The Fifa Under 17 World Cup will take place in six host cities in five emirates.
They are Al Ain, Dubai, Fujairah, Sharjah, Ras Al Khaimah and Abu Dhabi, where the tournament will begin and where the final will beheld.
Mohammed bin Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi is the largest venue. It has a capacity of 40,000 and belongs to Al Jazira Club. The stadium was renovated in 2009 and was the venue for the Fifa Club World Cup in 2009 and 2010.
Also in Abu Dhabi emirate is the Sheikh Khalifa International Stadium in Al Ain. It hosted matches in the 1996 AFC Asian Cup and 2003 Fifa World Youth Championship. It can hold 16,000 fans and first hosts the match between Mexico and Nigeria on October 18.
Rashid Stadium in Dubai, built in 1948, will first welcome Canada and Austria on October 19. It has a capacity of 12,000.
Sharjah Stadium, the home of Sharjah FC, is also well suited for the event with a capacity of 20,000. The first match in Sharjah will be between Tunisia and Venezuela on October 18.
Organisers indicated that the final two smaller grounds, having not hosted major events of this scale before, would have to be a major focus of preparations to ensure they are ready for the event.
Fujairah Stadium is the home of Fujairah SC and holds close to 5,000 spectators. The ground hosts Croatia against Morocco, also on October 18.
Emirates Stadium in Ras Al Khaimah is the home of Emirates Club. The smallest stadium being used for the competition, it holds about 3,000. Uruguay will take on New Zealand there on Thursday, the opening day of the tournament.
ksinclair@thenational.ae
