Monday 12 May 2008 16:13, UK
The City of Manchester Stadium is set to rock louder than ever when the Uefa Cup final comes to town.
The City of Manchester Stadium may have played host to the likes of George Michael, U2, Oasis and the Red Hot Chilli Peppers but it is set to rock louder than ever when the Uefa Cup final comes to town. In sporting terms, Wednesday's clash between Rangers and Zenit St Petersburg is undoubtedly the venue's biggest moment since the 2002 Commonwealth Games - the event for which it was initially constructed. A stadium on the eastern edge of the city centre was originally conceived as part of the ultimately unsuccessful bid to bring the 2000 Olympic Games, which were awarded to Sydney, to Manchester. A scaled-down version of the 80,000-capacity stadium which was first proposed was given the green light when the Commonwealth Games were handed to the city and construction began just after the turn of the millennium. Queen Elizabeth led the opening ceremony for the Games and the Arup Associates-designed arena instantly won rave reviews for the quality of atmosphere it generated throughout 10-day showpiece. At the conclusion of the Games, the temporary North Stand was dismantled to be replaced by a permanent structure, the pitch level lowered and an extra tier of seating added to raise the capacity from 38,000 to 47,726 in preparation for Manchester City's tenancy which began a year later.