Stadion Gelora Sriwijaya – stadium description

Gelora Sriwijaya, otherwise known as Stadion Jakabaring, is the main multi-use stadium of the Palembang municipal sports complex. It sits in the city’s southern part of the metropolis, along a line of local light rail (Jakabaring Sports Centre station). It serves mostly as the city’s football stadium, providing decent access (also by bus and road) and ample parking.

The entire complex also offers two training stadiums for athletics, baseball and softball fields (one each), 16 tennis courts, swimming pools, an indoor arena and climbing centre. The area also offers a helipad. All of the area covers 40 hectares.

The stadium itself is located on the traditional north-south axis, with two arched half-domes covering the west and east stands. The arched roof is supposed to represent sails, an association to the region’s maritime traditions. In total, its auditorium holds 23,000 people.

Construction officially began on January 1, 1998. Gelora Sriwijaya was finally inaugurated after prolonged delays in 2004. It was named after the Srivijaya empire, which had its historical capital precisely here, in Palembang.

While used primarily by Sriwijaya FC, the stadium also was one of the host venues for the 2007 Asian Cup. It was the main venue for the 2011 Southeast Asian Games, despite the tournament also being hosted by Jakarta. Finally, before the 2018 Asian Games, also co-hosted with Jakarta, it was a secondary venue. For the latter occasion a large renovation was launched in 2017, leading to the stadium receiving national colours both through seating and outer cladding.