Thanks to our friend in Wales for these interesting facts about the Millennium Stadium, where Madonna will open the European leg of her “Confessions Tour” on Sunday, July 30.

• Opened in late 1999, the Millennium Stadium is the largest project of its type in the UK to date, 8,000t retractable roof, seating up to 75,000 spectators.

• The Millennium Stadium masts are the highest points in the Cardiff skyline at a height of 93 metres.

• The four masts support the sliding roof through six high tensile steel cables attached to each mast and the roof.

• The weight of the roof is carried by more than 4,700 wires of 15mm in diameter which have a total length of 150 miles.

• The retractable roof weighs in at a staggering 8,000 tonnes. The sliding mechanism that ensures its smooth opening and closing is
220 metres long and 15 metres high.

• There are ten roof trusses, five on each side, each weighing 560 tonnes. Opening time for the roof is a mere 20 minutes, costing no
more than £4 in electricity.

• Around 40,000 tonnes of concrete, 12,000 tonnes of structural steel, 38,000 square metres of roof cladding, 24,000 square metres of
wall cladding and 34,000 square metres of blockwork were used in the construction of the Millennium Stadium.

• The Millennium Stadium has a maximum seated capacity of 73,434 including 126 hospitality boxes, and 112 turnstiles.

• There are 17 public bars, many of which are fitted with the so-called “Joy” machines which serve 12 pints in 20 seconds. They are needed to cater for a demand that will see a full house drink more in a day than many pubs sell in a year.

• The pitch is the biggest jigsaw in Wales, made up of more than 7,400 pallets that allow it to be moved in and out of the stadium.

• The Millennium Stadium is right in the middle of the Cardiff city centre, close to rail stations and carparks, shopping, restaurants, bars and adjacent to the
river Taff.