurated on September 2, 2003, to coincide with Vietnam's National Day.

Interior

Stands

Mỹ Đình has 4 stands. The A & B stands (or east and west stands, respectively) are covered each by an arched roof weighing 2,300 tonnes. These two stands have two tiers and are 25.8 m (85 ft) tall while the C & D stands (or south and north stands) are single-tiered and 8.4 m (28 ft) tall. In total, the stadium has a capacity of 40,192 seats, including 450 VIP seats and 160 seats for journalists.

The A stands of Mỹ Đình National Stadium

Field

The playing grass field has a size of 105m x 67m, surrounded by an 8-lane athletics track and other athletics facilities.

Events

Sporting events

Mỹ Đình National Stadium during the second tier of the AFF Cup 2008 final

The stadium officially opened on September 2, 2003, with the opening friendly match between the Vietnam U23 and Shanghai Shenhua from Chinese Super League.

It hosted the 2003 Southeast Asian Games (opening ceremony, football and athletics, closing ceremony), and 2003 ASEAN Para Games.

The Hanoi football club was scheduled to play at the stadium, but later backed out of their agreement, citing the embarrassment of using an 40,000+ seat venue for games that routinely draw only slightly more than 5,000.

In July 2007, Mỹ Đình Stadium hosted the Group B of 2007 AFC Asian Cup along with Quân khu 7 Stadium (Ho Chi Minh City), quarter-final match (Japan vs Australia) and semi-final match (Japan vs Saudi Arabia).

Mỹ Đình Stadium held the opening ceremony of the 2009 Asian Indoor Games from October 30, 2009, to November 8.

In December 2010, it held Group B of 2010 AFF Suzuki Cup from December 2 to December 8.

The stadium hosted sections of the 2021 Southeast Asian Games, in particular the opening ceremony, and football and athletics events.

In addition, this stadium held many domestic and international football competitions:

The three runners-up from the third round groups played each other at a neutral venue on 25, 27 and 29 March 2012. Vietnam was later chosen by the AFC Competitions Committee as the neutral venue, with games played at Hanoi's Mỹ Đình Stadium.

Entertainment events

The stadium during an MTV EXIT concert in 2010

Mỹ Đình National Stadium has hosted various entertainment events. On March 27, 2010, an MTV EXIT concert was held here with the appearance of Korean boy band Super Junior, Australian singer Kate Miller-Heidke, along with other local Vietnamese singers. On October 1, 2011, the Irish boyband Westlife performed at the stadium as a part of their Gravity Tour; about 11,000 people attended the concert. The stadium was also the starting location of the 2012 season of The Amazing Race Vietnam. On May 26, 2013, MTV EXIT held a concert featuring the Canadian pop punk band Simple Plan.

The stadium has also been the venue for various K-pop concerts. It was the venue for a special concert of MBC's Music Core on December 8, 2012, KBS's Music Bank World Tour on March 28, 2015, Asia Artist Awards on November 26, 2019, and two Born Pink concerts by girl group Blackpink on July 29 and 30, 2023.

Tournament results

The stadium has hosted several international FIFA matches. Here is a list of the most important international matches held at the stadium.

2003 Southeast Asian Games

Date Time (UTC+7) Team #1 Result Team #2 Round Attendance
30 November 2003 15:00  Indonesia 1–0  Laos Group A (opening match)
30 November 2003 17:30  Thailand 1–1  Vietnam Group A
9 December 2003 16:00  Thailand 2–0  Myanmar Semi-final
9 December 2003 19:00  Vietnam 4–3  Malaysia Semi-final
12 December 2003 16:30  Malaysia 1–1 (4–2 pen.)  Myanmar Bronze medal match
12 December 2003 19:00  Thailand 2–1  Vietnam Final

2004 AFF Championship

Date Time (UTC+7) Team #1 Result Team #2 Round Attendance
11 December 2004 17:00  Laos 2–1  Cambodia Group Stage N/A
11 December 2004 19:30  Vietnam 0–3  Indonesia Group Stage N/A
13 December 2004 17:00  Singapore 6–2  Laos Group Stage N/A
13 December 2004 19:30  Indonesia 8–0  Cambodia Group Stage N/A
15 December 2004 18:00  Vietnam 3–0  Laos Group Stage N/A

2007 AFF Championship

Date Time (UTC+7) Team #1 Result Team #2 Round Attendance
24 January 2007 19:00  Vietnam 0–2  Thailand Semifinals first leg 40.000

2007 AFC Asian Cup

Date Time (UTC+7) Team #1 Result Team #2 Round Attendance
8 July 2007 19:30  Vietnam 2–0  United Arab Emirates Group B 39,450
9 July 2007 17:15  Japan 1–1  Qatar Group B 5,000
12 July 2007 19:30  Qatar 1–1  Vietnam Group B 40,000
13 July 2007 20:30  United Arab Emirates 1–3  Japan Group B 5,000
16 July 2007 17:15  Vietnam 1–4  Japan Group B 40,000
21 July 2007 17:15  Japan 1–1 (4–3 pen.)  Australia Quarter-final 25,000
25 July 2007 20:15  Japan 2–3  Saudi Arabia Semi-final 10,000

2008 AFF Championship

Date Time (UTC+7) Team #1 Result Team #2 Round Attendance
17 December 2008 19:00  Vietnam 0–0  Singapore Semifinals first leg 40.000
28 December 2008 19:30  Vietnam 1–1(3-2)  Thailand Final second leg 40.000

2010 AFF Championship

Date Time (UTC+7) Team #1 Result Team #2 Round Attendance
2 December 2010 17:00  Singapore 1–1  Philippines Group Stage N/A
2 December 2010 19:30  Vietnam 7–1  Myanmar Group Stage 40.000
5 December 2010 17:00  Singapore 2–1  Myanmar Group Stage N/A
5 December 2010 19:30  Philippines 2–0  Vietnam Group Stage 40.000
8 December 2010 19:30  Vietnam 1–0  Singapore Group Stage 40.000
18 December 2010 19:00  Vietnam 0–0(0-2)  Malaysia Semifinals second leg 40.000

2014 AFF Championship

Date Time (UTC+7) Team #1 Result Team #2 Round Attendance
22 November 2014 16:00  Philippines 4–1  Laos Group Stage N/A
22 November 2014 19:00  Vietnam 2–2  Indonesia Group Stage N/A
25 November 2014 16:00  Philippines 4–0  Indonesia Group Stage N/A
25 November 2014 19:00  Laos 0–3  Vietnam Group Stage N/A
28 November 2014 19:00  Vietnam 3–1  Philippines Group Stage N/A
11 December 2014 19:00  Vietnam 2–4(4-5)  Malaysia Semifinals second leg N/A

2018 FIFA World Cup qualification (AFC)

Date Time (UTC+7) Team #1 Result Team #2 Round Attendance
8 October 2015 19:00  Vietnam 1–1  Iraq Group F 10.000
13 October 2015 19:00  Vietnam 0–3  Thailand Group F 35.000
24 March 2016 19:00  Vietnam 4–1  Chinese Taipei Group F 18.350

2016 AFF Championship

Date Time (UTC+7) Team #1 Result Team #2 Round Attendance
7 December 2016 19:00  Vietnam 2–2 (3–4(a.e.t.))  Indonesia Semifinals second leg 40.000

2018 AFF Championship

Date Time (UTC+7) Team #1 Result Team #2 Round Attendance
16 November 2018 19:30  Vietnam 2–0  Malaysia Group Stage 40,000
6 December 2018 19:30  Vietnam 2–1(4-2)  Philippines Semifinals second leg 38,816
15 December 2018 19:30  Vietnam 1–0(3-2)  Malaysia Finals second leg 44,625

2022 FIFA World Cup qualification (AFC)

Date Time (UTC+7) Team #1 Result Team #2 Round Attendance
10 October 2019 20:00  Vietnam 1–0  Malaysia Group G (second round) 38,256
14 November 2019 20:00  Vietnam 1–0  United Arab Emirates 37,879
19 November 2019 20:00  Vietnam 0–0  Thailand 40,000
7 September 2021 19:00  Vietnam 0–1  Australia Group B (third round) 0
11 November 2021 19:00  Vietnam 0–1  Japan 11,022
16 November 2021 19:00  Vietnam 0–1  Saudi Arabia 9,669
1 February 2022 19:00  Vietnam 3–1  China 6,099
24 March 2022 19:00  Vietnam 0–1  Oman 6,923

2021 Southeast Asian Games

Date Time (UTC+7) Team #1 Result Team #2 Round Attendance
22 May 2022 16:00  Malaysia 1–1(3–4)  Indonesia Bronze medal match 25,589
22 May 2022 19:00  Vietnam 1–0  Thailand Final 39,898

2022 AFF Championship

Date Time (UTC+7) Team #1 Result Team #2 Round Attendance
27 December 2022 19:30  Vietnam 3–0  Malaysia Group Stage 17,545
3 January 2023 19:30  Vietnam 3–0  Myanmar Group Stage 11,575
9 January 2023 19:30  Vietnam 2–0(2-0)  Indonesia Semi-final 2nd leg 23,989
13 January 2023 19:30  Vietnam 2–2  Thailand Final 1st leg 38,539

Concerts

List of concerts held at the Mỹ Đình National Stadium
Date Artists Events
4 April 2004 Mỹ Tâm Liveshow: Ngày ấy và bây giờ
21 June 2004 Sarah Brightman Harem World Tour
27 March 2010
Performers
MTV EXIT
26 March 2011 Backstreet Boys This Is Us Tour
1 October 2011 Westlife Gravity Tour
26 May 2012 MTV EXIT
29 November 2012 K-pop Festival 2012 – Concert in Vietnam
28 March 2015 Music Bank World Tour
25 March 2017 MBC Music K-Plus Concert in Vietnam
20 May 2017 Hardwell
Jewelz & Sparks
Go Hardwell or Go Home
26 October 2019 FWD Music Fest
11 January 2020 2020 K-pop Super Concert in Hanoi
5 November 2022 Mỹ Tâm Liveshow: Tri âm
29–30 July 2023 Blackpink Born Pink World Tour

Controversies

2010 fireworks explosion

At approximately 11:40 local time on October 6, 2010, an explosion occurred at the stadium. The cause was confirmed to be the ignition of two firework containers due to negligence in the installation of their detonation position; this was a rehearsal for a programme commemorating the millennial anniversary of the establishment of Thăng Long (present-day Hanoi), which was scheduled to be held on October 10. The explosion killed four people and injured three.

Deteriorating pitch quality and equipment

2021 and SEA Games 31

Since the second half of 2021, criticism had been raised regarding the quality of the pitch and facilities at the stadium. In September 2021, the Vietnamese national team hosted Australia in the third round of the 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifiers; Australian media and fans at the time compared the Mỹ Đình pitch to a "cow pasture". According to the Lao Động newspaper, the stadium's turf had not been renovated for nearly a decade. In addition, some areas of the stadium had fallen into disrepair due to lack of maintenance. At the request of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), the stadium was renovated by the Vietnamese Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism ahead of hosting the 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifiers and the 2021 Southeast Asian Games. Ahead of the 2021 SEA Games, the Vietnamese government granted more than VND 400 million to the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism to repair the stadium alongside the wider National Sports Complex. However, the replacement of the turf was not carried out. Up until the third-place match and the final of the men's football event at the 2021 SEA Games, the turf had been damaged due to the installation of the stage for the opening ceremony.

Vietnam–Borussia Dortmund friendly match incident

On November 30, 2022, in a friendly match between Vietnam and Borussia Dortmund, in the 86th minute of the match, the crossbar of the Dortmund goal was knocked out, causing the match to be interrupted for 5 minutes. In addition, during the half-time break, the technical area of the two teams and the referee's area were blown over many times by the wind.

2022 AFF Cup

Criticism of the stadium's condition continued throughout 2022 and 2023. Ahead of the 2022 AFF Cup, the Vietnam Football Federation (VFF) signed a contract with the National Sports Complex to rent Mỹ Đình as the home stadium of the Vietnamese national team. The rental fee for each match of the Vietnamese national team is VND 800 million, the highest in the venue's history. However, the stadium's turf was described as old, faded, and poor, while not all of its seats had been replaced since their initial installation in 2003. According to the Hanoi Tax Department, the National Sports Complex owed VND 855 billion in taxes as of 2023.

According to the Director General of the General Department of Physical Education and Sports, Đặng Hà Việt, maintenance and care work had been carried out regularly in the past month, but the city's weather conditions had made the stadium's pitch not as green as expected. Moreover, the AFC had assessed that the Mỹ Đình pitch is still in good condition for competition. However, the claim that the pitch's deterioration was due to weather conditions was considered baseless, as the pitch was described to be of good quality when the Vietnamese national team hosted China in the third round of the 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifiers in early 2023.

On January 4, 2023, Prime Minister Phạm Minh Chính commented on the condition of the stadium, questioning the claim that it was not being exploited. In an effort to address the deteriorating condition ahead of the Vietnam–Indonesia match on January 9, the Vietnamese Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Nguyễn Văn Hùng on January 6 requested the Rector of Bắc Ninh University of Physical Education to organize a volunteer activity in which its students would clean up the stadium.

21°1′14″N 105°45′49.7″E / 21.02056°N 105.763806°E / 21.02056; 105.763806


This page was last updated at 2024-03-18 05:44 UTC. Update now. View original page.

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