Red Bull Arena (Leipzig): RB Leipzig
By Philipp (Flickr: Leipzig von oben: Zentralstadion) [CC BY 2.0], via Wikimedia Commons
RB Leipzig, otherwise known as RasenBallsport Leipzig e.V., are one of the most controversial teams in world football. Formed in 2009 after the takeover of SSV Markranstädt, the team is co-owned by Dietrich Mateschitz who also owns the drinks company Red Bull. They have engaged in numerous underhand tricks to circumnavigate the rules and regulations that dominate German football, which we’ll look at in more detail further on in the article.
As for the Red Bull Arena, it’s fair to say that the stadium’s history is filled with fascinating tidbits. At the location where the current ground stands was once a stadium called the Zentralstadion, which opened in 1956. It gradually became more and more worn and in 1997 a decision was reached to build a brand new stadium within the grounds of the old one. It opened in 2004 and from then until 2007 it was used by FC Sachsen Leipzig as their home ground. RB Leipzig moved in ahead of the 2010 season and have remained there since the club’s formation.
Stats
| Red Bull Arena (Leipzig) Stats | |
|---|---|
| Year Opened | 2004 |
| Capacity | 47069 |
| Average Attendance | 45175 |
| Record Attendance | 47069 (Several) |
| Pitch Size | 105 x 68 (7140) |
| Nickname | RB Arena |
| Former Name | Zentralstadion |
| Owner | Red Bull |
| Sponsor | Red Bull |
| Clubs Hosted | RB Leipzig, FC Sachsen Leipzig |
| First Fixture | FC Sachsen Leipzig v Borussia Dortmund (07/03/2004) |
| RB Leipzig Stats | |
|---|---|
| Year Founded | 2009 |
| Nickname | Die Bullen (The Bulls), Die Roten Bullen (The Red Bulls) |
| Club Mascot | Bulli (a bull) |
| Rivals | Bayern Munich |
| Kit | Red & White (Home) / Black & Colour Flecks (Away) / Purple (Third) |
| Shirt Sponsor | Red Bull |
| Team Owner | Dietrich Mateschitz |
| Record Goalscorer | Yussuf Poulsen (31) |
| Record Appearances | Dominik Kaiser / Yussuf Poulsen (63) |
Red Bull Arena (Leipzig) Photos
By Christopher Voitus (Own work) [CC BY-SA 2.5]
Le Radiophare / Flickr.com
By No machine-readable author provided. Gino992 assumed (based on copyright claims). [Public domain]
Raymond Chan / Flickr.com
By Ben-alti (Own work) [CC BY-SA 3.0 de]
By No machine-readable author provided. Becherka assumed (based on copyright claims). [CC BY-SA 2.5]
Red Bull Arena (Leipzig) Seating Plan and Where to Sit
Red Bull Arena contains two tiers, with the lower tier formed into a continuous bowl of seating. The upper tier only runs along the side of the pitch, however, and is replaced by a fan block behind one of the goals. The West Stand is the main stand in the stadium, with the players’ tunnel leading out to the dugouts. There’s also a row of executive boxes located in the upper tier.
RB Leipzig Ticket Prices
Prices for tickets in Germany tend to differ depending on where in the stadium you’d like to sit, as well as over other things such as your age and the opposition team that are coming to town. Tickets will tend to range from around €15 to in the region of €60, with a €20 increase for games against premium opposition like Borussia Dortmund and Bayern Munich.
How To Get RB Leipzig Tickets
The very best place to go for tickets is the club’s official website. If the match is unlikely to sell out then you can get tickets from the Red Bull shop in the centre of Leipzig.
Where to Buy
Getting To Red Bull Arena (Leipzig)
Train – A train from London to Leipzig will take about ten hours to complete its journey. You’ll head to Brussels to begin with, where you’ll change for a train to Frankfurt. Once there you’ll change train station and go from Frankfurt Sud to Leipzig itself. In Leipzig there’s the light rail, with both Feuerbachstraße and Sportforum Süd stations being within walking distance of the ground.
Bus – The light rail really is the best way to get around Leipzig, so that’s the mode of transport you’ll want to keep your eye out for.
Car – If you’re hoping to drive to the stadium then the 87 is the main road that will take you the closest to the ground. The actual road that the Arena is on is the Am Sportforum, though.
By Air – Leipzig/Halle Airport is around twenty miles from the centre of Hamburg, with the closest one otherwise being Dresden Airport around 110 miles away.
Taxi – A taxi from Leipzig’s main train station out to the stadium will cost less than €10 and should take just over five minutes to complete its journey.
Parking Near Red Bull Arena (Leipzig)
There’s a car park near to the stadium and one underneath it, but they’re both reserved for VIP supporters. There are plenty of other parking areas around the place, though, so you won’t struggle for somewhere to leave the car if you’re hoping to drive.
Useful Resources
Red Bull Arena (Leipzig) Hotels
Although overshadowed as a tourist destination by it’s East German neighbours, Berlin and Dresden, Leipzig still has plenty of accommodation options for weary travellers.
Hotel Arena City, Leipzig - £60+
InterCityHotel Leipzig - £70+
Innside by Meliá Leipzig - £80+
Pubs and Bars Near Red Bull Arena (Leipzig)
This is the country that brought us Oktoberfest, so finding somewhere to buy a bier is not an issue in Leipzig or anywhere else in Germany for that matter.
Champions Sports Bar
Kildare City Pub
Joseph Pub
Facilities
The stadium isn’t exactly ancient, and with it’s focus on attracting high profile clientele you won’t be surprised to learn that the facilities here are very good indeed. There are loads of bars and places to buy food, all pretty trendy looking too.
Hospitality
RB Leipzig is a club based around the idea of being a business, so it’s no major surprise that they have exceptional hospitality options for those of you that like to watch games in style. From business seats through to lounges, private lodges through to executive areas, there’s not much you can desire about a hospitality experience that you won’t be able to find at the Red Bull Arena.
Private Hire
Business is one of the first things that the RB Leipzig owners thought about when forming the club, so you’ll be pleased to know that there are plenty of private hire options if you’re hoping to host a meeting or event in Leipzig.
Stadium Tours & Museum
There are various different tour options at the Red Bull Arena, from a basic no frills tour, a guided tour, a 3D tour, and even an exclusive VIP tour. The prices for these start at €12 for adults and €10 concessions, but go all the way up to €20 and €18 respectively. The exclusive tour is for a group so you will need at least 10 people in your party to book that.
About RB Leipzig
In 2009 the drinks company Red Bull purchased the playing rights of SSV Markranstädt, a fifth division side in Germany. They re-branded the team but German rules forbade them from naming it after the company, so they circumvented that rule by naming the club ‘Lawn Ball Sport’. That translates into RasenBallSport in Germany, or RB for short. It wasn’t the last time that the co-owner of the club and Red Bull, Dietrich Mateschitz, would cheat the rules of German football.
In Germany football clubs have a rule that gives power to the supporters by allowing them to become members. Should you wish to become a member of Bayern Munich, for example, you can do so for around €80. RB Leipzig made the cost of becoming a member of their club €800, pricing themselves out of most people’s pay grade. It’s why the side is known as ‘the most hated club in Germany’, with many supporters disliking the way its run. Whatever you may think of them, though, Red Bull completed their aim of getting them to the top tier of German football within eight years of taking over.
Red Bull Arena (Leipzig) History
Zentralstadion opened its doors in 1956, offering room for around 100,000 supporters. That made it one of the biggest stadiums in Europe at the time, but its location in East Germany meant it was never likely to be considered one of the world’s best football grounds. Over the years it fell into disrepair and the city couldn’t afford to maintain it, so in 1997 the decision was made to build a state-of-the-art stadium within the ruins of the old one. It took four years to build it and there are numerous links to the old ground.
It was one of the only stadium from the former region of East Germany to host FIFA World Cup matches when the tournament was hosted in Germany in 2006. As well as four group games a last sixteen match was also held there. In between 2005 and 2007 the German Cup Final was also hosted by Red Bull Arena. Numerous Leipzig based sides have played their games within the ground, including FC Sachsen Leipzig, but it was empty by the end of the 2008-2009 season. That was why the decision was made for RB Leipzig to move in there once it was formed.
Future Developments
Plans were tabled to develop the Red Bull Arena in 2014, with the aim being to expand it to at least 55,000 seats. Those plans changed, although the stadium did replace the often mocked blue ‘swimming pool’ seats with red ones better fitting the club’s colours. The cladding was also being replaced with glass. In the end, expansion in terms of capacity was limited, with the stadium holding 47,069 after all work was complete in 2021. The improvements cost around €60 million, and nothing else is planned for the immediate future.