Arena Mytishchi

Its history is tied to a single club that has since vanished. Atlant Moscow Oblast played here for a decade. The atmosphere inside is different for every type of event. When the floor is covered for a concert, the acoustics change, and the noise bounces off the curved roof in a different way.

The building survived the departure of its main tenant and the arrival of others. Kunlun Red Star used the facility as a home base when travel restrictions made international flights difficult. The basketball club BC Khimki also played EuroLeague games in the same space, proving the versatility of the structure. It is not a temple of football, nor is it a historic monument. It is a functional hall that has hosted everything from the 2007 IIHF World Championship to figure skating championships. The pitch is natural ice, kept cold by a refrigeration system that runs continuously. The ground beneath the rink has a heating circuit to prevent frost heave, a detail that matters more than it sounds.

There is a sense of permanence in the way the stands are arranged. They are close to the action, but not so close that you can hear the players breathe. The capacity shifts depending on what is on the programme, swelling for a final or contracting for a minor fixture. It is an ordinary place in the grand scheme of things, but it is the only one of its kind in Mytishchi. The people who come here know the rhythm of the building: the squeak of skates, the thud of a puck, the silence before a penalty shot. They stay for that.