The Stadio delle Alpi was a football and athletics stadium in Turin, Italy, and was the home of both Juventus Football Club and Torino Football Club between 1990 and 2006. In English, the name meant "Stadium of the Alps", a reference to the nearby Alpsmountain range. The stadium was demolished in 2009 and both football clubs moved to the rebuilt Stadio Olimpico. A new stadium for Juventus, the Juventus Stadium, was constructed on the site of the former delle Alpi and opened in 2011. Designed by architect Studio Hutter, the Stadio delle Alpi was originally built in 1990 to host matches for the 1990 FIFA World Cup as a replacement for the aging Stadio Olimpico, then known as the Stadio Comunale. The stadium's original capacity was 69,041 fans. However, due to FIFA rules regarding the segregation of home and away supporters, the actual capacity was reduced to 67,229.
History
Construction on the stadium began in June 1988, and due to the use of prefabricated concrete, was complete within two years. The delle Alpi was built by the council of Turin, with both of the city's football clubs using it as their home ground following the closure of the Stadio Olimpico. It was originally intended to be used for not only football but also athletics. Therefore, an athletics track was constructed around the outside of the pitch. However, due to the lack of a warm-up track, the stadium was never used for a major athletics event. The stadium was inaugurated on 31 May 1990 when a joint Juventus–Torino team defeated Porto 4–3. Due to escalating rental costs, disputes arose between the clubs and the city council. In 1994, the Juventus board investigated building a new stadium, which would be owned by the club. The UEFA Cup semi-final and final matches in 1994–95 were moved by Juventus to the San Siro in Milan, attracting an audience of 85,000. The Stadio delle Alpi was very rarely sold out in its history. Finally, in June 2002, Juventus purchased the delle Alpi from the council of Turin for a fee of around €25 million. Torino was banned from playing any Serie A matches inside the stadium from 9 March 2003 until 30 June 2003 due to the violence that occurred on 22 February 2003 inside the stadium clash against Milan.
Attendance
The stadium attendance record was 73,583 set during a UEFA Champions League semi-final between Juventus and Real Madrid on 14 May 2003. During the 1990 FIFA World Cup, the stadium hosted a second round match between Argentina and Brazil, as well as a semi-final between West Germany and England. Both matches attracted around 60,000 fans. The delle Alpi's design was widely criticised due to the poor visibility. This was caused mainly by the distance between the stands and the pitch. Views from the lower tier were also restricted due to the positioning of advertising hoardings. The stadium's location on the outskirts of town never found favour with fans, and the stadium design left spectators exposed to the elements. These factors contributed to attendances significantly below its capacity; in the 2005–06 season, for example, Juventus' average attendance was 35,880. In the Coppa Italia home match against Sampdoria in the 2001–02 season, only 237 spectators showed up.
The stadium was one of the venues of the 1990 World Cup, hosting five matches. The first four involved Brazil; All their Group C matches and their round of 16 match against Argentina on 24 June, a 1–0 defeat. The fifth match was the semi-final between West Germany and England on 4 July, with the match ending 1–1 but West Germany winning 4–3 on penalties.
Redevelopment
The Stadio delle Alpi was demolished, with plans for a 41,475-seater venue and a number of restaurants and other facilities outside the ground. The new grounds of the stadium covers around 50,000 square metres. The demolition was completed in February 2009. Work on a new stadium began during spring 2009 and it was opened on 8 September 2011, at the start of the 2011–12 season. The running track, which was widely blamed for ruining the atmosphere in the stadium, was removed with the fans moved closer to the action. A movable roof covers the new seats. A new Juventus training centre was also built next to the stadium, together with a set of buildings for a gymnasium, a restaurant and a hotel.
