<\/p>\n

Key facts<\/h3>\n

Club: 1. FC Union Berlin | Opening: 1920 | Capacity: 22,012 (18,395 standing)<\/p>\n

History and description<\/h3>\n

Stadion An der Alten F\u00f6rsterei was built in 1920 as FC Olympia, the predecessor of Union, had to move out of their previous home, which had gotten repurposed for residential housing.<\/p>\n

Their new stadium, then still called Sportplatz Sadowa, officially opened on 7 August 1920 with a friendly against German champion Nurnberg (1-2), but the club had already played their first match at the stadium five months earlier against Viktoria 89 (1-1).<\/p>\n

The stadium could initially hold just over 10,000 spectators, nearly all standing, and FC Olympia\u00a0regularly moved to higher-capacity grounds for important\u00a0matches.<\/p>\n

It took until 1968 for\u00a0the stadium to undergo a first major redevelopment, which included the enlargement of the terrace on the long side to a capacity of 15,000 places. In 1978, it was the turn of the stands behind the goal to be enlarged, which raised capacity to 23,500.<\/p>\n

However, the stadium quickly fell into disrepair and safety measures cut back capacity. As the club lacked the finances to improve the ground, it took until the start of the new century for\u00a0the stadium to get a first round of smaller improvements.<\/p>\n

Union needed a more long-term solution though, and in the early 2000s the club looked to build an entire new stadium with a capacity of 30,000 places, of which 20,000 seats. However, the club lacked the funding and plans shifted to renovating\u00a0Stadion An der Alten Forsterei.<\/p>\n

In 2008, works started on replacing the terraces with new covered terraces along three sides. Just as during earlier redevelopments, a lot of the works were performed by fan volunteers. In 2012, works started in rebuilding the all-seater main stand, which opened one year later with a friendly against Celtic.<\/p>\n\n\n \t\t\n\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t

\n \n \n <\/a>\n <\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div> \n\t\t\t\n \n\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t

\n \n \n <\/a>\n <\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div> \n\t\t\t\n \n\t\t\n\t\t

<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n\n

(photos of the present Stadion An der Alten Forsterei below)<\/p>\n

\n