Marienlyst Stadion

Marienlyst stadion
Gamle Gress
Map
LocationDrammen, Norway
Coordinates59°44′04″N 10°12′05″E / 59.73444°N 10.20139°E / 59.73444; 10.20139
OwnerDrammen Municipality
OperatorDrammen Municipality
Capacity8,935
Record attendance17,300 (1947)
Field size106 × 68 m
SurfaceArtificial grass
Construction
Broke ground1923
Opened1924
Tenants
Strømsgodset Toppfotball (1967–present)
SBK Drafn (1924–present)

The Marienlyst Stadion has been the home ground of Strømsgodset Toppfotball since 1967. It's located on Marienlyst in Drammen, Norway.

History

The pitch was opened in 1924, and was the home ground of Drafn, Skiold and Drammens BK. The final of the 1932 Norwegian Football Cup, between Fredrikstad and Ørn was played at Marienlyst.[1] During the 1952 Winter Olympics in neighboring Oslo, the venue hosted two ice hockey matches.

The venue hosted the Norwegian Athletics Championships in 1962 and 2001[2] and also hosted motorcycle speedway around the pitch, when it held the final of the Norwegian Individual Speedway Championship in 1962.[3]

The Norway national under-21 football team has played eighteen games Marienlyst, making it their most-used venue. The first under-21 match was played in 1981.[4]

Marienlyst prior to Strømsgodset's opening game of the season against Kongsvinger in 2010.

After a rebuild of the south end in 2014, and installation of safe standing seats,[5] the stadium has a capacity of 8,935. When using the seats, the capacity is 8,060.[6] The rebuild was done to ensure that the stadium would fulfill UEFA's regulations for a Category 4 stadium,[7][8] which can be used for all Champions League or Europa League matches except the final.[9][10]

The grass was removed in November 2007 to make way for artificial ice surface for winter sports, and artificial grass for summer sports. A new stadium was planned, but the project was abandoned due to financial difficulties. There are new plans to expand and rebuild the main stand. In a 2012 survey carried out by the Norwegian Players' Association among away-team captains, Marienlyst was ranked third-worst amongst league stadiums, with a score of 2.13 on a scale from one to five.[11] This was mainly due to the worn-out artificial turf, which was replaced in the summer of 2013. It is due to be replaced again in 2024.

Marienlyst during the cup game between Strømsgodset and Lillestrøm on 9 May 2024. Taken from the south stand.

The Gamle Gress (old Turf) is part of a sport complex, with the adjacent bandy field (artificial ice) and the athletics stadium next door as well as the sports hall for indoor athletics and handball.

Attendance

The record attendance is 17,300 when Mjøndalen met Viking in the semifinal of the 1947 Norwegian Football Cup. Strømsgodset's record attendance is from 22 May 1969, when 16,687 people attended the home match against Rosenborg.[12]

Strømsgodset's league attendances

This photo, facing north, shows the artificial ice field in the Marienlyst stadium complex in Drammen, Norway. During summer, the cover is artificial turf for soccer. On the left, Drammensbadet swimming hall. On the right, the western part of Marienlyst stadium, which also houses the wardrobe section and garage for the ice field.

This lists Strømsgodsets's most recent average league home attendances at Marienlyst. It also lists minimum and maximum league homeattendances from each season.

Eliteserien
† 1. divisjon
League attendances
Season Avg. Min. Max. Rank Ref
2006 4,076 1,958 8,025 2† [13]
2007 6,808 5,347 8,198 10 [14]
2008 5,915 4,785 7,539 10 [15]
2009 5,355 3,897 7,387 13 [16]
2010 5,857 4,760 7,444 11 [17]
2011 5,707 5,052 6,426 12 [18]
2012 6,101 4,726 7,451 8 [19]
2013 6,526 5,175 7,544 7 [20]
2014 6,708 5,861 7,720 8 [21]
2015 7,030 6,180 8,468 6 [22]
2016 6,826 6,095 7,661 7 [23]
2017 6,272 5,575 7,706 7 [24]
2018 5,939 5,199 7,587 5 [25]

References

  1. ^ "Cup final in Drammen, October 16". RSSSF Norway. Archived from the original on 24 May 2008. Retrieved 31 January 2012.
  2. ^ "Main Championships Men" (in Norwegian). Norwegian Athletics Association. Archived from the original on 15 December 2011. Retrieved 25 November 2011.
  3. ^ "Individual Speedway Norwegian Championship". Historia Sportu Zuzlowego. Retrieved 15 February 2024.
  4. ^ "Norge Menn U21" (in Norwegian). Football Association of Norway. Archived from the original on 12 May 2012. Retrieved 26 November 2011.
  5. ^ "Fixed Spectator Seating Specialists | Ferco Seating Systems". fercoseating.com.
  6. ^ "Klokkesvingen klar" (in Norwegian). Strømsgodset IF. 25 July 2014. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 28 July 2014.
  7. ^ "UEFA Stadium Infrastructure Regulations Edition 2010" (PDF). www.uefa.org. UEFA. Retrieved 4 August 2014.
  8. ^ "Her er stadionkravene kommunen må oppfylle". www.dt.no (in Norwegian). Drammens Tidende. 14 Nov 2013. Retrieved 4 August 2014.
  9. ^ "Regulations of the UEFA Champions League, 2014/15 competition" (PDF). www.uefa.org. UEFA. Retrieved 4 August 2014.
  10. ^ "Regulations of the UEFA Europa League, 2014/15 competition" (PDF). www.uefa.org. UEFA. Retrieved 4 August 2014.
  11. ^ "Lerkendal nest beste fotballbane" (in Norwegian). Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation. 28 November 2012. Archived from the original on 1 December 2012. Retrieved 30 November 2012.
  12. ^ Lie, Børre Ivar (21 June 2012). "Mjøndalen har rekorden på "Gamle Gress"" (in Norwegian). Drammens Tidende. Retrieved 27 February 2013.
  13. ^ "Tilskuertall 2006". Norsk Internasjonal Fotballstatistikk. Retrieved 26 November 2017.
  14. ^ "Tilskuertall 2007". Norsk Internasjonal Fotballstatistikk. Retrieved 12 November 2018.
  15. ^ "Tilskuertall 2008". Norsk Internasjonal Fotballstatistikk. Retrieved 12 November 2018.
  16. ^ "Tilskuertall 2009". Norsk Internasjonal Fotballstatistikk. Retrieved 12 November 2018.
  17. ^ "Tilskuertall 2010". Norsk Internasjonal Fotballstatistikk. Retrieved 12 November 2018.
  18. ^ "Tilskuertall 2011". Norsk Internasjonal Fotballstatistikk. Retrieved 12 November 2018.
  19. ^ "Tilskuertall 2012". Norsk Internasjonal Fotballstatistikk. Retrieved 12 November 2018.
  20. ^ "Tilskuertall 2013". Norsk Internasjonal Fotballstatistikk. Retrieved 12 November 2018.
  21. ^ "Tilskuertall 2014". Norsk Internasjonal Fotballstatistikk. Retrieved 12 November 2018.
  22. ^ "Tilskuertall 2015". Norsk Internasjonal Fotballstatistikk. Retrieved 12 November 2018.
  23. ^ "Tilskuertall 2016". Norsk Internasjonal Fotballstatistikk. Retrieved 12 November 2018.
  24. ^ "Tilskuertall 2017". Norsk Internasjonal Fotballstatistikk. Retrieved 12 November 2018.
  25. ^ "Tilskuertall 2018". Norsk Internasjonal Fotballstatistikk. Retrieved 12 November 2018.
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