To celebrate the start of the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia, we’ve compiled some of the most intriguing and visually stunning football pitches from around the world. From high above sea level nestled in the Swiss Alps to the world’s largest floating field in Singapore, take a look at some of the most intriguing pitches and their accompanying vistas. Game on!
1. At 2,000 meters above sea level, the Ottmar Hitzfeld Stadium in Switzerland is Europe’s highest pitch. (Anthony Cullen/Ford Fascinating World of Football)
2. Players of FC Gspon (white), representing Switzerland, play against FC Zuma (red), representing Spain, during their Mountain Villages international soccer tournament match in Gspon, in the Swiss Alps, on May 29, 2010. The match is played on the highest elevated soccer field in Europe. At about 2,000 meters, the pitch can only be reached by a cable car, which can only carry up to 10 people, or on foot—a 45-minute climb. (Michael Buholzer/Reuters)3. The Float at Marina Bay, Singapore, is the world’s largest floating football stadium. (Paul Briden/Alamy)4. A floating pitch at Ko Panyi Muslim stilt village in southern Thailand. (Larry Goodman/Alamy)5. A football pitch in the middle of La Paz, Bolivia. (Bloomberg/Getty Images3)6. The Adidas Futsal Park in Tokyo sits on top of the Tokyu Toyoko department store, high above Shibuyu district. (Shaun Botterill/FIFA/Getty Images)7. A football match in Tasiilaq, Greenland. (Grant Dixon/Getty Images/Lonely Planet Image)8. KV Svalbard’s crew, formed by Norwegian navy privates and scientists from the Norwegian Institute of Marine Research, play soccer as they are protected from polar bears by armed guards in the sea around Greenland, on March 22, 2018. (Marius Vagenes Villanger/Kystvakten/Sjoforsvaret/NTB Scanpix/Norsk Telegrambyra AS / Reuters)9. The football stadium of Henninsvaer FC is photographed on March 8, 2018, in Henningsvaer, in Norway’s Lofoten islands. (Olivier Morin/AFP/Getty Images)Matches in Gibraltar are played in the shadow of the Rock at Victoria Stadium. (Marcos Moreno/AFP/Getty Images)
Also, watch how artificial intelligence is learning to project a 3D football match on a flat surface like a kitchen table. We might soon be able to watch live broadcasts other than on a TV, mobile device or tablet. A neural network analyzed 12,000 two-dimensional images of players from the FIFA video game series along with corresponding 3D data from a game engine. Players were superimposed on a virtual soccer field allowing the game to be viewed at a variety of angles in 3D.
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