Les gradins du stade

Most cities and towns in France have un stade municipal (a municipal stadium) for local sports. In many cases, the stadium is not much more than a soccer field with goalposts. Sometimes it's an actual stadium or arena. It all depends on the size of the town and how sports-minded its citizens are.

The stands face the field; behind them is the Aigronne River.

In Le Grand-Pressigny, the local stadium is a fenced-in track and field inside a park with an adjacent paved area for basketball on one end and a picnic area on the other. There is a small building with a kitchen (food!) and a set of covered bleachers or stands called les tribunes or les gradins for spectators. Across the street are the municipal swimming pool (another common feature of French towns) and a couple of tennis courts.

The floor is sloped, so in addition to the seats, there's a flat board for walking and resting one's feet.

I wonder if, in between matches, the local kids use the gradins du stade as a spot to hang out. There's surprisingly little graffiti, but we did see some litter scattered around the benches. The structure could use a fresh coat of paint, but I think it's a cool building, especially because it's covered to provide shelter during rainy matches.

The kitchen building is just visible at the far end of the stands.