Grand Sports Arena of the Luzhniki Olympic Complex

Russias largest football stadium inside the Luzhniki sports complex on a bend of the Moskva in southwest Moscow. Built 1955 to 1956 as the Central Lenin Stadium, it was the main venue of the 1980 Summer Olympics, which the West boycotted over the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. An 8-metre Lenin statue by Matvey Manizer, one of the largest of its kind, stands in front. On a dark day of European football history at least 66 people died at an exit during the 1982 Spartak Moscow versus Haarlem match — the scale was covered up for years. From 2014 to 2017 the stadium was rebuilt for the 2018 World Cup, keeping only the listed outer facade. It hosted the World Cup final between France and Croatia on 15 July 2018. Today Spartak Moscow plays UEFA games here; the complex carries UEFA category 4 status.