The high concrete stadium tiers surrounding it -- with all seats torn out -- look dangerously close to collapse. "After this was destroyed, there's no other stadiums in the city to play football," Fathi said, waving his hand at the crumbling building. In 2017, Iraqi and coalition forces forced the hardened insurgents out in a grinding urban battle that left ancient Mosul in ruins. The bullet-riddled 20,000-seater stadium, home to Mosul Sports Cub, was not spared, caught up in the deadly battles for control. With thousands of roaring fans passionately backing their team, locals dubbed it the "stadium of horrors" for visiting teams.

Source: Bangkok Post October 23, 2020 02:15 UTC