Stadio Nervion, the first stadium built on this site, was opened in 1923, but was severely damaged during the Spanish Civil War, with its empty shell being used as a concentration camp and a dumping ground for junk. Rebuilt after the war, it was damaged by floods in 1957 and then restructured to reopen as the Estadio Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan in September 1958. Renovated in 1997, the ground’s current capacity of around 42,000 makes it the fifth largest stadium in Spain.

The Estadio Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan was the venue for the 1982 World Cup semi-final between West Germany and France, and in 1986 it hosted the European Cup Final between Steaua Bucharest and Barcelona.

With no running track, the steep-sided stadium generates an excellent atmosphere. With the exception of the one main stand housing the dressing rooms etc, the seated area is uncovered; there are no pillars restricting views.

The English FA’s allocation for this game was 4,000 tickets, and the English sector is housed in the southeast corner of the ground, on all three tiers. These sectors are accessible via three gates, numbers 8, 9A and 11.

The stadium is located in a residential and commercial area of the city, with a good number of small bars and restaurants in the vicinity, and a shopping mall with more food and drink outlets adjacent to the ground.