Largest Stadiums in the World: Top 10

The largest stadiums in the world are led by the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, with room for 132,000 cricket fans, ahead of Pyongyang and Michigan.

This Finepedia guide, written in October 2026, ranks the 10 biggest stadiums still used for sport by their standard permanent capacity. Each entry explains when the venue opened, who plays there and what makes the crowd experience special. For more on sport, see the Finepedia guides Sachin Tendulkar: A Legacy of Cricketing Excellence and Most Popular Sports for Girls: Top 10.

How We Chose These

We used permanent capacity, counting fixed seats and permanent standing areas but not temporary stands or one-off record crowds. Figures come from each venue's official number as collected in published capacity tables, cross-checked with a second listing, and they are correct as of October 2026. Motor racing circuits like Indianapolis are left out, as are venues that no longer host competitive sport. Eight of the ten are American college football grounds, and the Melbourne Cricket Ground misses the cut by just 53 places, at 100,024.

The 10 Largest Stadiums at a Glance

1. The Narendra Modi Stadium Is the Biggest in the World

The Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, holds 132,000 spectators, far more than any other sports venue in use. It was rebuilt on the site of the old Sardar Patel Stadium at Motera, reopened on 24 February 2020 and took its current name on 24 February 2021.

Key Facts

• Capacity: 132,000
• Site: about 63 acres in the Motera area of Ahmedabad
• Designers and builders: Populous, with construction by Larsen and Toubro
• Major finals: men's Cricket World Cup (2023) and T20 World Cup (2026)

Did You Know?

Its two tiers rest on Y-shaped columns placed underneath, so no pillars block anyone's view of the field. The ground belongs to the wider Sardar Patel Sports Enclave, and Ahmedabad will use it again when the city hosts the 2030 Commonwealth Games.

2. Rungrado 1st of May Stadium Looks Like a Giant Flower

This Pyongyang landmark stands on Rungra Island in the Taedong River in Pyongyang. Its first big event, in May 1989, was a world youth and student festival hosted by Pyongyang, and no bigger stadium had been built anywhere in Asia when it was completed.

Key Facts

• Capacity: 113,281 after a 2014 refit, down from a claimed 150,000
• Opened: 1 May 1989
• Site area: 20.7 hectares
• Roof: 16 arches rising more than 60 m above the ground

Why It Matters

The scalloped roof is often compared to a magnolia blossom. The stadium hosts football matches and athletics, but it is best known abroad for the Arirang mass games, enormous synchronised shows of dance and gymnastics staged by huge numbers of performers.

3. Michigan Stadium Is Known as The Big House

Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor is the biggest venue in the Americas and home to the University of Michigan Wolverines football team. It opened in 1927 with 72,000 seats and was built with footings that allowed later expansion beyond 100,000.

Key Facts

• Capacity: 107,601
• Opened: 1927, built for 950,000 US dollars
• Crowd streak: more than 100,000 at every home game since 8 November 1975
• Ice hockey record: 105,491 at the 2014 NHL Winter Classic

Did You Know?

Crowds at the Big House have gone past 115,000 on big game days. In 2014 a summer friendly featuring Manchester United against Real Madrid drew 109,318 people, still the largest crowd for a football match in the United States.

4. Beaver Stadium Has One of the Loudest Student Sections

Beaver Stadium is the home of Penn State's Nittany Lions football team at University Park, Pennsylvania. The team has played on this site since 1960, although some steelwork in the stands dates back to an earlier stadium of 1909.

Key Facts

• Official capacity: 106,572 (NCAA lists 106,304 for 2026 during building work)
• Home team since: 1960
• Named after: James A. Beaver, governor of Pennsylvania from 1887 to 1891
• Elevation: about 350 m above sea level

Why It Matters

Penn State fans are famous for their noise, and the student section has won national awards for its atmosphere. In a 2016 USA Today poll, readers picked Beaver Stadium as the top ground in all of college football.

5. Ohio Stadium Is Shaped Like a Horseshoe

Ohio Stadium in Columbus opened in 1922 for the Ohio State Buckeyes and is nicknamed The Horseshoe because one end is open. It first held 66,210 people and has grown through several rebuilds since then.

Key Facts

• Capacity: 102,780
• Opened: 1922
• Nicknames: The Horseshoe, also shortened to The Shoe
• Heritage: listed on the US National Register in 1974

Did You Know?

The Columbus Crew football club also played its home games here for three seasons, from 1996 to 1998. The bowl doubles as a major concert venue, with Pink Floyd, Metallica, U2 and Taylor Swift among the acts to have performed.

6. Kyle Field Is the Largest Stadium in Texas

Kyle Field in College Station belongs to Texas A&M University, whose Aggies have played on the site since 1904 and in a concrete stadium since 1927. It is named after Edwin Jackson Kyle, a professor who paid 650 dollars of his own money for the first grandstand.

Key Facts

• Capacity: 102,733
• Concrete stadium since: 1927
• Record crowd: 110,633 against Ole Miss on 11 October 2014
• Concert record: George Strait played to more than 110,000 people in June 2024

Why It Matters

No ticketed concert in America had ever sold more seats than that George Strait show. The 2014 crowd against Ole Miss was also, at the time, the biggest ever for a football game in Texas.

7. Tiger Stadium Is Called Death Valley

Tiger Stadium in Baton Rouge is the home of the Louisiana State University Tigers. It opened in 1924 with just 12,000 seats and has been enlarged many times to reach its current size.

Key Facts

• Capacity: 102,321
• Opened: 1924
• Nickname: Death Valley
• Conference: Southeastern Conference (SEC), where only Kyle Field is bigger

Did You Know?

LSU often plays at night, and the noise inside the bowl has a fearsome reputation. In 2007 ESPN described Tiger Stadium as the scariest venue for visiting players, and several surveys have named it the hardest ground for visiting teams.

8. Neyland Stadium Grew Through 16 Expansions

Neyland Stadium sits beside the Tennessee River in Knoxville and is where the Tennessee Volunteers play. Its first stands were finished in 1921, when the ground was called Shields–Watkins Field, a name the playing surface still carries.

Key Facts

• Capacity: 101,915
• First stands: 1921
• Expansions: 16 building projects, with a peak of 104,079 seats
• Named after: Robert Neyland, Tennessee's head coach in three spells between 1926 and 1952

Why It Matters

The stadium has been expanded so often that it once reached 104,079 seats before later changes trimmed the total. Besides football, it hosts large conventions and has staged several NFL exhibition games.

9. Texas Memorial Stadium Honours First World War Soldiers

The University of Texas stadium in Austin has been the home of the Texas Longhorns since 1924. It was dedicated to the 198,520 Texans who served in the First World War, of whom 5,280 lost their lives.

Key Facts

• Capacity: 100,119
• Opened: 1924, with 27,000 seats
• Name: honours Darrell K Royal, who coached Texas to three national titles
• Record crowd: 105,215 against Georgia on 19 October 2024

Did You Know?

The original stadium cost about 275,000 dollars, paid for by gifts from students and former students. It was first built with a running track around the field, so it could serve both football and athletics.

10. Bryant–Denny Stadium Carries Three Famous Names

Bryant–Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa is where the University of Alabama Crimson Tide play. It opened in 1929 as Denny Stadium, after university president George H. Denny, with just 12,000 seats.

Key Facts

• Capacity: 100,077
• Opened: 1929
• Bryant added: 1975, after coach Paul Bear Bryant
• Field name: Saban Field since 2024, after coach Nick Saban

Why It Matters

Bear Bryant is one of the few major college coaches to have led a team in a stadium carrying his own name. Nick Saban later won six national titles as Alabama's coach, so the ground honours two of the most successful coaches in the sport.

Frequently Asked Questions

Which stadium has the biggest capacity in the world?

India's Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad comes first, holding 132,000 people. It is used mainly for cricket, and it staged the men's World Cup final in 2023 and the T20 World Cup final in 2026.

What is the largest football stadium in Europe?

Camp Nou in Barcelona tops the European list. It reopened at a reduced capacity in November 2025 during rebuilding work, and it is planned to hold about 105,000 people when the work ends, expected before the 2028 to 2029 season.

Conclusion

The world's biggest stadiums range from a cricket ground in India and a flower-shaped arena in North Korea to the giant college football bowls of the United States. Each one shows how much passion sport can create, with crowds of more than 100,000 people sharing a single game. For more on sport and its stars, read the Finepedia guides Sachin Tendulkar: A Legacy of Cricketing Excellence and Most Popular Sports for Girls: Top 10.