Generali Arena (Prague)

The Generali Arena, previously, and still commonly known as Letná Stadium, is a football stadium in Prague. It is the home venue of Sparta Prague and occasionally hosts the matches of the Czech Republic national football team. It has capacity for 18,185 people.

General information

Arena capacity: 18,185 spectators

Address: M. Horákové 1066/98, 170 82 Praha 7-Dejvice, Czechia

GPS coordinates for the navigator: 50°5′59.29″N 14°24′57.28″E

Year of construction: 1917

Field: grass lawn with dimensions of 105×68 m

Seating plan of Generali Arena

The Generali Arena is comprised of four stands: North, East, South and West.

North Stand — The north-west side of this stand is usually used to house the travelling supporters who are separated from the home fans by a section of steel fencing. Spread out across two-tiers, with the exception of the front rows, views are generally decent throughout.

East Stand — Continuing the two-tier precedent set by the north stand, the eastern section inherits the same color scheme with blue seating at the top, red at the bottom and the word Sparta Prague written in yellow seats.

South Stand — The southern goal-end is where the most ardent supporters of Sparta Prague choose to watch the game from, however only the corner sections D45-D48 and H37-H40 are routinely filled on a match by match basis. Regardless of how full the south stand is, it’s the responsibility of this group of fans to get everyone else going, and more times than not they successfully create an excellent match day atmosphere.

West Stand — Regarded as the main stand of Letna Stadium, this houses important match-day facilities such as the dug-outs, tunnel and changing room. In addition to this it also features a high proportion of executive seating, and hospitality boxes between the two tiers.

Away fans

Travelling supporters are housed within the north-west corner of Letná stadium between the main stand to the west, and the northernmost goal-end in sections H85, H86, D91, D92, D93 and D94.

When choosing a place in the stadium, use the Generali Arena scheme above.

Where to buy tickets?

Tickets to see AC Sparta Prague can be purchased from the stadium’s box offices (1-4) for up to three hours before the start of every domestic match, or if they prefer, online from the club’s website. Note: ~300 Czk – ~11.10 Euros. Tickets for Sparta matches can also be bought online via Ticketportal, at the Footballmania store at Perlová 1020/8 in the old town, or at the Nike store at Na Příkopě 859/22 also in the old town.

Single Adult Tickets:

• Section 1 (Red – corners): 170 CZK;
• Section 2 (Purple – goal-ends): 190 CZK;
• Section 3 (Orange – sides): 250 CZK;
• Section 4 (Yellow – premium sides): 290 CZK.

Please refer to the above seating plan in order to fully understand where each section is located in relation to the pitch. For more information feel free to phone the club’s customer service or send an email.

How to get there?

Generali Arena is situated within the Letná district of Prague which is where the stadium’s original name was derived from. Still commonly referred to by fans as Stadion Letná, the hilly area just under 4km north of the historic city centre.

Driving

The stadium’s address for satnav is as follows:

• Milady Horákové 1066/98, 170 82 Praha 7, Czech Republic.

Car Parks

Located just north of Letna Park and within a dense residential area parking options are rather limited. You’re probably best off finding a parking garage back towards the city centre, and catching some form of public transport.

Metro

Prague is blessed with an expansive metro system, and generally speaking this is the easiest way to travel around the city. The two nearest stops are located either side of Letna Park, and will leave you with a 5-10 minute walk.

Hradanská is to the west on Line A (Green), and Vltavská is to the east on Line C (Red).

Train

The main railway station in Prague is known locally as “Praha hlavní nádraží”, and it forms part of European Rail Network which means you can get to Berlin and Vienna in just under five hours.

National services operated by České dráhy (Czech Railways) which means you can travel around the country in next to no time on high-speed services.

Where to eat?

The area around the Generali Arena is mainly residential, and while you may find the odd bar or restaurant, it is likely a better idea to eat and drink in the old town and make the walk to the stadium before the match. The adjacent Letná Park is nice on a summer’s day.

The Art Hotel Prague is located right opposite the arena and gets very good reviews. Hotel Letna is an equally close alternative, but gets poorer reviews. The Belvedere Hotel and Parkhotel Praha are also well within walking distance, while Hostel Dakura is a budget option. Hotel Hoffmeister may be of your liking if you have more money to spend.

History

The first wooden stadium at its location opened in 1921, in 1930 it hosted the third Women’s World Games. The stadium burned in 1934 and a new main reinforced concrete grandstand was built in 1937. In 1969 all the other grandstands were replaced by reinforced concrete ones and capacity was extended to 35,880 spectators. The 1994 reconstruction into its present form saw Letná closed for nine months, till the stadium met all international standards. The running track was removed and all spectator places were now seated.

Letná has frequently hosted international matches, in October 1989 the venue saw a crowd of 34,000 watch home side Czechoslovakia defeat Switzerland in a qualifying match for the 1990 FIFA World Cup. After the dissolution of Czechoslovakia, Letná continued as an international stadium, hosting matches of the Czech Republic national football team from 1995, including qualification matches for UEFA Euro 1996, in which the Czechs defeated the Netherlands and Norway.

The playing surface was renovated in 2001, including the installation of a new under-soil heating and watering system and grass from Germany. This necessitated Sparta playing league matches at the end of the 2000–01 season at the nearby Stadion Evžena Rošického.

Sparta was hit by a 55,000 CHF fine from European football governing body UEFA in 2001 following racist slurs from the crowd targeted at black Brazilian Luis Robson in a UEFA Champions League match at Letná against Spartak Moscow. It was, at the time, the biggest fine ever handed out by UEFA to a club for racist chanting.

Since 2002, the stadium has a heated turf. In 1994 the stadium was reopened after a complete modernization, all seats have since been seated and the stadium meets all required standards. In 2009, major changes took place at the stadium, barriers were removed, two video screens were installed and infrared radiators were installed to heat the “opposite” tribune.