FIFA World Cup 2018 Venue Guide: Mordovia Arena

The venue is also the home ground for local side FC Mordovia.

As anticipation builds ahead of the arrival of supporters in June to watch the best players on the planet vie for the game's most coveted trophy, FIFA.com continues its series introducing fans to the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia™ venues. Today we present the stadium in the smallest Host City, the Mordovia Arena in Saransk.

Matches

The Mordovia Arena is hosting four matches during the group stage at Russia 2018, including Peru’s opening game against Denmark on 16 June.

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Capacity

During the World Cup, the Mordovia Arena will be able to seat up to 44,000 spectators.

Location

The World Cup stadium was built on the flood plain of the Insar River that runs through Saransk and is within walking distance of the city centre and residential districts. Plenty of hotels, landmarks and the FIFA Fan Fest are also located not far from the Mordovia Arena.

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Did you know?

The Mordovia Arena was designed using a blend of orange, red and white, a colour scheme that reflects the traditional folk art of the native Mordvin peoples.

First matches

The first few games at the newly constructed Mordovia Arena took place in April and May of this year. Local side FC Mordovia inaugurated their new home ground with a 0-0 draw against Zenit Izhevsk on 21 April, following that up with a defeat by KAMAZ Naberezhnye Chelny on 4 May. They got their first win at the stadium on 16 May, beating Syzran-2003 to gain qualification to Russia’s second flight, the Football National League.

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Legacy

After the World Cup, FC Mordovia will move in permanently to the stadium. Away from football, city and regional governments plan to turn the facility into the largest sports and leisure centre in the Republic of Mordovia. The arena will be able to stage numerous events, host clubs and academies from various sports and serve as the location for many other activities as well.