De Grolsch Veste – stadium description

Opened after less than 1.5 year of construction, the stadium in Enschede could take up to 13,250 people. That number soon proved well underestimated, After a decade the west and north stands were vastly expanded, almost doubling the capacity at 24,000.

This also didn't meet all needs and Twente proceeded with further expansion, this time to the south. Unfortunately, the works had to be halted after a few months, when the roof over south stand collapsed, killing 2 workers. This led to a delay and finally the new sections were completed in early 2012.

For the final phase Twente plan to further expand the western side by some 4,000 seats, while currently lowest east side will get a new 2^nd tier, altogether giving 44,000. The plan should be done around 2015.

In the first decade of its existence the stadium was named Arke Stadion, while further naming rights deal with Grolsch brewery led to a shift in 2008. Since then the ground is known as De Grolsch Veste, with Veste meaning a fortress – rarely used in stadium naming. Among some fans the venue is known as Epi Drost Stadion, the player who fought for Twente in over 400 games.