Top 10 Stadiums

Throughout the years since football was invented, many fans have been lucky enough to witness some of the greatest moments in the game at some of the most iconic stadiums.

There are one or two factors that make a stadium great with one of them of course being the atmosphere generated by the fans which spurs on the home team to play well.

The other is the venue itself because of it's size and the history of it as well because the bigger the ground the bigger the atmosphere, and the games it's hosted over the years.

There are stadiums that players love to play in because of the history of the ground and the atmosphere the ground can generate. Especially if it's the home stadium of the team they play for.

But there are also grounds that players hate to play at because the atmosphere the home fans generate can intimidate them, the way the home team plays and the ground itself being quite tight because of how close the fans are to the pitch.

As a fan you love going to stadiums because you want to support your team and you want to watch them play as some of the biggest venues as well as at your own.

But as a player, you have mixed feelings about different stadiums and especially if you're playing at them as the away team.

The stadiums in the list are grounds only used in club football as this top 10 is about European League's and among the names are some of the biggest grounds in the game.

Now here is the list:

San Siro

Bernabeu

Allianz Arena

Old Trafford

Anfield

Nou Camp

Allianz Stadium

Etihad Stadium

Westfalenstadion

Parc des Princes

10. Etihad Stadium

The Etihad had to be at no.10 because it doesn't generate as much of an atmosphere as most of the other grounds on the list do.

It's also not as famous as the other grounds as it hasn't always been a big or iconic stadium because of where Man City were before they moved there.

The stadium does generate an atmosphere and especially during the big games in the Premier League which is where we see it at it's best.

But atmosphere in European games has come under scrutiny as the fans used to boo the Champions League anthem before Champions League games.

9. Allianz Stadium

The Allianz Stadium is also known as the Juventus Stadium but it's called the Allianz Stadium for sponsorship reasons only.

This ground forms a closer connection between the players and the fans compared to the Stadio delle Alpi, it's predecessor, which had an athletics track between the stands and the pitch and those kind of grounds made it difficult for the fans to connect with the players.

The Juve fans are always behind their team and by doing this they create an brilliant atmosphere inside the ground hoping to intimidate the opposition.

But the fans haven't quite turned this stadium into a fortress in recent years as Juve have declined a lot since their dominance of Serie A came to an end.

8. Parc des Princes

The Parc des Princes is the home of PSG and has been since 1974 after it was originally used for multiple sports like cycling.

The ground has an electric atmosphere when it's full because of how big the stadium is and how passionate the fans are about the team.

7. Old Trafford

Old Trafford used to be a ground that opposition teams hated visiting because they kept losing there pretty much every time they went there.

That was probably down to how Man United played and the atmosphere in side the ground which could intimidate the opposition.

That fear factor is no longer there and hasn't been for years as teams now come to Old Trafford believing they can get a result because of Man United no longer being the team they used to be.

It would've been higher up the list had I done this top 10 about 15 years ago because of the feared ground it was and because the fear factor is no longer there, I had to have it fairly low down.

6. Allianz Arena

The Allianz Arena is a very colourful stadium on the outside as the tiles on the outside can change colour depending on what the occasion is.

It's been Bayern Munich's ground for as long as I can remember and it's a ground that has a brilliant atmosphere because of how loud the fans are inside the ground.

The fans are always behind their team when Bayern play there and the atmosphere inside the ground always intimidates the opposition.

5. Anfield

Anfield is one of the toughest stadiums to go to for any opposition because of the atmosphere inside the ground and especially on European nights.

The fans are always behind Liverpool when they play at Anfield and the atmosphere on European nights is simply incredible as it intimidates the opposition.

Anfield is at it's best on European nights because the fans not just back their team, but carry them over the finish line like they did against Barcelona in 2019, where Liverpool pulled off that incredible comeback against Barcelona.

Anfield has been a real fortress for Liverpool in recent seasons because of the atmosphere the fans generate and the players feeding off that energy.

4. Westfalenstadion

The Westfalenstadion is also known as Signal Iduna Park due to sponsorship reasons and is the home of Borussia Dortmund.

The atmosphere inside that ground is always incredible because of the noise the fans generate, led by the famous yellow wall, which is one of the stands in the stadium.

The loud and lively atmosphere inside the ground makes it difficult for any opposing team as it's designed to intimidate them and make it difficult for them to perform.

3. San Siro

The San Siro has been one of the great stadiums in the game for many years and is one of the few grounds to host two clubs in Inter and AC Milan.

The atmosphere inside the stadium is electric and especially on derby day when the two Milan clubs face off against one another.

It's set to be demolished soon which is a shame because it's been such an iconic ground to watch football at.

I was even thinking about going to Milan one day with a tour of the San Siro being one of the things on my to-do-list. Looks like I'll have to change my plans.

2. Bernabeu

The Bernabeu has been the home of Real Madrid for many years and has been right up there among the most iconic grounds in the game throughout that time.

The atmosphere inside the ground is always electric because of the amount the people the stadium can hold and the noise the thousands of fans can generate.

The atmosphere is at it's best especially on Champions League nights as the Champions League is the trophy that Real Madrid want to win the most and the competition their fans are up for the most also.

1. Nou Camp

The Nou Camp had to be my no.1 because it's the biggest stadium in Europe with a capacity of 99,354 and the atmosphere there is always incredible.

The Barcelona fans generate such an atmosphere inside that ground because how passionate they are about their team and how noisy they were as well.

A lot of teams have struggled to get a result at the Nou Camp over the years because of the fortress Barca have turned it into and especially during their prime years under Pep Guardiola as very few teams were able to get a result there.

It reopened recently after being closed for a couple of years due to the stadium being refurbished and it's good to have it's doors open because it's such an iconic and magnificent ground.

MY TOP 10:

1. Nou Camp

2. Bernabeu

3. San Siro

4. Westfalenstadion

5. Anfield

6. Allianz Arena

7. Old Trafford

8. Parc des Paris

9. Allianz Stadium

10. Etihad Stadium