Anzhi Arena

The stadium in Kaspiysk opens onto a flat expanse near the Caspian Sea, but the architecture tells a different story. The seats are not all covered, which has been a point of contention, but the structure itself is the primary landmark of the city.

The pitch sits beneath these arches, a rectangle of green that looks immaculate in the bright light. It is natural grass, cut into neat stripes that run the length of the field. In the middle of the pitch, the white lines are stark. The surface is maintained with a heating system, though the pipes are not visible, and the grass remains lush even when the air turns cold. The boundary is marked by a low wall that separates the players from the touchline, and beyond that, the stands rise steeply.

The ground is not a museum piece but a working facility, built to accommodate a significant number of people for matches in the Russian Premier League. The atmosphere is not defined by history but by the view it offers of the town and the sea beyond the fencing.