The site was originally planned to house the new Sahlgrenska University Hospital, and the municipality bought the land in 1896 for that purpose.

[1] One such club was IFK Göteborg founded in 1904, who played their first match—a training match between the first and second team of the club—on the field.

[2][3] The original stone has later been replaced by a new stone with the text "Here on Karlsrofältet, IFK Göteborg played their first football match in 1904" (Swedish: "Här på Karlsrofältet spelade IFK Göteborg sin första fotbollsmatch år 1904").

[7] IFK Göteborg stopped using the venue for training in 1910, but returned a final time in 1923 to play the season premiere at Karlsrofältet in front of a crowd of 4,000.

[8][7] Lower league matches continued to be played on the field during the 1930s and 1940s—with reduced activity during the Second World War—,[9] but all official activity was moved from the field in the 1950s due to major traffic rerouting nearby claiming part of the ground, and in 1960 the pitch size was reduced from the previous full-size to seven-a-side measurements, due to further traffic projects in the area.