The Ellenfeldstadion is a grass surface,
multi-purpose stadium
A multi-purpose stadium is a type of stadium designed to be easily used by multiple types of events. While any stadium could potentially host more than one type of sport or event, this concept usually refers to a specific design philosophy tha ...
in
Neunkirchen, Saarland
Neunkirchen (; pfl, Neinkeije) is a town and a municipality in Saarland, Germany. It is the largest town in, and the seat of the Neunkirchen (German district), district of Neunkirchen. It is situated on the river Blies, approx. 20 km northea ...
,
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
. It was built in 1911 and 1912, completely reconstructed between 1962 and 1964 and partially renovated in 2002.
It is currently used mostly for
football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...
matches and is the home of
Borussia Neunkirchen
Borussia VfB Neunkirchen is a German association football club based in Neunkirchen, Saarland. The club ''SC Borussia Neunkirchen'' was founded out of the 1907 merger of ''FC 1905 Borussia'' and ''SC Neunkirchen''.
History
From 1912 through t ...
. The stadium is also used by the
American football
American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...
team
Saarland Hurricanes
The Saarland Hurricanes are an American football team from Saarbrücken, Germany. Saarbrücken is the capital of the federal German state of Saarland, which the club is named after. The club was formed in 1996 in a merger of the two local sides S ...
from
Saarbrücken
Saarbrücken (; french: link=no, Sarrebruck ; Rhine Franconian: ''Saarbrigge'' ; lb, Saarbrécken ; lat, Saravipons, lit=The Bridge(s) across the Saar river) is the capital and largest city of the state of Saarland, Germany. Saarbrücken is S ...
. The stadium has a capacity of 23,400 spectators.
History
Construction of Borussia-Sportplatz
Borussia Neunkirchen obtained the grounds of Ellenfeld on a
leasehold
A leasehold estate is an ownership of a temporary right to hold land or property in which a lessee or a tenant holds rights of real property by some form of title from a lessor or landlord. Although a tenant does hold rights to real property, a l ...
basis from the
brewery
A brewery or brewing company is a business that makes and sells beer. The place at which beer is commercially made is either called a brewery or a beerhouse, where distinct sets of brewing equipment are called plant. The commercial brewing of be ...
Neunkircher Schloss-Brauerei. In the leasehold the first right of acquisition was also granted to the club.
[Historischer Verein Stadt Neunkirchen, August 2017] Construction of the Borussia-Sportplatz began in October 1911 and was finished in July 1912. Total construction costs were around 23,200
DM. However, the openingsmatch was on 7 April 1912, when Borussia Neunkirchen played the football squad of the 6. Königlich-Sächsischen Infanterieregiments Nr. 105 from
Strasbourg
Strasbourg (, , ; german: Straßburg ; gsw, label=Bas Rhin Alsatian, Strossburi , gsw, label=Haut Rhin Alsatian, Strossburig ) is the prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est region of eastern France and the official seat of the Eu ...
. Borussia Neunkirchen won this match with 6–3.
Early expansion
Due to the club's successes, the stadium's capacity became too limited. When
MTK Budapest
Magyar Testgyakorlók Köre is a multi-sports club from Budapest, founded in 1888. It has sections for football, handball, basketball, volleyball, futsal, ice hockey, water polo, cycling, gymnastics, athletics, fencing, canoeing, boxing, wrestlin ...
played a friendly match at the Borussia-Sportplatz, the stadium could not accommodate all the spectators. Plans for expansion were made and in 1921 a new wooden stand was built, which was operated by a third party. Other stands were also expanded, which increased the stadium's capacity to 12,000 spectators.
In 1928 a fire demolished the wooden stand and Borussia Neunkirchen decided to build a concrete stand in its place. The construction costs exceeded the budget, which led to financial troubles at the club. A local company took over the debts.
Plans for the Ellenfeldstadion
In 1948 Borussia Neunkirchen purchased the grounds of Ellenfeld and presented plans for a new Ellenfeldstadion.
In 1952 the club and architect Felix Schaan present new plans to build a stadium, that can hold up to 25,000 to 30,000 spectators. However, at the same time the
Ludwigsparkstadion
Ludwigsparkstadion is a multi-purpose stadium in Saarbrücken, Germany. It was built in 1953 and holds 35,303 people. After renovation from 2016 to 2021 which costs about € 46,5 million (€ 16 million were previewed), the capacity is reduced to ...
in
Saarbrücken
Saarbrücken (; french: link=no, Sarrebruck ; Rhine Franconian: ''Saarbrigge'' ; lb, Saarbrécken ; lat, Saravipons, lit=The Bridge(s) across the Saar river) is the capital and largest city of the state of Saarland, Germany. Saarbrücken is S ...
is built and
Saarland's government is politically and financially engaged in the construction of the Ludwigsparkstadion. Borussia Neunkirchen is forced to set aside the plans for their new stadium. The club and architect prepare new plans for a multi-purpose stadium and in 1960 a sports hall is opened. Saarland agrees to financially contribute to the building of a new Ellenfeldstadion, which can hold up to 30,000 spectators.
The estimated construction costs are 1.8 million DM, to which Saarland contributes 50%.
During the construction of the stadium, Borussia Neunkirchen promotes to the
1. Bundesliga
The Bundesliga (; ), sometimes referred to as the Fußball-Bundesliga () or 1. Bundesliga (), is a professional association football league in Germany. At the top of the German football league system, the Bundesliga is Germany's primary footbal ...
and the opening match against
Borussia Dortmund
Ballspielverein Borussia 09 e. V. Dortmund, commonly known as Borussia Dortmund (), BVB (), or simply Dortmund (), is a German professional sports club based in Dortmund, North Rhine-Westphalia. It is best known for its men's professional footb ...
attracts 25,000 spectators. An average of 18,755 spectators visits the matches at the Ellenfeldstadion.
Stadium's decline
Three years after their promotion, Borussia Neunkirchen was regulated to the 2nd tier of German football. The club plays in the top-level of the 2nd tier, but never achieves promotion. In 1971 a record attendance of 31,000 spectators visits the match Borussia Neunkirchen vs
1. FC Nürnberg.
In the 1980s, several big companies in Neunkirchen face bankruptcy, which cause a decline in sponsorship fees. Borussia Neunkirchen also relegates towards the amateurs and faces bankruptcy in 1990. In 1990, Neunkirchen's city council decides to purchase the stadium from Borussia Neunkirchen and the club is saved from bankruptcy.
The stadium's maintenance is limited, though a small renovation in 2002 is carried out at the costs of 500,000 euro. In 2003 Borussia Neunkirchen draws
Bayern München
Fußball-Club Bayern München e. V. (FCB, ), also known as FC Bayern (), Bayern Munich, or simply Bayern, is a German professional sports club based in Munich, Bavaria. It is best known for its professional men's football team, which play ...
for the
DFB-Pokal
The DFB-Pokal ( is a German knockout football cup competition held annually by the German Football Association (DFB). Sixty-four teams participate in the competition, including all clubs from the Bundesliga and the 2. Bundesliga. It is considere ...
and 23,400 spectators visit the match in the Ellenfeldstadion. In 2007 the derby against
1. FC Saarbrücken attracts 10,000 spectators.
In 2011 and 2012 several plans are made for a complete reconstruction of the Ellenfeldstadion, but were never carried out.
total reconstruction Ellenfeldstadion
/ref> Since a few years, due to safety regulations, several stands are closed down for the public.
References
External links
*
Pictures Ellenfeldstadion
{{Coord, 49, 20, 12, N, 7, 10, 47, E, region:DE-SL_type:landmark_source:kolossus-dewiki, display=title
Football venues in Germany
Sports venues in Saarland
Buildings and structures in Neunkirchen, Saarland
Sport in Neunkirchen, Saarland
Borussia Neunkirchen