Hristo Botev Stadium (Plovdiv) Hristo Botev Stadium (Plovdiv) Hristo Botev Stadium () is a football stadium in Plovdiv, Bulgaria. It is the home ground of Botev Ploviv. It was originally named The College and is still known by this name among the fans, because in the early 20th century the pitch was owned by the Catholic College of Saint Augustine. The stadium hosted the 2000 Bulgarian Cup Final. In the past it has also been used as a home ground by other football teams from the city; Lokomotiv Plovdiv played their home matches on the venue during the second half of the 1979–80 season,
History of Plovdiv In that period the richer citizens constructed houses, many of which can still be seen in the Architectural reserve "Old Plovdiv". The city was the capital of Rumelia Province between 1364–1864, and of Edirne province between 1864–1878 under Ottoman Rule. Plovdiv played a role in the struggle for Church independence. Plovdiv became the center of that struggle with leaders such as Nayden Gerov, Dr Valkovich, and Joakim Gruev. In 1836 the first Bulgarian school was inaugurated and in 1850 modern secular education began with the St Cyril and Methodius school. On 11 May 1858 the city celebrated the saints' day