Stadion Karpat – stadium description

In 1949, on the initiative of the Legia Municipal Sports Club in Krosno, construction of a stadium began. A facility that would be used by players from all club sections, including athletes from the speedway section, which was only then being established, was to be built in a bend in the Wisłok River.

Construction work progressed very quickly. Even before the construction was completed, the first competitions were held on the speedway track. The official opening of the stadium took place in 1951. The facility consisted of a natural grass-covered football field, a six-lane athletics track and a speedway track. In the 1950s it was periodically rented to teams from Kraków and Tarnów that did not have their own tracks.

In the following years the stadium was used mainly by Krosno footballers and speedway riders. The situation changed only in 1968, when the speedway section of Karpaty Krosno (the club changed its name to “Karpaty” in 1963) was disbanded due to financial problems. For the next eighteen years the speedway track remained unused, and the stadium on today's Legion Street became mainly a venue for soccer matches.

With the reactivation of the Karpaty Krosno speedway section, it was decided to renovate the stadium. The modernization focused mainly on the infrastructure necessary for speedway competitions, which had been unused for almost twenty years.

Further modernization took place already in the 21st century. In 2002, the reconstruction of the grandstands began, spread over several more years. The result was the construction of two opposing structures capable of seating more than 2,200 fans.

Today, Karpaty Stadium continues to serve both football and speedway competitors. It consists of a natural grass-covered pitch surrounded by the longest speedway track in Poland. The main stand on the northwest side is completely covered. On the opposite side of the playing field is an uncovered stand in the club's colors: blue and red. The visitors' sector is the southern curve, and is separated from the eastern stand by a pavilion that provides facilities for the stadium and nearby tennis courts.

In 2021, lighting masts were installed at the stadium, and between 2022 and 2023, a new stand was built on the southern curve.