Luzhniki Stadium
Moscow, Central Federal District, Russia
Luzhniki Stadium, Moscow, Russia — opened 31 July 1956, as Central Lenin Stadium, 14 rugby league games hosted, home of Not a regular rugby league tenancy — Russia's national team's official home venue is Naro-Fominsk, outside Moscow; Luzhniki has hosted only occasional marquee internationals.
Sourcing caveat: The 13 Sep 2002 Russia-USA match's date and 30,000 attendance were independently confirmed via direct checks of two separate Wikipedia articles, resolving an initially suspected large attendance discrepancy (which turned out not to exist in these sources). Exact dates for several early-1990s fixtures (Soviet Union/C.I.S.-era matches) could not be fully confirmed.
Ground facts
| Opened | 31 July 1956, as Central Lenin Stadium (Renamed Luzhniki Stadium in 1992; underwent a major 2013-2017 reconstruction (350 million euros) that demolished the original structure while retaining the historic facade.) |
| Home club | Not a regular rugby league tenancy — Russia's national team's official home venue is Naro-Fominsk, outside Moscow; Luzhniki has hosted only occasional marquee internationals |
| Games hosted (rugby league, on record) | 14 |
| Top recorded crowd | 30,000 |
| Capacity | 81,000 (current); historical peak around 103,000 during the 1980 Moscow Olympics |
| Test matches hosted | 7 |
| Surface | SISGrass hybrid natural/reinforced grass (current, installed August 2016); an artificial FieldTurf surface was in use 2002-2008, meaning several of the rugby league fixtures below were likely played on it rather than grass |
| First rugby league match | 1991-92, Soviet Union 10-42 Great Britain Select (during the political transition; exact date not fully confirmed) |
| Years used | 1991–2006 |
| Location | Moscow, Central Federal District |
Name history
- Central Lenin Stadium — 1956-1992
- Luzhniki Stadium — 1992-present
Rugby league history
Russia's national multi-purpose stadium, famous for hosting the 2018 FIFA World Cup opening match and final, used only occasionally for rugby league — a minor sport in Russia — to host marquee internationals rather than as a regular team home. Fixtures ranged from early-1990s transition-era matches (Soviet Union and C.I.S. representative sides) through a run of 2000s Test and European Nations Championship/World Cup qualifying fixtures, including a heavy 98-4 loss to England in 2004.
Primarily a football and athletics stadium; also briefly the temporary home of Torpedo Moscow (football), 2022-2024.
Historic Test matches, Cup & Grand Finals hosted
- 13 Sep 2002 — Russia 54-10 USA, attendance 30,000
- 6 May 2003 — Russia 44-14 USA
- 9 May 2003 — Russia 12-29 France, attendance 10,000
- 16 Oct 2004 — Russia 10-58 France (European Nations Championship), attendance 2,000
- 24 Oct 2004 — Russia 4-98 England (European Nations Championship), attendance 1,000
- 23 Oct 2005 — Russia 48-14 Georgia (European Nations Championship), attendance 500
- 22 Jun 2006 — Russia v Georgia, forfeited (World Cup European Qualifiers)
Pre-dates the site's structured match-by-match records for these competitions, so listed here as sourced facts rather than linked match pages.
Sources
Data last verified: 11 August 2026.
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