Mbombela Stadium

The Mbombela Stadium was built at a cost of US$145,000,000 and is located in the city of Nelspruit. The name ‘Mbombela’ in siSwati (one of the 11 official languages in South Africa) literally translates to ‘many people in a small place’. The stadium was specifically built for the purpose of hosting the World Cup and has been nicknamed the ‘Giraffe’. The nickname can be associated with the 18 roof supports of the stadium that resemble the ‘inhabitants’ of South Africa’s world famous Kruger National Park. Reaching the stadium shouldn’t be too much of a bother for tourists and locals alike since it enjoys proximity to the N4.

Before the commencement of work on the Mbombela stadium, the planning and implementation process suffered undue delays since the land on which the stadium is now located on housed a school. The school had to be relocated before beginning work on the stadium. The Mbombela Stadium will also serve as the central point to a number of game parks that tourists can throng. The South African authorities have chosen four sites for park-and-ride purposes. These sites include the Nelspruit Rugby Club, the Agricultural Centre, Bergvlam High School and the Nelspruit High School.

The Mbombela Stadium poses a unique advantage to the spectators who get to watch matches from its front stands. This is because these front stands, between all the World Cup hosting stadiums enjoy the privilege of being located closest to the pitch. The Mbombela Stadium will also add a lot to the football that Nelspruit as a city sees. The city of Nelspruit previously had no world class stadium to talk about, but now has the newly-built Mbombela Stadium to supplement its global image as a FIFA World Cup host city.

 

The schedule for the matches to be held at the Mbombela Stadium is given below.