Recently the footballing world has taken notice of the tiny nation of Bhutan and their historic first ever World Cup wins. They have just emerged victorious in not one but two World Cup Qualifying matches, beating Sri Lanka in both legs. The second of those matches took place at the Changlimithang Stadium located in the beautiful town (and Bhutan capital) Thimphu.
The Changlimithang Stadium was built in 1974 on the site of a unification battle that took place in 1884 and is now home to the national football team as well as a number of Thimphu-based football clubs who play in the top division in Bhutan. There are also many other events held at the stadium every year, including archery tournaments and other sports that have facilities within the main stands (there have even been weddings held there). The stadium can hold roughly 25,000 people when full and it now contains an artificial playing surface. One of the real great things about this national stadium is that it is open to the public for hire. The pitch is fully booked almost every day as locals use the pitch for a variety of sports and clubs.
It is fairly certain that the Changlimithang Stadium must have the most unique ‘main stand’ in all of world football. A Lovely stadium in a beautiful location.