Walhalla Idrottsplats (short form Walhalla IP) was a sports

stadium A stadium ( : stadiums or stadia) is a place or venue for (mostly) outdoor sports, concerts, or other events and consists of a field or stage either partly or completely surrounded by a tiered structure designed to allow spectators to stand o ...

Gothenburg Gothenburg (; abbreviated Gbg; sv, Göteborg ) is the second-largest city in Sweden, fifth-largest in the Nordic countries, and capital of the Västra Götaland County. It is situated by the Kattegat, on the west coast of Sweden, and has ...

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...

with a total capacity of 8,000. It was located near

Korsvägen Korsvägen (literary ”the cross road”) is a public square and transport hub in the events district of Gothenburg, Sweden. Many important event venues and visitor attractions are located on or near Korsvägen, including the Swedish Exhibition ...

, on the site that currently is the

Swedish Exhibition and Congress Centre The Swedish Exhibition & Congress Centre ( sv, Svenska Mässan) is an exhibition and convention centre in Gothenburg, Sweden and one of Scandinavia's largest assembly points, which attracts around 1.8 million visitors a year. It is one of Euro ...

. Walhalla IP was in use between 1908 and 1921.

History

Walhalla IP was built by

Örgryte IS Örgryte Idrottssällskap, commonly referred to as Örgryte IS, Örgryte () or (especially locally) ÖIS or Öis, is a Swedish sports club based in Gothenburg. It consists of four departments, namely bowling, football, athletics and wrestling. H ...

in 1908 to replace their old stadium

Balders Hage Balders Hage was a ballcourt and public square in the centre of Gothenburg, Sweden. The ballcourt was inaugurated on 1 January 1898 but was abandoned in 1909 when Walhalla IP was built. The club Örgryte IS was founded in Balders Hage, and played so ...

as the

Swedish Football Association The Swedish Football Association ( sv, Svenska Fotbollförbundet, SvFF) is the governing and body of football in Sweden. It organises the football leagues – Allsvenskan for men and Damallsvenskan for women – and the men's and women's nati ...

had banned international football on it. The city deeded land to Örgryte IS for this purpose, which today is used by the Swedish Exhibition and Congress Centre, opposite to amusement park

Liseberg Liseberg is an amusement park located in Gothenburg, Sweden, that opened in 1923. It is one of the most visited amusement parks in Scandinavia, attracting about three million visitors annually. Among the noteworthy attractions is the wooden roll ...

. The roofed main stand had 1,200 seats, and another 6,800 spectators could be accommodated on terraces around the pitch. The stadium was modelled after

Liverpool F.C. Liverpool Football Club is a professional football club based in Liverpool, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. Founded in 1892, the club joined the Football League the following year and has p ...

Anfield Anfield is a football stadium in Anfield, Liverpool, Merseyside, England, which has a seating capacity of 53,394, making it the seventh largest football stadium in England. It has been the home of Liverpool F.C. since their formation in 1892. ...

. At the time of its opening, Walhalla IP was the most modern stadium in

Scandinavia Scandinavia; Sámi languages: /. ( ) is a subregion#Europe, subregion in Northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. In English usage, ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, ...

. The pitch was enclosed by a slightly longer than 400 metre

running track An all-weather running track is a rubberized, artificial running surface for track and field athletics. It provides a consistent surface for competitors to test their athletic ability unencumbered by adverse weather conditions. Historically, v ...

and other

athletics Athletics may refer to: Sports * Sport of athletics, a collection of sporting events that involve competitive running, jumping, throwing, and walking ** Track and field, a sub-category of the above sport * Athletics (physical culture), competi ...

facilities, and several Swedish athletics championships were held in the stadium. The inauguration match was played on 6 September 1908, between Örgryte and German champions Viktoria Berlin. It was the main venue for sports events in Sweden until

Stockholm Olympic Stadium Stockholm Olympic Stadium ( sv, Stockholms Olympiastadion), most often called Stockholms stadion or (especially locally) simply Stadion, is a stadium in Stockholm, Sweden. Designed by architect Torben Grut, it was opened in 1912; its original use ...

was opened in 1912. The Swedish national team played its first ever international against

England national football team The England national football team has represented England in international Association football, football since the first international match in 1872. It is controlled by The Football Association (FA), the governing body for football in Engl ...

on Walhalla IP in September 1908, and

IFK Göteborg Idrottsföreningen Kamraterna Göteborg (officially IFK Göteborg Fotboll), commonly known as IFK Göteborg, IFK (especially locally) or simply Göteborg, is a Swedish professional football club based in Gothenburg. Founded in 1904, it is the ...

—that rented the stadium from Örgryte IS—won their two first Swedish championships, in 1908 and 1910, there. In 1912, the stadium was the scene of one of the first known instances of Swedish

football hooliganism Football hooliganism, also known as soccer hooliganism, football rioting or soccer rioting, constitutes violence and other destructive behaviours perpetrated by spectators at association football events. Football hooliganism normally involves ...

. IFK Göteborg supporters stormed the pitch to get to the referee, who had first awarded IFK a penalty kick against Örgryte IS in the last minute of the match, but then blown the final whistle before the kick could be taken. IFK Göteborg left Walhalla IP for newly built

Ullevi Ullevi, sometimes known as Nya Ullevi (, ''New Ullevi''), is a multi-purpose stadium in Gothenburg, Sweden. It was built for the 1958 FIFA World Cup, but since then has also hosted the World Allround Speed Skating Championships six times; the ...

in 1916. The land on which Walhalla IP stood was chosen as one of the sites for the 1923 Gothenburg Tercentennial Jubilee Exposition, and Örgryte IS was forced to move from the stadium as a consequence. The last event at Walhalla was an international sports gala arranged by Örgryte and held on 25 September 1921.

Citations

References

* * * * *

External links

IFK Göteborg official website – Arenor genom åren
{{Örgryte IS Sports venues in Gothenburg Football venues in Gothenburg IFK Göteborg Örgryte IS 1908 establishments in Sweden Sports venues completed in 1908