Signal Iduna Park

Signal Iduna Park – tickets for the Westfalenstadion

At around 81,000 places for Bundesliga matches this is the largest stadium in Germany. For international fixtures the figure drops to some 66,000, because the terraces are then fitted with seats — same building, different experience.

The sponsor's name has been on the roof since 2005; almost nobody in Dortmund uses it. It is the Westfalenstadion, and if that is what you searched for, you are in the right place.

The Yellow Wall

The south terrace holds 24,454 standing places in a single block, making it the largest terrace in Europe. It is the reason visitors travel to Dortmund from all over the world, and it is not a marketing phrase: when 25,000 people jump at once, you feel it on the far side.

The practical part: standing tickets on the Süd are hard to get and are not available at all for international matches. To see the Wall rather than stand in it, sit in the Nordtribüne opposite — from there you have the whole of it in view.

Built in 1974, from precast panels

The stadium was built for the 1974 World Cup and began as a thrifty functional structure of precast concrete — the four free-standing yellow corner pylons came later. The cheapest design in that tender has become the best-attended stadium in Europe.

Directly alongside stands the Stadion Rote Erde, Borussia's former home. It is still in use and freely accessible — worth a detour before kick-off.

Before the match

Unlike many newer grounds, there really is something here. Strobels lies under 300 metres away on Strobelallee and is the best-known address; the beer garden at the Stadion Rote Erde is closer still at around 150 metres.

One note that saves the evening: the crush is real. On a sold-out Saturday 81,000 people share the same hour and the same bars — if you want a table or an unhurried meal, allow far more time than a smaller ground would need.

Getting there

The S-Bahn stops at Signal-Iduna-Park station beside the ground; the Stadtbahn runs to Westfalenhallen, a few minutes' walk away. From Dortmund Hauptbahnhof it takes around ten minutes, and the match ticket is valid on the VRR network.

By car via the A40 or B1 — not advisable on a matchday. Düsseldorf airport is around 80 kilometres away, Dortmund Airport around 15.