Known as the “Cathedral of Football,” the magnificent Wembley Stadium is still considered the center of international football tournaments and remains one of the world’s most famous football icons.
London, England -- (SBWIRE) -- 03/28/2012 -- Another important milestone in sports history will be taking place at the Wembley Stadium next year – the 2013 UEFA Champions League Finals, the final match of the 2012-2013 UEFA Champions League, to be played on the 25th of May 2013. The 2012-2013 UEFA Champions League is on its 58th season, which also marks the Football Association’s (FA) 150th anniversary.
This is the seventh time for the stadium to host Europe’s premier football tournament. Last year’s 2011 EUFA Champions League Finals, making it the first stadium in history to host the UEFA Finals twice in three years. Being the second largest in Europe (90,000-capacity), it is recommended that spectators take a Wembley Stadium tour first to get oriented with the venue before the season games begin.
Originally constructed way back in the early 1920s and reopening more recently in 2007, both the old and the new Wembley Stadium have been considered the home of sporting events. This is most famous for hosting football matches, most notably the prestigious FA Cup, organized by the stadium’s owner, the Football Association (FA). Aside from the FA Cup, the Wembley Stadium also stands witness to some of the most important football events in history and counts in one of the best London attractions. In the 1948 Olympics, British doctor and athlete John Mark lit the heavy Olympic Torch. To pay tribute to this event, the 1948 Olympic Torch Relay will be re-lived by 8000 people specially chosen to carry the Olympic Flame. The relay will run an 8000-mile course in 70 days, ending at the Wembley Stadium on the 27th of July to inaugurate the 2012 Olympic Games.
This place is witness to how England won its only World Cup trophy in the 1966 FIFA World Cup Finals. British football fanatics will always look back to this sweet victory, when the team defeated West Germany with a final score of 4-2, the first and only time when England won the Jules Rimet Trophy. The 1966 FIFA World Cup Finals was also the most watched event on British television as of September 2009.The Men’s and Women’s Football Finals for the 2012 Olympics, a major feature of the Olympic Games, will also be hosted by England’s national stadium. Scheduled to be played on July, 16 teams of male and 12 teams of female athletes will be competing for the gold medals. This is the second time hosts the event after the 1948 Olympics.