Daugavas stadions – stadium description

Major stadium in the place of local gardens beside railway tracks in eastern Riga was an idea from 1920s. Created by early 1930s, the stadium offered several rows of seating on landfill around a 4-lane running track. With little regulation in place it was able to accommodate a couple thousand people.

It survived in this state until the Soviet occupation of 1940, when it seized to operate until the end of WWII. In 1945 a new sports club, Daugava, was formed, giving the stadium its new name. The stadium itself wasn't fully operational yet, its reconstruction ended in 1952. By then brand new grandstands were built around the entire track, each with 10 rows of seats.

Its historic, more monumental form is owed to the 1978-1982 reconstruction, when the west side multipled in size, thanks to a double-tier structure being erected. When transitioned into all-seating, the grandstand offered nearly 5,700 seats. Which is what a sell-out crowd would be from 1999 onwards, following decision to demolish all remaining stands.

It wasn't until 2017 that the stadium began growing again. For over €10 million two new grandstands were constructed on each end, though not fully spanning their respective curves. With 4 sections each and some 2,400 seats, these additions allowed the stadium to exceed 10,000 in capacity once more. Eventually, by 2022, the stadium should also be covered at least in part, while a vast sports and leisure city will be built around it.

Since 1992 the stadium is considered the national sports stadium of Latvia. This status had an exception for football, which saw the national team play at Skonto stadions between 2000 and 2018.