MARACANO, HAPPY 61ST BIRTHDAY!

Exactly 61 years ago, on September 1, 1963, the stars rushed to Maracana. They waited in line to enter the newly built Crvena Zvezda stadium for the first time, in order to cheer on their pets in a completely new environment, in a stadium in which they themselves, during construction, wove their love for the club.

The first on the program was the game of the pioneers of Crvena zvezda, as a kind of prelude, where the stars did not spare the applause for the first goal in the new stadium, after Trifun Mihajlović shook the net. What followed was what all the fans had been waiting for a long time. They became part of history when the senior teams of Crvena zvezda and Rijeka took the field. It was the first game at the new stadium, which was further enhanced by the fact that the red and white team triumphed 2:1. The scorer of the first goal for the senior team of Crvena zvezda was Dušan Maravić.

Due to its grandeur, size and capacity, which not many stadiums could boast of, the newly built stadium, modeled on the Brazilian one in Rio de Janeiro, proudly bore the name Maracana.

The record visit to the Maracana was recorded on April 23, 1975 in a match against Ferencvaros. Officially, the match was attended by 110,000 spectators. Even today, it is said that a huge number of fans stayed in front of the Maracana gates and cheered our team.

Since 2014, the popular Maracana has been named after the legend of the club, the first star of Zvezda - Rajko Mitić.

At our stadium, in the past few years, a space of 500 square meters was renovated where the "Champions Club" moved in. By installing new gates on the east and west stands, the so-called combs, we enabled faster and safer entry of fans into the stadium. Frozen terrain and removal of the snow cover are a thing of the past for us, since the field heating system has been established.

The Zvezdasi got even more comfortable seats in the central part of the western stand, which is named after Sinisa Mihajlovic, where spectators have the privilege of following their beloved club with significantly greater comfort. The previous years were marked by major infrastructure works at our stadium, and a significant project was the launch of Zvezda Television. The appearance of the athletic track has also been changed, and the name of our trophy club - Crvena zvezda - is written on the north and south sides.

To make the Maracana shine even more brilliantly, the famous tunnel through which many top aces of European and world football passed got a new look - a combination of football and art, along with great sound effects, which offer all visitors of the Maracana tour an incredible experience. The tunnel was painted by a great star player and artist, a member of the club, who thus gave a special stamp to our stadium.

The fact that even a movie was made about it, called "Marakana, cousins!", speaks of how important our stadium is and how much football spirit it carries with it.

May the coming years bring many more joys, goals, victories, trophies, tears of joy to all who have the red and white color in their hearts and who call Maracana their home.