View source for Sammy Ofer Stadium

{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2023}}
{{short description|Football stadium in Haifa, Israel}}
{{Infobox venue
|stadium_name       = Sammy Ofer Stadium
|fullname           = The International Sammy Ofer Stadium
|nickname           = 
|logo_image         = 
|logo_caption       = 
|image              = 
[[File:Sammy Ofer Stadium air.jpg|250px]]
|caption            = '''[[UEFA stadium categories|UEFA]]''' {{rating|4|4}}
|location           = {{flagicon|Israel}} [[Haifa]], [[Israel]]
|broke_ground       = 2009
|built              = 
|opened             = 27 August 2014
|renovated          = 
|expanded           = 
|closed             = 
|demolished         = 
|owner              = [[Haifa|Haifa Municipality]]
|operator           = Haifa Municipality
|surface            = Grass
|scoreboard         = LCD
|architect          = [[KSS Design Group]]
|services engineer  = 
|general_contractor = 
|main_contractors   = 
|seating_capacity   = 30,942<ref>[https://www.haifa-stadium.com/Facts_and_Numbers Official stadium website]</ref>
|suites             = 35
|record_attendance  = 30,464 ([[Maccabi Haifa F.C.|Maccabi Haifa]] vs [[Benfica Lisbon]], 2 November 2022)
|dimensions         = {{cvt|22000|sqm}}
|tenants            = [[Maccabi Haifa F.C.|Maccabi Haifa]] (2014–present)<br /> [[Hapoel Haifa F.C.|Hapoel Haifa]] (2014–present)<br /> [[Israel national football team]] (selected matches)
|address            = 2 Pinchas and Abraham Rotenberg Street
|construction_cost  = [[Israeli new shekel|₪]] 530 million
|executive_suites   =
|website            = [https://www.haifa-stadium.com Sammy Ofer Stadium]
|publictransit      = {{rint|il|rail}} [[Coastal railway line, Israel|Coastal Railway Line]] at [[Haifa Hof HaCarmel railway station|Haifa Hof HaCarmel]]
}}

[[File:PikiWiki_Israel_59466_sami_ofer_stadium (cropped 3).jpg|thumb|Sammy Ofer Stadium of the city of [[Haifa]], Israel]]
[[File:SammyOferSTD.jpg|thumb|Sammy Ofer Stadium]]

'''Sammy Ofer Stadium''' ({{langx|he|אצטדיון סמי עופר}}), also known as '''Haifa Municipal Stadium''' ({{lang|he|האצטדיון העירוני חיפה}}), is a 30,942 seats [[multi-purpose stadium]] in [[Haifa]], [[Israel]].<ref>[http://www.kssgroup.com/projects/sammy-ofer-stadium.php www.kssgroup.com]</ref> Construction began in late 2009 and was completed in 2014. The stadium was developed and built by the Haifa Economic Corporation, managed by Adv. Gal Peleg.

Currently, the stadium is used mostly for [[Association football|football]] matches, hosting the home games of [[Maccabi Haifa F.C.|Maccabi Haifa]] and [[Hapoel Haifa F.C.|Hapoel Haifa]]. The stadium replaced [[Kiryat Eliezer Stadium]], which was closed in 2014 and demolished in 2015. The stadium is named after the late Israeli billionaire [[Sammy Ofer]] (1922–2011), who donated $20,000,000 to build the stadium. Ofer's contribution was 19% of the total cost of the stadium.

''Statue of World Peace,'' a 15-meter high stainless steel sculpture created and donated by Chinese artist We Yuan Yan (Yao Yuan), adorns the stadium plaza.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2013-08-20 |title=Chinese artist presents Peres with peace statue |url=https://www.jpost.com/national-news/chinese-artist-presents-peres-with-peace-statue-323722 |access-date=2023-12-19 |website=The Jerusalem Post {{!}} JPost.com |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=The new national stadium in Haifa |url=https://embassies.gov.il/MFA/IsraelExperience/lifestyle/Pages/The-new-national-stadium-in-Haifa.aspx |access-date=December 18, 2023 |website=embassies.gov.il}}</ref> The design features a woman and a [[Doves as symbols|dove]] poised as if about to take flight.

==History==
[[File:PikiWiki Israel 33070 World Peace Statue in Haifa.JPG|thumb|The World Peace Statue has stood on the stadium grounds since 2013]]

On 16 September 2008, the Haifa Construction Committee approved the stadium's plans and gave it the green light. In August 2009, official plans for the stadium were released. In September 2009, it has been announced that the works on building the foundations of the stadium would begin at the end of September 2009.

The first official match ever at Sammy Ofer Stadium was played on 27 August 2014. [[Hapoel Haifa]] hosted [[Hapoel Acre F.C.|Hapoel Acre]] ([[Toto Cup]]) and won 2–0. The first historic goal in the new stadium was scored by Hapoel Haifa striker [[Tosaint Ricketts]]. The first league match was played on 15 September 2014. [[Maccabi Haifa F.C.|Maccabi Haifa]] hosted [[Bnei Sakhnin F.C.|Bnei Sakhnin]], who they defeated by a score of 4–2. The historic first goal by a Maccabi Haifa player was scored by Israeli national team midfielder [[Hen Ezra]] during stoppage time of the first half. Over 28,000 supporters were in attendance.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://maccabi-haifafc.walla.co.il/?w=/3036/2785849 |access-date=2023-06-09 |title=Dream House |publisher=[[Maccabi Haifa F.C.]] |date=September 16, 2014 |website=maccabi-haifafc.walla.co.il |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141225210835/http://maccabi-haifafc.walla.co.il/?w=%2F3036%2F2785849 |archive-date=2014-12-25}}</ref>

The first [[UEFA Champions League]] match was played on 30 September 2015 by [[Maccabi Tel Aviv F.C.|Maccabi Tel Aviv]] against [[Dinamo Kyiv]],<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.uefa.com/uefachampionsleague/news/0225-0e91e41d12ba-e67e194ca1c7-1000--dynamo-kyiv-ease-to-maccabi-victory/|title = Dynamo Kyiv ease to Maccabi victory|date = 29 September 2015}}</ref> Dinamo won 2–0 with goals by [[Andriy Yarmolenko]] and [[Júnior Moraes]].

The first match of the [[Israel national football team]] was played on 16 November 2014. Israel hosted the [[Bosnia and Herzegovina national football team]] in the [[UEFA Euro 2016 qualifying]] match and won 3–0. The stadium was sold out, which resulted in an atmosphere beyond compare, helping Israel win their 3rd game in a row in the tournament.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://int.soccerway.com/matches/2014/11/16/europe/european-championship-qualification/israel/bosnia-herzegovina/1653243/?ICID=PL_MS_24|title = Israel vs. Bosnia-Herzegovina - 16 November 2014 - Soccerway}}</ref> 

The first concert at the stadium was by [[Omer Adam]] on 24 May 2018, there were 30,000 people in the audience, and all the tickets were sold within an hour of being released.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2018-05-24 |title=עומר אדם עלה על במת "סמי עופר" אל מול 30 אלף מעריצים נלהבים |url=https://www.maariv.co.il/culture/music/article-639630 |access-date=2025-01-21 |website=www.maariv.co.il |language=he}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2018-05-24 |title=עומר אדם כבש 30 אלף מעריצים בהופעה באצטדיון סמי עופר |url=https://www.mako.co.il/music-news/local/Article-25ed4a10d729361006.htm |access-date=2025-01-21 |website=mako}}</ref>

=== Milestones and Records ===
On 5 January 2017, four goals were scored by a single player at the stadium for the first time, when [[Hanan Maman]] scored in Hapoel Haifa's 6–1 victory over [[F.C. Kafr Qasim|Kfar Qassem]] in a cup match.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2017-01-05 |title=כפיר מלול: ממן נכנס לרשימה שלי ושל לבנדובסקי |url=https://www.one.co.il/Article/284046.html |access-date=2025-01-21 |website=ONE - מספר אחת בספורט}}</ref> On 7 February 2022, this achievement was repeated, when [[Omer Atzili]] scored in Maccabi Haifa's 6–0 win over [[F.C. Ashdod]] in the [[Israeli Premier League]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=2022-02-07 |title=חג העומר: רביעייה לאצילי, 0:6 אדיר למכבי חיפה |url=https://www.one.co.il/Article/403431.html |access-date=2025-01-21 |website=ONE - מספר אחת בספורט}}</ref>

In the [[2022–23 Israeli Premier League]], Maccabi Haifa won their third consecutive championship, with a home record of 18 wins, one draw, and no losses, accumulating 52 points out of a possible 54.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-05-15 |title=שלוש עליכם: מכבי חיפה זכתה באליפות שלישית ברציפות - וואלה ספורט |url=https://sports.walla.co.il/item/3578982 |access-date=2025-01-21 |website=וואלה |language=he}}</ref>[[File:PikiWiki Israel 49197 Sports in Israel.jpg|thumb|700px|center|Sammy Ofer Stadium of Haifa. The second largest stadium of the [[Israel national football team]].]]

'''International matches'''
{| class="wikitable"
! Date !!  !! Result !! !! Competition  !! Attendance
|-
| 16 November 2014 || {{fb|ISR}} || 3–0 || {{fb|BIH}} || [[UEFA Euro 2016 qualifying Group B|2016 Euro qualifying group stage]] || 28,300
|-
| 28 March 2015 || {{fb|ISR}} || 0–3 || {{fb|WAL}} || [[UEFA Euro 2016 qualifying Group B|2016 Euro qualifying group stage]] || 30,200
|-
| 3 September 2015 || {{fb|ISR}} || 4–0 || {{fb|AND}} || [[UEFA Euro 2016 qualifying Group B|2016 Euro qualifying group stage]] || 22,650
|-
| 5 September 2016 || {{fb|ISR}} || 1–3 || {{fb|ITA}} || [[2018 FIFA World Cup qualification - UEFA Group G|2018 FIFA World Cup qualification]] || 29,300
|-
| 11 June 2017 || {{fb|ISR}} || 0–3 || {{fb|ALB}} || [[2018 FIFA World Cup qualification - UEFA Group G|2018 FIFA World Cup qualification]] || 15,150
|-
| 2 September 2017 || {{fb|ISR}} || 0–1 || {{fb|MKD}} || [[2018 FIFA World Cup qualification - UEFA Group G|2018 FIFA World Cup qualification]] || 11,350
|-
| 11 October 2018 || {{fb|ISR}} || 2–1 || {{fb|SCO}} || [[2018–19 UEFA Nations League C|2018–19 UEFA Nations League]] || 10,234
|-
| 21 March 2019 || {{fb|ISR}} || 1–1 || {{fb|SVN}} || [[UEFA Euro 2020 qualifying Group G|UEFA Euro 2020 qualifying]] || 12,430
|-
| 24 March 2019 || {{fb|ISR}} || 4–2 || {{fb|AUT}} || [[UEFA Euro 2020 qualifying Group G|UEFA Euro 2020 qualifying]] || 16,150
|-
| 11 October 2020 || {{fb|ISR}} || 1–2 || {{fb|CZE}} || [[2020–21 UEFA Nations League B|2020–21 UEFA Nations League]] || 0
|-
| 4 September 2021 || {{fb|ISR}} || 5–2 || {{fb|AUT}} || [[2022 FIFA World Cup qualification – UEFA Group F|2022 FIFA World Cup qualification]] || 13,550
|-
| 2 June 2022 || {{fb|ISR}} || 2–2 || {{fb|ISL}} || [[2022–23 UEFA Nations League B|2022–23 UEFA Nations League]] || 13,150
|-
|}

==Gates==
[[image:SammyOfer19.JPG|thumb|Sammy Ofer Stadium]]
{| class="wikitable" border="1"
! Gate
! Entrance
! Area
|- 
| Silver Club  
| A, B
| 301–305, 307, 309-312
|- 
| Press Box
| A, B
| 306, 308
|- 
| Gold and Diamond Club
| VIP
| 401–410
|- 
| Sky Box
| VIP
| 501–536
|- 
| North Tribune
| C, D
| 101–109, 201-212
|-
| Family Tribune
| E, G
| 110–113, 119–122, 213–217, 223-227
|-
| East Tribune
| F
| 114–118, 218-222
|-
| South Tribune
| H, J
| 123–128, 228-234
|-
| Guest Tribune
| K
| 129–132, 235-240
|- 
|}

==See also==
* [[List of football stadiums in Israel]]
* [[Kiryat Eliezer Stadium]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}
{{coord|32|47|0|N|34|57|55|E|display=title}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Sammy Ofer Stadium}}
* {{in lang|he}} [http://www.sammyofer-stadium.co.il/ Official website]
* {{in lang|he}} [http://www1.haifa.muni.il/apps/project/culture/stadium.asp Municipality of Haifa]
* {{in lang|he}} [https://web.archive.org/web/20070121004326/http://www.hec.co.il/page.asp?id=19 Haifa Economic Corporation Ltd.]
* {{in lang|he}} [http://www.nrg.co.il/online/3/ART1/928/485.html Official Plans]
* {{in lang|he}} [http://www.kssgroup.com/projects/sammy-ofer-stadium.php KSS Group]
* {{in lang|he}} [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=adKg9q--ppw Sammy Ofer Stadium video]

{{Israel national football team}}
{{Maccabi Haifa F.C.}}
{{Hapoel Haifa F.C.}}
{{Israeli Premier League}}

[[Category:Football venues in Israel]]
[[Category:Multi-purpose stadiums in Israel]]
[[Category:Maccabi Haifa F.C.]]
[[Category:Sports venues completed in 2014]]
[[Category:2014 establishments in Israel]]
[[Category:Sports venues in Haifa]]