Kybunpark, St Gallen: A look inside the stadium where Hearts will face FC Zurich

Hearts reporter Barry Anderson has had a sneak peak inside Kybunpark in St Gallen, where Hearts will take on FC Zurich in the Europa league play-off on Thursday night.
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Watch his video here to see what it looks like inside the ground.

FC Zurich are expect a crowd of between 6,000 and 7,000 against Ronnie Neilson’s men and are planning for 1,500 away fans as it stands. The stadium capacity is 19,694, and with all the green seats the Jambos may well feel that it is a bit like playing at Easter Road against Hibs.

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The Swiss champions are unable to play the match at their own stadium, 39 miles away as the crow flies, because of a pop concert that was already booked for the same night.

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Kybunpark, formerly known as AFG Arena, is a multi-use stadium and was completed in 2008. It is used mostly for football and hosts FC St Gallen, who also play in the Swiss Super League and beat FC Zurich there on the opening day of the season. It regularly hosts Swiss national team fixtures, therefore meeting UEFA criteria for continental matches.

The stadium is part of a larger complex that includes a shopping centre underneath the stadium, and an IKEA next door. In 2016, the stadium name changed from AFG Arena to kybunpark following a new naming rights sponsorship deal.

Kybunpark is located in an out-of-town retail park in between the cities of St Gallen and Gossau. The stadium lies approximately 5.5 kilometres west of the centre and rail station of St Gallen, and four kilometres east of the centre and rail station of Gossau.

A look inside Kybunpark in St Gallen, where Hearts will face FC ZurichA look inside Kybunpark in St Gallen, where Hearts will face FC Zurich
A look inside Kybunpark in St Gallen, where Hearts will face FC Zurich
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FC Zurich play at the Stadion Letzigrund, which has a capacity of 26,104 when hosting football matches. However, the ground capacity increases to 50,000 for gigs.

Swiss rock and folk double act Gola and Trauffer are set to play a concert at Letzigrund on Friday, the day after the first leg of the Euro clash is due to take place. Given all the preparatory work that goes into such events, then that would make it impossible to stage a game at the same location less than 24 hours prior.

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