My Visit to Godswill Akpabio International Stadium, Uyo, Nigeria

_{God's will Akpabio International Stadium}

Ever been to an international stadium to view a football match or other athletic events? It was my first time. I never knew there was actually an international stadium in my City, one of its kind. You barely see international stadiums in states. It takes a great fortune to build and register one that meets the standard of international stadiums worldwide. It's also like International Airports.

Most states in a country don't have an international airport. It's mostly seen in the country's capital and some centralised states. So I'll be showing you one of the well-structured international stadiums in Nigeria. It's found in my city, Uyo. It's named after the person who completed it; that's why it has the name.

Godswill Akpabio International Stadium

Location	Off New Stadium Rd, Uyo 520102, Akwa Ibom
Google Maps	Location
Steem-atlas	[//]:# (!steematlas 5.00627146 lat 7.88472891 long Godswill Akpabio International Stadium d3scr)
Opening Time	8 AM
Closing Time	12 AM

This stadium is located close to the heart of my city. It occupies a very large geographical area that is capable of being a whole village. It isn't close to busy areas and it's far from my residential area. What makes this place unique is its structure. You don't need to explore the interiors to know millions of dollars were spent to erect this structure. It's the first exclusive achievement my City ever had since 2014.

Expenses incurred	Approximately $95 M	704 M Steems

Structure and Environment

I don't really know how to describe the structure of the stadium, but I'll say it's round with a notable zero figure from a vertical view, and the materials used in covering the stadium as walls are quality and durable materials that are more like iron but aren't. It has a front end with a rectangular structure that projects the view in the field to the outside, lightened by some lithium lights.

It also has a smooth cover at the top that channels water if rain falls to a drainage system to avoid splash on viewers in the stadium. When the sun shines, it affects the viewers based on the area seated. This is due to the opening that has the field centralised. Talking of spaciousness, my research tells me the stadium sits on 48 hectares of land.

It has protected iron bars with razor wires that protect its building from theft or vandalisation. It prevents outsiders from gaining unauthorised entrance into the building. With these razor wires, you can be electrocuted or sliced. These iron bars are placed round the stadium as its fence.

Let's talk about serenity. The stadium's managing team has put in place cleaners to keep the stadium clean at all times. Everywhere is tarred, and you can barely see sand except in areas where grasses are planted on builders that serve as parking lots for cars. There's a fountain at the front end with moulded chairs made of stones and a long bridge that crosses its front end, that rectangular structure I talked about.

Gate / Entrance

There are about five entrances to the stadium that accommodate crowds from different locations. These entrances prevent traffic as the stadium is big enough to accommodate over 10k cars. If all these cars pass through one entrance, imagine the accidents and traffic there would be as people are impatient to wait, especially with the driving price of fuel now.

This is the main entrance where footballers and other stars enter from. The only reason why the five entrances are open is when there's an event that involves a large crowd of people who probably would drive in their cars. When I was opportune to use this main entrance, I videoed the main entrance from the gate down to the entrance of the stadium's building itself. **The stadium building has large entrances on the ground floor, ranging from segment to segment.

Gate A1 - A20

Gate B1 - B20

Gate C1 - C20

These entrances have steps where one can access different seats in the building. It also gives viewers the opportunity to enter from different places other than just one big entrance, which causes traffic and can lead to stolen properties because of the crowd. It's only open when there's a big event.

Tickets depend on the event being held. If it's a football match, tickets are usually 500 naira. It all depends because when I went to view a match there, I didn't pay for any ticket or use any ticket because it was free. You'll be given a ticket before the event to avoid delays. Security personnel check you in before you're allowed to the seating areas.

Tickets for football matches	500 naira	2.5 Steems

Aisle

There are aisles found in the 3-story building, and these aisles are passages where viewers pass through to get a seat. It's actually one that is spacious and can accommodate a lot of people. 10 meters from one another exist aisles and stairs that can help one navigate his way to the top floor. There are about 63 interior entrances round the building, which has different positioning to seats. You choose which side of the stadium you want to sit by using the aisle as they are numbered.

The numbered aisles make it possible for viewers to remember their seats when they leave to the convenience or to attend to important matters outside the stadium. Without these numbers, it would be difficult to locate where you sit, and you'll be forced to remain fixated until the match ends.

Seats

The stadium has a 30k-seater capacity. It has 30k seats, which can accommodate 30k viewers who want to sit, but there are spaces at the far top for people to stand and view the matches. The chairs are made for individual purposes in a sequential manner with labelled numbers for easy access. In front of the chairs are irons for protection in case anyone wants to lean or loses his balance. These protections prevent accidents in-between seats.

The chairs are stationary chairs when you're stationary and mobile when you're mobile. It closes when one is up. This gives space for viewers to pass when one isn't seated. Not more than one person can occupy the seats, and no matter where you sit or which view you ascertain, you'll definitely see the field.

Entrance and Dressing Rooms

The picture below shows the entrance in which VIPs and stars or officiating ministers gain entrance to the field. There are about 30 entrances for this purpose, which include cleaners of the field. Beside the entrances are changing rooms and toilets for footballers, athletes, and the like to make use of.

_{Entrances to the field}

The Field

I once overheard someone saying their field is as expensive as gold. No matter the event you host, you can't stage on the field. Only players make use of the field while the tracks are available for running and other athletic activities. Stages are placed on the tracks and not on the fields, no matter what. The field is definitely a standard international stadium size with those perfectly stationed goalposts and protectors round the field, which serves as an advertisement for clubs, fans, or matches.

The maintenance of this field is done every week to prevent wear since it's not normal grass and it's always lawned periodically. Just look at the stadium from this view. When I went to view a friendly match in this stadium, guess the celebrities I saw. I saw the likes of Victor Iwobi and Trost Eking.

Toilets and Parking lots

Toilets are stationed far from seating areas but are very accessible to viewers. You just have to make a few steps up using your labelled aisle to access the toilets, as every aisle has a toilet for both male and female. Sounds interesting, right? Their toilets are so standard and have loos where one can remove faeces.

_Toilets

Parking lots are demarcated with builders, and if you notice, there's orderliness in these parking lots. There's a parking space for buses, cars, bicycles, and other types of vehicles. They don't park in the same places, which makes it possible for one to access his vehicle easily. This is done to maintain order.

These are the major facilities I've been exposed to, as other facilities are restricted for viewers. **If you're fond of viewing football matches with your mobile phone, I'd say that stadium views are the best and that hype is just there. Seeing a live match where you see the players move physically, other than on a virtual display, makes it more real and fun. There's this spirit viewing matches here carries. You can run mad seeing a football fan physically if care isn't taken. 🤣🤣

@bossj23 was live at Gods Will Akpabio international Stadium

To all those in Uyo and beyond, this is Uyo International Stadium in case you aren't aware of it. Citizens from other countries come here to play with Nigerian superstars. If you're opportune to hear the next live match here, don't miss it.

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