The story of Naturarena Hohe Warte: Destruction and Reconstruction

Viennese floodlight premiere

With the withdrawal of US troops in September 1955, the club took over its facility again. It wanted to quickly return to the heyday of the 1920s and bring lucrative events to the Hohe Warte. In order to be able to host any European Cup games, First Vienna FC 1894 was planning to modernize its stadium with a floodlight system. A race developed between the Hohe Warte stadium and Vienna's Prater Stadium for the Viennese floodlight premiere, with the people from Döbling ultimately coming out on top: on November 3, 1956, the Hohe Warte celebrated the Viennese floodlight premiere, eleven days before the Prater Stadium. In the championship double event, Austria Wien defeated Wiener Sport-Club 1-0, while in the main game the hosts and Wacker Wien parted ways 1-1.

The Bild-Telegraf reported on the atmosphere at the 1st Vienna floodlight game: “The sight is wonderful when the auditorium is shrouded in darkness and only the lawn is lush and lush. When people in the tiers light their cigarettes and the whole ramp resembles a dark wall with small bonfires lit here and there.” (Bild-Telegraf, November 5, 1956, p. 6)

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