Baku Olympic Stadium is scheduled to host the 2019 UEFA Europa League Final Chelsea vs Arsenal at 21:00 (CET) on 29 May 2019.
Baku Olympic Stadium, is a 68,700-seat stadium, designed and constructed to meet the international standards for stadiums set by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA), the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA) and the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF). It is the largest stadium in Azerbaijan.
Construction of the 225,000-square-meter stadium on a 650,000-square-meter site was completed in February 2015. The six-story, 65.7-meter structure near Boyukshor Lake, Baku, Azerbaijan, opened on 6 March 2015.
The main tenant of the stadium is Azerbaijan's national football team, who moved from their previous home at the Tofiq Bahramov Republican Stadium.
In June 2015 the stadium served as the main venue for the European Games, hosting the opening and closing ceremonies, and the athletic games.
The venue is intended to host the quarterfinals and three of the group games for UEFA Euro 2020. A green area is being developed around the stadium, which is accessible via public transport.
'This is really beautiful, grand building, and more than 60 thousand football fans coming to the stadium will be able to enjoy football', former FIFA President Sepp Blatter praises highly of Olympic Stadium in the ceremony of 100th anniversary of Azerbaijani football in 2011.
Key details
Final: 21:00 CET, Wednesday 29 May
Visit the official host city site for the #UEL final
Get your tickets
Tickets for the final match of the UEFA Europa League, to be held on May 29 at the Baku Olympic Stadium, have been put on sale. Football fans can get tickets form booking-offices of iTicket.az located at Ganjlik Mall and Port Baku Mall.
Tickets are presented in several categories. The first category costs AZN 280 (EUR 140), the second category AZN 180 (EUR 90), the third category AZN 100 (EUR 50) and the fourth category costs AZN 60 (EUR 30).
Baku is ...
The capital city of Azerbaijan.
The lowest-lying capital city in the world – 28 metres below sea level.
Windy: its name is derived from the ancient Persian 'Bādkube' (pounding winds) – hence the local nickname, 'City of Winds'.
A city founded on oil, which has been exported from here since the 19th century.
Twinned with Dakar, Naples, Houston, Bordeaux, Kyiv, Haifa and Rio de Janeiro, among others.
A former host city of the UEFA European Under-17 Championship, the UEFA Futsal Cup finals, and the FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup, and the venue for the 2019 UEFA Europa League final.
Where is it
The biggest city in the Caucasus region, Baku is also the largest urban base on the shores of the Caspian Sea. It is nearly 2,000km from both Moscow and Istanbul, 9,000km east of New York, and 5,500km west of Beijing.
Getting to and around Baku
Heydar Aliyev International Airport lies 20km northeast of Baku, a 45-minute bus ride from the city's central rail station. The city has a two-line metro train system, which can shuttle visitors to the picturesque Old Town as well as within walking distance of the Olympic Stadium, with bus and taxi services relatively inexpensive. Heydar Aliyev International Airport prepares special action plan for the period of UEFA Europa League Final in Baku.
What to see
For culture: The walled old town, Icheri Sheher, is a UNESCO World Heritage site containing the Maiden Tower and the grand 15th-century Shirvanshahs Palace, home to the dynasty that ruled this region in the Middle Ages.
For atmosphere: It is worth taking to the streets at night: Azerbaijan has some stunning modern buildings which are illuminated after dark, not least the Flame Towers.
For fresh air: National Park (Milli Park) runs parallel to the seafront at Baku, from Freedom Square (Azadlıq Meydanı) to National Flag Square (Dövlət Bayrağı Meydanı), which boasts an amusement park and musical fountain.
Eating and drinking
Foreign visitors may notice similarities between Azerbaijani cuisine and those of Turkey and Iran. A keynote meal is pilaf, a rice dish flavoured with saffron and mixed with meat or vegetables, while dolma (vine leaves stuffed with minced meat) are as popular as they are over in Turkey.
Lamb or sturgeon kebabs are another winner. Tea – served without milk – is another staple, to accompany delicate baklava pastries; sweet sherbet is the cold drink of choice.
Get out of the city
Want to know why Azerbaijan is known as the land of fire? A 25km journey outside Baku brings visitors to Yanar Dağ (Fire Mountain), a hillside which is constantly burning – even in heavy wind and rain – due to natural gas seeping through the soil.
Further out, Gobustan National Park features extraordinary rock carvings dating as far back as 40,000 years, as well as another geological phenomenon which owes much to Azerbaijan's oil and gas reserves: mud volcanoes.
Where to stay
Rapid expansion of the city in recent decades, and increasing numbers of foreign visitors, mean there are plenty of modern hotels in Baku. See useful links below.
Useful links
Get information about visa to Azerbaijan: https://finalbaku2019.az/asan-visa/
Azerbaijan Travel: http://azerbaijan.travel/en/
Lonely Planet: http://www.lonelyplanet.com/azerbaijan/baku-baki
Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baku
Official final website: https://finalbaku2019.az/en
Baku Olimpiya Stadionu: http://bos.az/en/
Association of Football Federations of Azerbaijan (AFFA): http://www.affa.az/
