Around The Grounds: Wankdorf Stadium, Young Boys

Ollie Irish

17th, August 2010

9 Comments

THE latest in our series of photo essays on football stadia features the tittersome Wankdorf Stadium in Bern (aka the less tittersome Stade de Suisse), home to the tittersome BSC Young Boys.

pa-4966851

Picture 3 of 12

The shiny new Wankdorf, which has a capacity of 32,000, opened its turnstiles as recently as 2005. There was an old Wankdorf, built back in 1925 and demolished in 2001. The new stadium was built on the site of the old one.

Wankdorf FACT! (via Wiki):

“A peculiar feature of the Stade de Suisse is the presence of a single, red seat (the other seats are black and yellow). This was the first seat installed at the new stadium, on January 20, 2005, and the honour of unveiling it was given to former Young Boys player and manager Walter Eich.

“There are no tickets available for this seat; every game the seat is occupied by a notable personality, often with ties to Young Boys. In a recent tradition, newcomers to Young Boys are sometimes asked to sit in the hot seat, where they are offered a lap dance. While some view this as an important part of team bonding, the tradition is still viewed as optional, as some players have found this offering offensive.”

Awesome.

Finally, COYS. You can pull it off. Ahem.

More photo essays of football grounds:

Portman Road

Prenton Park

Victoria Park

Home Park