Peter Mokaba Stadium

About

The Peter Mokaba Stadium is a football and rugby union stadium in Polokwane (formerly Pietersburg), South Africa, that was used for the 2010 FIFA World Cup. It has a capacity to host 45,500 spectators but for the purposes of the 2010 FIFA World Cup the seating capacity was reduced to 41,733. It is named after Peter Mokaba, a former leader of the ANC Youth League. It is located just east of the older Peter Mokaba Stadium and 3 kilometers from the CBD. The stadium is one of five stadiums that were built for the 2010 FIFA World Cup. Initial plans to upgrade the existing Old Peter Mokaba Stadium were abandoned in favour of the R1,245,000,000 new Peter Mokaba stadium. Therefore, the natural grass has been reinforced with artificial fibers, which anchors the field into a stable and a level grass surface of Desso GrassMaster. Although Peter Mokaba Stadium was completed in time for the 2010 FIFA World Cup, its original design included roof coverage over all spectator stands. Due to budget and construction considerations, only the western stand received full roof coverage, with the remainder of the stadium left with minimal overhead protection rather than the originally planned full canopy.

Adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA). Photography via Wikimedia Commons.