AC Sparta Prague
Generali
Arena
Sold out
Opened: 1917
Capacity: 18,944
Club establishment: 1893
The stadium of Sparta Prague is not a new one, it has served its purpose since 1917. As it has been modernized over time, however, it is still one of the best stadiums in the Czech league. In fact, until relatively recently it was the only good-quality stadium in the Czech Republic and Slovakia.
The stadium, located on Letná hill, has seen many matches of the Czech Republic national football team. It used to be the first-choice stadium for the national team, especially for its World Cup and Euro qualification matches. In 2008, a new 20,000-seat stadium of Slavia Prague was opened, and since then the national team has played its important matches there as well.
Until modern days, the traditional name of the stadium was Letná. It was renamed to Toyota Arena for sponsorship reasons in 2003. From 2007 to 2009 its name was AXA Arena, and prior to the 2009/2010 season, it was renamed after the new sponsor of Sparta to Generali Arena, a name the stadium bears to this day. No matter who the sponsor is, however, Sparta fans will always call it Letná.
One of the first adversities the stadium of Sparta faced was a great fire in 1934, which damaged the main wooden stand. A new grandstand had to be constructed in 1937, this time made of reinforced concrete, and it still forms the basics of today’s main stand.
Another significant reconstruction did not take place until 30 years later (1967 – 1969) when the remaining concrete stands were built and the stadium could newly accommodate 35,880 spectators. The last major reconstruction happened in 1994 and gave the stadium its today’s look. Two-tier stands indirectly connected to the main stand and together with it encircling the stadium were built right next to the pitch. For a long time, Letná had no competition among Czech stadiums.
One part of the 2003 project Ligové stadiony (League stadiums) was a commitment to turn stadiums into all-seaters. The capacity of the stadium exceeded 20,000 and this did not change for another couple of years. Prior to the 2009/2010 season, the fence separating the spectators from the pitch – with the exception of the away fans section – was removed. In addition, the installation of a new LED screen in the corner of the stadium led to the capacity being reduced slightly to 19,784.
During the winter break of the 2014/2015 season, the club modernized the main stand, which is named after Andrej Kvašňák, the Sparta player of the century. The modernization increased the comfort in the VIP section, which was also related to the fact that the 2015 European Under-21 Championship was played at the stadium. After adjustments were made to the main stand, the capacity decreased to slightly less than 19,000 spectators. Considering the needs in the Czech Republic and the size of the club, the capacity is sufficient. However, Letná could do with more space for fans during the Derby of the Prague ‘S’ (Sparta Prague against Slavia Prague) as well as during European competitions, in which Sparta used to play regularly.
