The “old” Zentralstadion, which opened in 1956, was once the largest stadium in Germany, with a capacity of 100,000.

In October 1997, the city council of Leipzig decided to construct a new purpose-built football stadium within the old stadium walls.

• Construction work began in November 2000.
• EMKA Immobilien Beteiligungs-GmbH has been the owner of the stadium since 10 January 2001.
• Construction was completed in early 2004
• The new Leipzig Zentralstadion will be one of the venues for the FIFA Confederations Cup from 15 to 29 June 2005
• A leading Bundesliga club will feature when the stadium is officially inaugurated in summer 2004
• On 12 November 2004, 16 years after the last international match in Leipzig, Germany take on Cameroon here

Financing:
€63.2m from the city (with aid from the federal government), €27.4m from EMKA GmbH.