Polish Army Stadium

Marszałka Józefa Piłsudskiego), is an all-seater, highest fourth category football-specific stadium located at 3 Łazienkowska Street in the Śródmieście district, Powiśle area, within the square of the streets: Łazienkowska, Czerniakowska, Kusocińskiego and Myśliwieck.

The stadium, which for decades belonged to the Polish Armed Forces, is currently owned by the City of Warsaw.

In 1929, Legia obtained a subsidy that enabled the implementation of the plan to build a representative Military Stadium.

At the end of the 1950s, attendance records were set at the Stadium when Legia won the Polish championship and qualified for European cups.

The first record, 40,000 spectators was set on 19 September 1956 during the European Cup match between Legia Warszawa and Slovan Bratislava.

In the 1960s, the stadium underwent one of the most significant modernisations in its history, able to accommodate a 25,000 seated audience and installing artificial lighting.

The complicated legal status of the land, which belonged to the military, effectively discouraged potential investors.

In October 2004, Warsaw's chief architect Michał Borowski gave permission to build a new stadium on the said land.

On 25 September 2006, the City of Warsaw dismissed the offer of the German consortium: HMB Stadien GmbH und Sportstättenbau with Wayss Schlüsselfertigbau und Freytag AG and Krupp Stahlbau Hannover GmbH, which had won the tender.

Their project planned the construction of a building with a capacity of 30,500 to 35,000 spectators, with underground parking, and – a first at a Polish sports facility – was supposed to have a fully retractable roof.

On 26 September 2006, Legia's new owners – ITI Group – during a meeting with the acting President of Warsaw Kazimierz Marcinkiewicz, in the club premises presented their own idea of rebuilding the stadium.

On 12 November 2008 the investor – the City of Warsaw – signed an agreement with a consortium Polimex-Mostostal for the construction works.

[11] The most recent reconstruction, November 2008 to March 2011, involved the demolition of all the stands and the construction of brand new ones, with only the historic façade of the main "Kryta" grandstand preserved.

The new stadium, designed by the German studio JSK Architekten, meets the criteria for the UEFA Elite class, which allows it to host semi-finals of the Champions League.

The facility is five storeys high and is fully roofed with its maximum height not allowed to be higher than nearby Ujazdów Castle.

[12] The stadium includes press boxes, office spaces, as well as a fitness and wellbeing center for players and coaching staff.

The club also plans to introduce a non-cash payment system, which will accelerate the speed of making various purchases around the stadium.

The illumination of the pitch is 2000 lux (power 516 kW), which enables the transmission of matches in the HD technology.

The illumination system located in front of the stadium's promenade allows for effective and multi-colored lighting of the outer parts of the stands and the roof structure.

Żyleta (Polish pronunciation: [ʐɨˈlɛta], English: the Razor) is a common name for the northern stand in the Polish Army Stadium in Warsaw, Poland, traditionally occupied by the most spontaneous and fanatical fans of the Legia Warsaw football club.

Kazimierz Deyna monument is a statue dedicated to one of the most famous Legia players in the club history.

An official committee was founded by fans and people related to the club to finalize the project named Let’s built a monument for Deyna.

The design was selected via an Internet poll, and many different actions have been undertaken by fans to raise money for this monument.

[25] Kazimierz Deyna is one of Poland's most decorated footballers, having won 97 caps and scored 41 goals for the white and reds (the national team).

A gold medal winner at the 1972 Munich Olympics (and top scorer with nine goals), he was also part of the third-placed Polish team at the 1974 World Cup in West Germany, before winning the silver medal with the national side at the 1976 Summer Olympics.

It was in 1974 that he was ranked third in the European Footballer of the Year list, behind Dutch great Johan Cruyff and West Germany captain Franz Beckenbauer.

Panorama of the old stadium, 2007
Żyleta filled with fans during a charity match between Legia and ADO Den Haag
Northern stand as seen from the Łazienkowska street
Main stand before UEFA Europa League match between Legia Warsaw and PSV Eindhoven
Interior of Legia Warsaw museum located underneath the north stand
The north stand of the stadium – the famous Żyleta