Estadio Nacional, Lisbon

Scheduled for a stopover in Lisbon in November 2025 and was going to visit then but since l heard about the work l've booked a wee 3 day trip this November. Flights and accommodation £248 each

 

Just back a week ago from Lisbon, its a wonderful city and for a capital city not really expensive tbh. Sure you'll love it and the locals like the hoops as well. Not sure what the weather will be like in November but compared to here it''ll, no doubt, feel warm so thats a positive as well.

 

Train out to the stadium was busy both ways for us, had to stand there and back (which was fine) , quite enjoyed the public transport, but depenedent on your Dad's health might want to consider that. Can probably get on in Lisbon at the station as it's first in the line, Cais do Sodre, where if you are there as the train arrives you can get a seat as it arrives, trains seem to sit for while and fill up over that time, but can't do that on that way back.

Walk from the station is about 20 mins but all easy walking on the other hand and quite pleasant once your are across one major road. For me it added to the experience even though a friend had said not to bother!

 

Definitely doing this trip this year too, can't wait.

 

Just a great experience all round. Think I stayed for about 5 hours.

Lisbon a cracking city. O’Gillins Irish pub right beside the train station as well - nice place to grab a few pints with the other Celtic folk floating about after the stadium

 

Anyone know when the work is due to start? Mate of mine said its due to begin this year and not next summer as stated in the tweet in the OP

 

what train from Lisbon would you take to get to the stadium?

 

This includes details on getting there and more. All the advice is pretty much bang on: https://carljunglebhoy.wordpress.com/2019/09/11/pilgrimage-tracing-the-footprints-of-lions/

 

I was there on Friday 12th July just there (my birthday, don’t laugh I know). We stood at the gates looking in and helpfully one of the grounds men came over and told us where to go to get in. The security guard saw us and just told us we could look around but don’t go on the pitch that was only restriction we had. It was empty bar some people running on the track. Great wee visit and still feels so authentic.

stayed in Lisbon Wednesday to Sunday, also went to Benfica stadium tour same day in the morning wearing my Celtic top. Everyone of the staff telling me to go to the stadium and in the museum bit there’s a bit on Celtic winning the big cup and the staff were telling me about it.

Great city all in and agree I found it very surprising how inexpensive the city was. Ubers are mega cheap! No trip we got was more than 8/9 euros and the Lisboa card was well worth it for the public transport. Definitely recommend making this trip to see the stadium!

 

Everyone around the stadium is completely used to Celtic fans visiting regularly. I went there 6 years ago and walked straight in, went into the stands, took pictures, before a security guard almost apologetically waved me over, because the stadium was being prepared for the Portuguese cup final.

 

Long layover in Lisbon in a couple of months..

It’s happening!

☘️☘️

 

Booked me and the 2 Bhoys, we fly 26th Nov .... Cannae wait man

 

Google maps has the entrance specifically for us showing

https://www.google.com/maps/place/C...97896!4d-9.2590141!16s/g/11y5vcryhl?entry=ttu


Update on closed dates

 

Just been to Lisbon this week . Got a great tour of Estadio National full access as they say. Make sure you bung the guard on the way out as a wee thank you. Instead of going to Benfica I went to Sporting Lisbon. That's a great tour , they have some amount of trophies including a bike. Talking with the locals Benfica appear to be the state team and SCP are for the normal working man . Ogilligans is the Irish pub to go to. Has Celtic flag up and a Lisbon Lion top on the wall. I watched the Scotland v Portugal game there .

 

If you stay in Lisbon. I reckon you can Uber up 20 euro each direction and ask the driver to wait . It's a place where you can spend 20mins or a couple of hours. I loved the walk up seeing the floodlights poking above the trees was emotional.

 

The walk up is magic and when you see the floodlights popping out from the trees you get that shiver down the spine

The little park you walk through to get up there with the stream is quite cool as well.

Even talking that away, Lisbon is one of my favourite cities I’ve been to. Magic atmosphere, aesthetically beautiful and a cracking night out down Barri Alto & Pink St. Relatively cheap as well - would say cheaper than Glasgow.

 

Sorry that you got fooled by some lunatic Sporting fans.

Benfica started as a cycling club (which explains the cycling wheel behind the red and white crest) in a pharmacy (Franco pharmacy) and it later merged with a football club. It was the first Portuguese football club to hold elections for presidency and it was also the only club to hold elections until the Portuguese dictatorship was overthrown. Salazar, our dictator, ordered us to inaugurate our stadium on a particular date, i.e. the Estado Novo (the name the dictator gave to his age of rule) anniversary. Instead, Benfica inaugurated the stadium on the 1st of December 1954, anniversary of the Restoration of Portuguese Independence. Our first anthem had very explicit connections to communism, and it was censored. Our shirts are red and then the people called us by the same name they called communists, vermelhos. Of course, all of these actions of defiance resulted in punishments for Benfica. They made us play in other grounds than our stadium, they made us play in dates that would result in little rest before european competitions, and they forbade the people of calling us vermelhos anymore. We were to be known as encarnados instead.

This, the successes in several different sports that were pretty popular at the time and where competitions were held from the north to the south of Portugal - cycling and running were most prominent aside from football - and in particular the success in European football – which was not started but ultimately was led by Eusébio, a role model for Portuguese but also other fans in Portuguese speaking African countries alike – explains the popularity of Benfica in Portugal and in Portuguese speaking countries.

60% of Portuguese are Benfica fans. Historically speaking Benfica was the club of the poor while Sporting was the club of the elite. That is how you build a massive fanbase in a relatively small and a poor country.

 

Makes sense now. Thank you for educating me.