Friedrich-Ludwig-Jahn-Sportpark
The Friedrich-Ludwig-Jahn-Stadion at the Friedrich-Ludwig-Jahn-Sportpark is a sports stadium in the Prenzlauer Berg locality in Berlin. It is bordered on the south by Eberswalder Straße, on the north by the Max Schmeling Halle, on the west by Mauerpark, where part of the Berlin Wall once stood. The complex includes a football and athletics stadium as well as several smaller sports fields. With a capacity of approximately 20,000 seats, of which 15,000 are covered, the stadium is the third largest in the city after the Olympiastadion and Stadion An der Alten Försterei. BFC Dynamo is currently the main tenant of the stadium, following its 2014 advance to the Regionalliga Nordost. Other tentants are VSG Altglienicke and Berlin Adler. Friedrich-Ludwig-Jahn-Sportpark was the venue for the 2018 World Para Athletics European Championships.
History
Before the site was turned into a sports facility, it was used by Prussian Army. The site became the drill and parade ground of the 1st Guards Grenadiers, after the Prussian miliary had acquired the area from Christian Wilhelm Griebenow in 1825. The site got its nickname "The Exer" from the military use. "Exer" is derived from the German word Exerzierplatz, meaning "Parade ground". Some residential buildings were constructed on the site in the late 19th century and the military use came to and end. A training ground was established, which served as the home ground of Hertha BSC until 1904. The city of Berlin purchased the land in 1912 and developed it for sports use in 1913.Berlin was divided after World War II and the site was located in the Soviet sector, in what became East Berlin. The site was developed according to plans by architect Rudolf Ortner for the World Youth Festival in 1951. Several sports, competion and training fields were creted, in addition to a large football and athletics stadium with a capacity of 30,000 spectators. Rudolf Ortner had studied at the Bauhaus school until 1933 and left East Germany for West Germany in 1951. The faciliy was initially known as Berliner Sportpark, but the East Berlin City Council decided to name the facility Friedrich-Ludwig-Jahn-Sportpark to honour the centenary of Friedrich Ludwig Jahn. Friedrich Ludwig Jahn is known in Germany as the father of gymnastics.
The Friedrich-Ludwig-Jahn-Stadion has been modernized and expanded several times. A floodlight system was installed in 1964 and a tartan track was added in 1970. The Stadium underwent a complete renovation in 1986-1987. Among other things, a new four story main stand was built, the side opposite the main stand was roofed and new floodlight masts were erected. The current main stand and floodlight masts date from this time. A further renovation took place in 1998, when the stadium received its colorful bucket seats, which are characteristic for the stadium as of today.
Use of the site
Clubs
BFC Dynamo is the main tentant of the Friedrich-Ludwig-Jahn-Sportpark since the 2014-15 season, as it was between 1971 and 1992. VSG Altglienicke was added as a second main tentant in the 2017-18 season, as as the Stadion Altglienicker with its artificial turf did not meet the requirements for matches in the Regionalliga. American football club Berlin Adler plays American football games in Friedrich-Ludwig-Jahn-Sportpark and the grounds of the facility are also used by football clubs SV Empor Berlin and FC Bundestag.Football
The Friedrich-Ludwig-Jahn-Stadium was the home ground of army sponsored FC Vorwärts Berlin and its predecessors from 1953. ASK Vorwärts Berlin, and then FC Vorwärts Berlin, was one of the strongest football teams in East Germany from the late 1950s to the early 1970s. ASK Vorwärts Berlin hosted Glasgow Rangers at the stadium in the 1961–62 European Cup.The stadium was taken over by BFC Dynamo when FC Vorwärts Berlin was relocated to Frankfurt an der Oder in 1971. BFC Dynamo played its home matches at the stadium until 1992, with the exception of the 1986-87 season, when the stadium was under renovation. BFC Dynamo celebrated nine of its ten DDR-Oberliga titles in the Friedrich-Ludwig-Jahn-Stadium and played most of its home matches in the European competitions at the stadium. BFC Dynamo hosted teams such Red Star Belgrade, Nottingham Forest, Aston Villa, Hamburger SV, AS Roma, FC Aberdeen, Werder Bremen and AS Monaco at the stadium during the 1970s and 1980s. The main stand of the Friedrich-Ludwig-Jahn-Stadion was regularily visited by the head of Stasi and chairman of SV Dynamo Erich Mielke during the East German era. Erich Mielke was a football enthusiast who seldom missed a home match of BFC Dynamo.
.The East Germany national football team played ten international matches at the stadium from 1971 to 1990. The friendly match between East Germany and Belgium on 13 Match 1974 set the attendance record for the stadium with 30,000 spectators. East Germany won the match 1-0 with a goal by Joachim Streich. In addition, three finals of the FDGB-Pokal were played at the Friedrich-Ludwig-Jahn-Stadion, in 1965, 1990 and 1991.
The final of the Berlin Cup has been held at the Friedrich-Ludwig-Jahn-Stadium every season asince 1995. The stadium has been used by various clubs in Berlin since German reunification. Hertha BSC II has occationally used the stadium, when its own stadium could not be used due to a high number of spectators expected or for security reasons. Hertha BSC played its opening matches in the of the 1992-93 2. Bundesliga season at the stadium. Hertha BSC also played its match aginst FK Moscow in the semi finals of the 2006 UEFA Intertoto Cup and has played several matches in the qualifying rounds of the UEFA Cup and the UEFA Europa League at the stadium, most recently against Brøndby IF in the third qualifying round of the 2016-17 UEFA Europa League. Hertha won the match 1-0 and the stadium was sold out with 18,454 specators. 1. FC Union Berlin used the stadium for its home matches against FC Haka and PFC Litex Lovech in the 2001-02 UEFA Cup at the stadium, as the Stadion an der Alten Försterei did not meet UEFA safety requirements.
The following teams has temporarily used the stadium as home ground since the 1990s:
- Berliner AK 07 in the 2006-07 NOFV-Oberliga Nord.
- Türkiyemspor Berlin in the 2008-09, 2009-10 and 2010-11 Regionalliga Nord and the 2011-12 NOFV-Oberliga Nord, as the Willy-Kressmann-Stadion did not meet the safety reuirement of the German Football Association.
- 1. FC Union Berlin in the 2008-09 3. Liga, as the Stadion an der Alten Försterei was under renovation.
- 1. FC Union Berlin II in the 2012-13 and 2013-14 Regionalliga Nordost.
Athletics
The Friedrich-Ludwig-Jahn-Sportpark hosted the Olympic Day of Athletics competition between from 1963 to 1989. The competitionwas modeled on a similar event held each year in West Berlin. The competition saw the setting of several world records, including Uwe Hohn's record javelin throw of 104,80 meters on 20 July 1984. This was the first time a throw of over 100 meters was made. Friedrich-Ludwig-Jahn-Sportpark was the venue for the 2018 World Para Athletics European Championships.Other uses
The Friedrich-Ludwig-Jahn-Sportpark is regularly used for American football and serves as the home ground for the American football team Berlin Adler.The stadium was used by the Berlin Thunder of the NFL Europe between 1999 and 2002. The stadium has also been the annual venue of the German Bowl since 2012 and was the site of the 2014 Eurobowl Final, where the Berlin Adler defeated the New Yorker Lions with 20-17. The 2001 Speedway Grand Prix of Germany was held at the Friedrich-Ludwig-Jahn-Stadion, which was the first Grand Prix-event at a temporary track. The Grand Prix was won by the Polish rider Tomasz Gollob. The top German rider, Robert Barth, finished on 14th place. The facility has recenly also been a recurring venue for the annnual crossfit competition Berlin Throwdown. The Friedrich-Ludwig-Jahn-Sportpark also serves as a concert venue and has welcomed performers such as Michael Jackson during his Dangerous World Tour on 4 September 1992, which was attended by 35,000 people.
Future redevelopment
The stadium is considered to be in a state of decay, satisfying neither current needs nor future plans. In order to host the 2015 UEFA Women's Champions League final, the stadium was temporary renovated at an estimated cost of €1.5 million - €2 million. This temporary renovation included new paintwork, refurbished player and visitor facilities, a new fire alarm system and a new lawn. That was however only the beginning, as the entire area is planned for a future complete redevelopment.The area is highly popular and the needs for sporting facilities in Berlin are many. Even when the stadium is empty, the area around is crowded. The neighboring Mauerpark is popular among the citizens of Berlin. Its flea market attracts more than 40,000 visitors each Sunday. The population pressure of Prenzlauer Berg is also high, with Pankow having the highest birth rate in Berlin. In preparation for the plans, more than 40 users of sport facilities in Berlin have been interviewed.
Being the second largest stadium in the city, in terms of seating capacity, and with the Olympic Stadium often considered too large, the stadium also plays a crucial role for the possibility of arranging major sports events in Berlin. A redeveloped stadium would fit in Germany's bid for hosting the 2024 Summer Olympics or 2028 Summer Olympics. If Berlin is awarded the 2024 Summer Olympics, the stadium is planned to be the center of the Paralympics.
According to a preliminary draft concept, the redeveloped Friedrich-Ludwig-Jahn-Sportpark is to be an inclusion sports facility, which goes beyond simple accessibility. The plan includes new office spaces for associations and clubs in the main stand of the stadium and in new buildings, and possibly a new sports hall for clubs and schools with two or three pitches, one or two artificial turf fields, additional tennis, beach volleyball and beach football fields. Further plans includes a day care center and a car park that could possibly also serve the popular Max-Schmeling-Halle.
In January 2015, it was reported that the entire cost for the redevelopment of the whole area was estimated at up to €150 million. The redeveloped stadium will have a capacity of 20,000 spectators and offer future second division fit. The stadium will have soil heating, completely new seats, fully covered stands and become barrier-free. The distinctive floodlights will be preserved.
In February 2015 it was reported by the Berliner Zeitung that the Senate of Berlin wants to rebuild the stadium, and that the reconstruction could begin at earliest in 2018 and be completed by 2023. In February 2017, German media reported that the senate is planning to invest €170 million in the redevelopment of the area, including €85 million for a new stadium, and that the current stadium will be demolished by 2020.