Stadion Widzewa – historical stadium description

This wasn’t Widzew’s first stadium and Widzew was not the first club to play here. How come? Initially the club was based roughly 1 km west, while this plot was occupied by sports facilities set up in 1928 for a different team, WiMa (Widzewska Manufaktura).

It wasn’t until after WWII that Widzew moved here, having fused with WiMa and choosing the less damaged sports complex to use. A decade later reconstruction was already underway, though only partial: club pavilion was built in the south-western part of the stadium. At that point there was still a running track in use.

Major change came in 1970s, when all stands were reconstructed. With running track removed, the landfill terracing was created much closer to the field and old wooden main grandstand was replaced by one built largely with concrete. This resulted in a decent capacity of 20,000 people. From March 1985 the stadium also had floodlight masts, transported from Piła in western Poland.

A decade later work was again in full swing and no wonder, Widzew won a spot in Champions League group stage, which resulted in first individual seats being installed in 1996. By 2000 the main stand was fully renovated and covered by one of Poland’s most modern cantilevered roofs, connected with the main club building.

Most vocal supporters have long been based in the south stand. Due to the scoreboard being placed there, it was commonly known as Zegar (Clock End) and saw decades of great support, with first fan club being established in early 1970s.

After conversion into all-seater mode the stadium could only seat 10,500 people (eventually even fewer) and its lifespan was at the end despite some efforts to extend it. It was thus closed in late 2014 and a brand new building replaced it.