Russia vs Nigeria: Five interesting facts about the Luzhniki Stadium, venue for the Super Eagles’ game

The Super Eagles of Nigeria will return to action on Friday with an international friendly game against Russia at the Luzhniki Stadium.

Eric Chelle's men are riding high on confidence after beating Jamaica to win the Unity Cup last Sunday. Now, they will be looking to cap off the international break with a win against Russia.

As stated earlier, the game will be played at the historic Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow, the Russian capital.

The stadium is one of the most historic stadiums in Europe, as it has hosted some big games like the 2008 UEFA Champions League final between Chelsea and Manchester United, and the 2018 FIFA World Cup opening and final games.

Ahead of the fixture, Soccernet.ng highlights five interesting facts about the Luzhniki Stadium.

1. It is the temporary home of Torpedo Moscow

The Luzhniki Stadium is the national stadium of Russia. But it is also the temporary home of Russian second division club Torpedo Moscow. Other clubs like Spartak Moscow and CSKA Moscow have used it as their home turf at different periods.

2. The Luzhniki Stadium is the ninth-largest in Europe

A view of the Luzhniki Stadium, Moscow by the Super Eagles ahead of their friendly against Russia

The stadium hosted the 2018 World Cup final and is the largest in Russia.

Kick Off time is 6:00PM.#54footballx pic.twitter.com/83lpKHQFYu

— Official54fx (@54footballx) June 6, 2025

With a capacity of 81,000, the Luzhniki Stadium is the largest stadium in Russia and the ninth-largest in Europe. Hence, some of the most important events in Russia take place there.

The Stadium used to be 78,000, but it was then expanded before the 2018 World Cup. It has special seats for fans with disabilities and there are about 900 scanners and 3,000 monitors at the stadium.

3. The playing surface is part grass, part plastic

When the stadium was first constructed, it was purely artificial. Afterwards, it was changed to natural grass in 2008.

But now, the playing surface is 95% natural grass and 5% artificial grass, which is perfect for football.

4. The Stadium was built in 450 days

The design of the Luzhniki Stadium was done in 90 days. Then, the construction of the stadium was done in 450 days. After it was built, it was first named the national stadium of the Soviet Union. But upon the division of the Soviet Union, it was changed to the national stadium of Russia, AKA Luzhniki Stadium.

5. 66 people lost their lives at the Luzhniki Stadium in 1982

On October 20, 1982, 66 people lost their lives at the Luzhniki Stadium due to a crowd rush. This happened during a round of 16 UEFA Cup game involving Spartak Moscow and Haarlem. It is one of the worst tragedies that has happened in Russian football till date.