EURO 2024
Euro 2024 city guide: Leipzig
With Leipzig's Red Bull Arena set to host games at UEFA Euro 2024 in Germany, get clued up on the stadium and the city in our guides.
Stadium: Red Bull Arena
Leipzig's Red Bull Arena has stood in its current form since 2004, when it was reconstructed within the city's old Zentralstadion in a manner similar to Chicago's Soldier Field. The rebuild was done for the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany, where Leipzig hosted five games. RB Leipzig took over the stadium in 2010 and the name was changed to the Red Bull Arena, which currently holds 47,069 spectators for football matches following recent renovations but can hold up to 50,000 for concerts and other events.
Watch: Inside Leipzig’s Red Bull Arena
Matches played there:
18 June: Portugal 2-1 Czech Republic (Group F)
21 June: Netherlands 0-0 France (Group D)
24 June: Croatia 1-1 Italy (Group B)
2 July: Austria 1-2 Turkey (Round of 16)
>>> See the full fixture list here!
How to get to Leipzig:
Leipzig/Halle Airport primarily serves domestic and European leisure destinations, as well as London and Istanbul. Travellers from further afield will likely have to connect through international hubs, while frequent internal connecting flights are also available from major international airports such as Frankfurt and Munich. German high-speed ICE trains also run frequent services between Berlin and Munich with a stop in Leipzig, making Berlin only an hour away. There are also direct connections from Frankfurt Airport.
How to get to the Red Bull Arena:
The Red Bull Arena is well connected in the Leipzig public transport network. Tram lines 3, 7, 8 and 15 all pass by the stadium and the closest station is Sportforum. It’s then a short walk to the stadium.
Once in Leipzig…
Things to see and do (apart from the football!):
One of the largest cities in former East Germany, Leipzig has the nickname “City of Heroes” for the role it played in the fall of communism in Eastern Europe and German reunification. Since then, the city has undergone massive redevelopment as it looks to compete with other metropolises in the former West, earning a reputation as a cool place to go and the new name “Hypezig”.
But despite the extensive modernisation, the city’s history remains a focal point for visitors. The most famous museum is the “Runde Ecke”, which is based in the old headquarters of the Stasi in the city. Nowadays it is dedicated to informing about the function, methods and history of East Germany’s former secret police. For those with further interest in the former German Democratic Republic, there is a popular shop known as “Ossiladen” that only sells products from the old East Germany. Described as a “time capsule in a shop”, it is a must for anyone who wants a taste of the East German experience.
As well as vast open areas to enjoy, including Germany’s oldest botanical garden containing around 7,000 different species and one of Europe’s most modern zoos, the Bach Archive is an institute researching and documenting the life and work of Baroque musician Johann Sebastian Bach, who lived in the city for 27 years before his death.
A final must-see monument in the city is the Völkerschlachtdenkmal – the Monument to the Battle of the Nations. Standing at almost 300 ft tall, it commemorates the defeat of Napoleon at the Battle of Leipzig in 1813, which was at the time the largest battle in Europe before World War I, featuring 600,000 soldiers from across the continent.
The local cuisine:
Leipziger Allerlei is the city’s speciality dish: vegetables, bread dumplings and crayfish tails in a creamy sauce. Sauerbraten (basically a pot roast) is found throughout the region of Saxony, but if you want something sweet, try Leipziger Lerche – a unique apricot and marzipan pastry. The place even has its own brew, the sour wheat beer, Gose.
Check out the rest of our Euro 2024 city guides: