About Baku Crystal Hall

Baku Crystal Hall (Azerbaijani: Bakı Kristal Zalı) is an indoor arena in Baku, Azerbaijan. Located on the coast of Baku near National Flag Square, construction of the arena began in August 2011 and finished in April 2012—in time for it to host its first major event, the 2012 edition of the Eurovision Song Contest. Baku Crystal Hall was built in order to host the Eurovision Song Contest 2012.  Even though the full cost of the contract was not named.  The government allocated 6 million AZN for the construction of the venue. On 5 September 2011, it was announced that the venue will hold 25,000 spectators. The arena also contains VIP lounges.

The construction of the arena was expected to be completed by 31 March 2012. However, there was a delay of three weeks because of weather conditions.  And the building was announced to have been completed on 16 April 2012. Baku Crystal Hall was opened on 7 May 2012 by the President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev and Mehriban Aliyeva.

Concerts

lBaku Crystal Hall’s first major event was the 2012 Eurovision Song Contest, held at the arena from 22 May to 26 May 2012. Jennifer Lopez, Shakira and Rihanna performed concerts at Baku Crystal Hall later in 2012. Baku Crystal Hall hosted the 6th e-Sports World Championship held by the International e-Sports Federation in November 2014. Crystal Hall hosted Boxing, Karate, Taekwondo, Fencing and volleyball (indoor) events during the inaugural 2015 European Games. From 1 to 14 September 2016, Baku Crystal Hall was be the venue for FIDE’s 42nd Chess Olympiad, where 182 teams from 176 countries participated.