Estádio Nacional, Lisbon
The Estádio Nacional (Complexo Desportivo do Estádio Nacional / Complexo Desportivo do Jamor) is a sports stadium in Oeiras, a suburb of Lisbon in the southwest of the city about 12 km from the center.
The stadium is the traditional home of the Portuguese Cup (Taça de Portugal) which has mostly been held here since 1946. It has also staged international games of both the men's and women's Portuguese national teams.
More famously, it was also the venue for Celtic's European Cup win over Inter in 1967, thus earning the Glasgow side the nickname of 'Lisbon Lions'. Tragically, the ground staged the last match of the 'Grande Torino' side who were all killed in the Superga air disaster as they returned from a friendly game against Benfica at the stadium in 1949.
History
The stadium was inaugurated in 1944 by António Oliveira Salazar after construction had begun in 1939. It was designed by Portuguese landscape architect Francisco Caldeira Cabral (1908-1998) and was conceived as part of a larger national sports park project initiated by the Estado Novo regime. The ground is a bowl shape with a main stand built into a hillside.
The prolific Cabral's other work include the Santa Catarina Park in Funchal, Madeira, the Gardens of Quinta das Laranjeiras in Lisbon and the expansion of D. Carlos I Park in Caldas da Rainha.
The Estádio Nacional has a capacity of 39,000, a running track and is largely open to the elements.
Despite its age, it retains a certain charm due to its integration with the surrounding natural landscape, and it continues to serve as a significant site for Portuguese sports and culture.
Getting to Estádio Nacional
Estádio Nacional is in the southwest of Lisbon in Oeiras. By train, visitors can take the Cascais Line (Linha de Cascais) from Lisbon's Cais do Sodré Station, alighting at Cruz Quebrada station, which is the closest stop to the stadium. From there, it is a 15-20 minute walk through the scenic Jamor Park to reach the stadium entrance.
Lisbon buses 1106 (Queluz Baixo - Algés) and 1527 Cruz Quebrada (Estação) - Queluz (Estação) stop outside the stadium. At the nearby Caxias (Cidade Futebol) stop the 1507, 1525, 1606 and 1707 buses all call here.
By car, the journey takes around 15-20 minutes via the A5 highway towards Cascais, exiting at Estádio/Estádio Nacional.
Portuguese Soccer Related
Museu Benfica Cosme Damião (Benfica Museum)
