The raw emotions of football are associated with jumping in excitement when your team scores, or furiously scolding the officiating for an error. Both of these are on opposite sides of the spectrum, yet the average fan is naturally inclined to stand up in the stadium to express their emotions.
In the United Kingdom, standing at football matches was once the norm for the match-day experience. But following the Hillsborough disaster in 1989, where 97 Liverpool supporters lost their lives due to overcrowding, the Taylor Report recommended all-seater stadiums for top divisions. The move did prioritise safety, but many fans felt that it diluted the atmosphere and stripped stadiums of their soul.
Recent years have seen the cautious return of standing in the form of safe-standing sections in England. Rail seating allows fans to stand securely without compromising safety standards. While England is only just re-embracing the concept, the likes of Germany never let go. Bundesliga clubs feature prominently in this list, showcasing some of the most vibrant and largest standing sections in world football. Here are the top ten standing sections in the game today, taking into account our different ranking factors.
Ranking Factors:
Capacity – the number of fans a standing section can accommodate plays a pivotal role in the overall atmosphere.
Magnitude of club – the stature and global appeal of the club behind the stand adds to its prestige around the world.
Loudness of the support - fan chants and anthems either before the game or after can add to the excitement and connection between supporters and players
10 Best Standing Sections in World Football (2025)
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10 Stuttgart
Stadium: MHPArena
A general view of the Stuttgart Arena
Thanks to some naming rights deals, the home of VfB Stuttgart has previously been called Adolf-Hitler-Kampfbahn, Century Stadium, Neckarstadion, Gottlieb-Daimler-Stadion and Mercedes-Benz Arena. The current MHPArena was first built around 1929 for the German Gymnastics Championships, the first major sporting event under Nazi Germany.
While its origins were politically charged, the stadium itself has since transformed into a symbol of unity for football reasons. Today, the Cannstatter Kurve, with its iconic standing terrace, contains one of the most vibrant atmospheres in German football. Since 2011, the terrace has held up to 8,000 standing fans alone. On matchdays, the section is plastered with a wall of white and red ultras. Under Sebastian Hoeness, Die Roten have seen some incredible times, such as last season's 2nd-placed finish in the Bundesliga and this season's participation in the UEFA Champions League. However, whether VfB are fighting relegation or fighting in Europe, the Cannstatter Kurve has always remained defiant. Stadiums may change names, but terraces like Cannstatter Kurve represent the soul of German football.
9 Orlando City SC
Stadium: Inter&Co Stadium
Facundo Torres - Orlando City
Inter&Co Stadium is the home of one of North America's newer teams in MLS. Founded in 2008, The Lions have had the likes of Kaka, Nani, Cyle Larin, and Facundo Torres don the purple shirt. Orlando City houses “The Wall”, which is North America’s first safe-standing terrace. As you might have guessed, the name is inspired by Borussia Dortmund’s Yellow Wall. This section holds 3,800 fans across sections 22 to 28. In a sea of over 25,000 fans on matchdays, it is almost usually the raw emotions of those standing within The Wall that are captured by the television cameras.
The section is led by supporter groups such as The Ruckus and Iron Lion Firm. Florida is not known as a footballing city, but The Wall is inspired by a European-like feeling that is bound to intimidate opposition fans. For a club founded under two decades ago, Orlando City has quickly built one of world football’s most iconic supporter sections.
8 Bayern Munich
Stadium: Allianz Arena
Bayern Munich fans inside the stadium before the match against Borussia Monchengladbach.
Back to Germany we go, and it is hard to include a list of German clubs without mentioning the biggest one. Bayern Munich have a dedicated 'standing room' as part of the ticketing plan. For supporters wishing to stand in either the north stand or Sudkurve, the south stand, they can purchase Category 5 tickets behind or around each goal-side. Perhaps on this entire list, it is the cheapest place to get a standing ticket at one of the biggest clubs in the world for just €20.
The standing sections, notable for their choreographed tifos, electric atmosphere and waves of red and white flags, form an integral part of the matchday acoustics. With nearly 13,500 standing places available for Bundesliga matches, the Sudkurve in particular is a home for the ultra force to send out political messages to the men in suits - such as protesting ticket price rises in recent years.
7 Manchester United
Stadium: Old Trafford
Manchester United v Lyon
The “Theatre of Dreams” might be folklore in history, but Manchester United’s atmosphere hasn’t always lived up to its legend. You can often find away fans bouncing to 'is this a library?' when the Red Devils are down and out - a far too common sight in recent times. However, the implementation of safe standing in the Stretford End in 2021 has helped to improve the atmosphere.
The rail seating area spans around 2,500 spots and represents a feeling of the good times at Old Trafford that generations before had witnessed when watching some of the greatest in the English game. The Stretford End has always been United’s most iconic stand. It has seen the birth of many fan songs, including the most recent nod for manager Ruben Amorim to the sound of Bonnie Tyler's 'It's A Heartache'.
With safe standing, the atmosphere has a bit more bite even when the rest of the stadium does not. In March 2025, the club announced plans to build a new 100,000-seater stadium to regenerate the Trafford area. Occupying just 4,000 standing fans at Old Trafford, it would be expected to increase that to fully maximise the impact of traditional terraced culture even if it is in a modern stadium.
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6 Celtic
Stadium: Celtic Park
Celtic's fans in Hampden Park.
Celtic Park offers one of the most intense matchday experiences in world football. This is largely thanks to part of its safe-standing section, the Rail Seating Area, home to the club’s ultra group, the Green Brigade. The section holds around 2,700 fans in the corner of the Lisbon Lions Stand and has reignited an atmosphere that rivals any in Europe. Such a statement can be attested by the likes of Lionel Messi and Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who have felt high intimidation levels on Champions League nights. From deafening renditions of “You’ll Never Walk Alone” to choreographed displays celebrating Celtic’s Irish roots and political identity, the Green Brigade have transformed this section into a cauldron of powerful voices united as one.
5 LAFC
Stadium: BMO Stadium
LAFC MLS Cup 2022
Perhaps no football club in Major League Soccer, or any league in the world, has took pride in its standing section quite like LAFC’s 3252. There is even a dedicated page on the club's official website that explains all about the 3252. The group is named after the exact number of safe-standing tickets available in the BMO Stadium for LAFC fans to create a raucous atmosphere behind the north goal.
More than just a supporter section, the 3252 is a statement. LAFC didn’t just join MLS in 2018 to participate. They brought global terrace culture with them to North America and made it thrive in California, where soccer culture continues to thrive and develop thanks to not one, but two powerhouse clubs in Los Angeles.
4 Schalke 04
Stadium: Veltins Arena
Schalke vs Borussia Dortmund
Schalke 04's stocks have dramatically fallen over the 15 years. From Champions League semi-finalists in 2011 to mid-table in 2. Bundesliga in 2025, the club hosts a 61,637-capacity stadium in the second tier of German football. Yet, the club's spirit lives on in the Nordkurve, located on the standing terrace of the Veltins Arena. Since their relegation from the Bundesliga in 2022/23, the Nordkurve has not wavered in its support. German football fans are notorious for their loyalty, and no tribulation greater than relegation to a giant club can exemplify the loud support that can be heard in Gelsenkirchen on a weekly basis.
3 Freiburg
Stadium: Europa-Park Stadion
MixCollage-07-May-2025-06-40-PM-2298
When SC Freiburg left the Dreisamstadion in 2021 after 68 years, many traditionalists feared the club’s atmosphere would dwindle in a modern stadium. However, the Sudtribune at the new Europa-Park Stadion has quashed all fears and amplified it with a big standing section. The terrace holds nearly 8,000 fans, and across the whole stadium boasts 12,400 standing seats. This equates to around 36% of the stadium's capacity.
Freiburg’s identity has lived beyond the grounds. It has lived within different generations of fans instead. The newer purpose-built safe-standing sections are located in the south and north stands of the stadium. The Sudtribune is home to Freiburg’s ultras, and rather ironically is quietly one of Europe's best stadiums for standing fans to soak their emotions in the atmosphere without a seat. As our list demonstrates, Germany is a league that is rich with standing culture, but Freiburg’s terrace stands out as a model for new stadiums to translate their atmospheres efficiently from traditional grounds.
2 Hamburg
Stadium: Imtech Arena
Hamburg fans cheer on their team.
Back to 2. Bundesliga, Hamburg’s Nordtribune at the Volksparkstadion is one of the most iconic standing terraces in European football. With space for around 10,000 fans in safe-standing rail seats, it is the heartbeat of a club that is desperate to bring back the glory days. Originally built in 1953, the stadium was rebuilt in 2000 to meet modern standards, but retained a strong terrace culture. The Nordtribune has become home to HSV’s main ultra groups, some of whom form the 700+ supporters groups registered with the club. Even after their relegation in 2018, which ended a 55-year stay in the Bundesliga, HSV have still averaged attendances of over 50,000 in the second tier.
1 Borussia Dortmund
Stadium: Signal Iduna Park
Dortmund yellow wall
The undisputed home of standing culture in world football is Borussia Dortmund’s Sudtribune - also known as the legendary Yellow Wall. Holding around 25,000 standing fans during matches, it is Europe’s largest terrace on the big stage and the heartbeat of a club where supporters voice their opinions through tifos on matchdays.
In 2012/13 and 2023/24, the Yellow Wall helped push Dortmund all the way to the UEFA Champions League final. The Yellow Wall is also a political front for supporters to voice their resistance. It has protested UEFA's commercialisation, boycotted RB Leipzig games, and displayed banners condemning the club's sponsorship deal with weapons manufacturers Rheinmetall.
Former manager Jurgen Klopp once called it “the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen” - and he wasn’t wrong. The Yellow Wall is not just the gold standard for standing terraces; it is a living emblem of Borussia Dortmund’s identity. As iconic as the singing of "You’ll Never Walk Alone," it stands as a 12th man.