The stadium is part of the Athens Olympic Sports Complex, hosting the athletics events and the football final at the 2004 Summer Olympics. It was originally designed in 1979, but was extensively renovated (just) in time for the 2004 Olympics, when a roof was added atop the sidelines in order to shade fans from the strong Athens sun. There are still a few gaps in the roof which let the sun in if you’re sat in the first few rows or in front of the video screens behind the goals, which results in only 85% of seats being under cover.
The stadium played host to the 2007 Champions League Final between AC Milan and Liverpool, which the Italians won 2-1.
Location of the Ground in the City
The Athens Olympic Stadium, known officially as the Spyros Louis Stadium, (named after the man to win the first modern Olympic marathon races in 1896, and surely a pub quiz answer if ever there was one) or simply the OAKA, is located in the north of the city in the municipality of Maroussi. It’s about 5 ½ miles from the city centre and around 14 miles from the airport.
General Ground Information
Due to the relatively recent construction of the stadium and the fact that is was redeveloped primarily to host the Olympic games, views of the pitch are unobstructed, but suffer from having an 8 lane running track and long jump pits at either side of the ground. Supporters sitting behind the goal have to contend with both the running track and a huge area for throwing events and the high jump, making the distance from the front row of seats to the nearest goal around 20 metres.
There are thirty four entrance gates providing access to the stands, with the odd-numbered gates leading to the lower tier and the even numbered gates to the upper tier. Just to confuse you, it’s worth noting that there are no gates 18 or 36 due to the rather large video screens at either end of the stadium.
Getting to the Ground (By Public Transport)
Best way to the Athens Olympic Sports Complex from the city centre is by metro. The nearest station to the stadium is Irini on Metro Line 1 which runs from Monastiraki and Omonia stations in the city centre. The journey from the city centre to the stadium takes about 25 minutes. From the station it’s a 10 minute walk through the Olympic Complex to the stadium.
By suburban train or Proastiakos, the nearest station to the ground is Neratziotissa (which is also the next stop on the Metro line after Irini).
Right next to this station is the Athens Mall, which has over 200 shops, cash machines and 25 cafes, bars and restaurants which stay open until the early hours of the morning and will be selling alcohol on match day. The stadium is a short distance south of the Athens Mall and is clearly visible from the Mall.
From the city centre, there’s also the X14 bus, which runs from Syntagma Square direct to the Olympic Stadium, taking a minimum of 30 minutes.
Getting to the Ground (By Car)
If you’ve hired a car and want to drive up to the ground, then the best way is to exit the city centre to the north via Kifissias Avenue and follow road signs to OAKA. There is parking for 2000 cars at the Athens Mall (mentioned above), costing around €4.50 for four hours.
