Juve to put fans first in new 40,000 seater stadium

By Antonella Ciancio

TURIN, Italy (Reuters) - Juventus unveiled final plans for their new stadium on Thursday, which this time will be all about the Serie A club's fans.

The Stadio Delle Alpi, built for the World Cup in 1990, became one of the most unloved stadiums in the world because of a running track that kept supporters well away from the pitch and spoilt the atmosphere.

Turin-based Juve left the stadium two years ago to share the smaller Stadio Olimpico with Torino but will return to a new version of the Delle Alpi, with a sponsor's name, in 2011.

Club captain Alessandro Del Piero was among the delegation to present the architect's plan for a stadium that will have 40,200 seats and put fans as close to the action as possible.

It will resemble Munich's Allianz Arena.

"We wanted a stadium that was something more than a new stadium," chief executive Jean-Claude Blanc, who took over in 2006 when the club was demoted in a match-fixing scandal, told reporters.

"They have been two very difficult years but we are here because we have played as a team."

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