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Free State Stadium

Coordinates: 29°7′2″S 26°12′32″E / 29.11722°S 26.20889°E / -29.11722; 26.20889
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Toyota Stadium
Map
Full nameToyota Stadium
Former namesVodacom Park
LocationKings Way, Bloemfontein, South Africa
Coordinates29°7′2″S 26°12′32″E / 29.11722°S 26.20889°E / -29.11722; 26.20889
Public transitBloemfontein railway station
OperatorMangaung Metropolitan Municipality
Executive suites100[4]
Capacity42,000[3]
Field size100 by 70 metres (330 ft × 230 ft)
SurfaceRyegrass[2]
Scoreboardyes
Construction
Built1955[1]
Renovated1995
Expanded2009
Tenants
Cheetahs
Free State Cheetahs
Bloemfontein Celtic

The Free State Stadium (Afrikaans: Vrystaatstadion), currently known as the Toyota Stadium for sponsorship reasons and formerly known as Vodacom Park, is a stadium in Bloemfontein in the Free State of South Africa, used mainly for rugby union and also sometimes for association football. It was originally built for the 1995 Rugby World Cup, and was one of the venues for the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

The primary rugby union tenants of the facility are the Free State Cheetahs, which participate in South Africa's domestic competition, the Currie Cup. Previously, the Cheetahs represented the Free State and Northern Cape provinces in the international Pro14 competition.

Until their sale before the start of the 2021–22 South African Premier Division, the primary association football tenant was Bloemfontein Celtic, who played in South Africa's domestic Premier Soccer League.

Notable matches

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1995 Rugby World Cup

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The stadium was one of the host venues for the 1995 Rugby World Cup. It hosted first-round matches in Pool C during the tournament.

Date Team #1 Res. Team #2 Round Attendance
27 May 1995  Japan 10–57  Wales Group C 12,000
31 May 1995  Ireland 50–28  Japan 15,000
4 June 19951  Japan 17–145  New Zealand 17,000

1996 African Cup of Nations

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The Free State Stadium was one of venues used for the 1996 African Cup of Nations. It hosted six group matches and a quarter-final match:

Date Time (SAST) Team #1 Result Team #2 Round Attendance
14 January 1996  Zambia 0–0  Algeria Group B 9,000
15 January 1996  Sierra Leone 2–1  Burkina Faso 1,500
18 January 1996  Algeria 2–0  Sierra Leone 1,500
20 January 1996  Zambia 5–1  Burkina Faso 2,000
24 January 1996 4–0  Sierra Leone 200
25 January 1996  Ghana 2–0  Mozambique Group D 3,500
27 January 1996  Zambia 3–1  Egypt Quarter-finals 8,500

2009 FIFA Confederations Cup

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The Free State Stadium was one of the host venues for the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup.

Date Time (SAST) Team #1 Result Team #2 Round Attendance
15 June 2009 16:00  Brazil 4–3  Egypt Group B 27,851
17 June 2009 16:00  Spain 1–0  Iraq Group A 30,512
20 June 2009 20:30 2–0  South Africa 38,212
24 June 2009 0–2  United States Semi-finals 35,369

2010 FIFA World Cup

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Ahead of the 2010 FIFA World Cup, a second tier was added to the main grandstand on the western side of the ground, increasing the net capacity from 36,538[5] to 40,911. Additionally, new turnstiles were created, the floodlights upgraded, electronic scoreboards installed, the sound system revamped to the required standards, and CCTV and media facilities improved.

Bloemfontein received R221 million to upgrade the stadium. Though cost estimates were at R245 million, the city decided to stand in for the R24m shortfall.[6] Tenders were advertised in February and March 2007. Upgrade work started in July 2007.[7]

Date Time (SAST) Team #1 Result Team #2 Round Attendance
14 June 2010 16.00  Japan 1–0  Cameroon Group E 30,620
17 June 2010 16.00  Greece 2–1  Nigeria Group B 31,593
20 June 2010 13.30  Slovakia 0–2  Paraguay Group F 26,643
22 June 2010 16.00  France 1–2  South Africa Group A 39,415
25 June 2010 20.30   Switzerland 0–0  Honduras Group H 28,042
27 June 2010 16.00  Germany 4–1  England Round of 16 40,510

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Stadium | Toyota Cheetahs".
  2. ^ "Stadium | Toyota Cheetahs".
  3. ^ "Stadium | Toyota Cheetahs".
  4. ^ "Stadium | Toyota Cheetahs".
  5. ^ "fussballtemple". Fussballtempel.net. Retrieved 17 June 2010.
  6. ^ "Sunday Times". Sunday Times. Archived from the original on 14 December 2019. Retrieved 17 June 2010.
  7. ^ "Official upgrade progress report as at May 2008" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 27 July 2011. Retrieved 17 June 2010.
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