Viadana borders the following municipalities: Boretto, Borgo Virgilio, Brescello, Casalmaggiore, Commessaggio, Dosolo, Gazzuolo, Marcaria, Mezzani, Motteggiana, Pomponesco, Sabbioneta, Suzzara.

The presence of man on the islands formed by the Po and its tributaries, Adda and Oglio, has recently been confirmed by the numerous finds of artifacts attributed to the Neolithic period, dating from around the 4th millennium B.C.

In 1415 following the conquest of Gian Francesco Gonzaga, Viadana bound itself permanently to Mantua except for a brief period in the 19th century thanks to the treaty signed by Pavesino Avigni.

The rivers were also communication and trade routes that developed especially along the Po axis to Venice, to such an extent that Viadana was the seat of a Vice-Admiral appointed from Mantua; not only that: an area once owned by the Del Bon family, which owned real estate and commercial and industrial activities in the lagoon city, still bears the name of Villa del Veneziano.

Belonging to the main branch of the Gonzaga family, Viadana did not have a mint, maintained a certain economic autonomy, and had its own currency and special weights and measures for trading.

Gonzaga rule ended on July 23, 1708, when the Habsburg Empire, having declared the glorious Mantuan family forfeit, regained possession of its fiefs.

Prominent among the relics in the sphragistics collection of the Civic Museum is a high hierarchical seal of the Knights of Altopascio, depicting St. James.

Found in the area, it harkens back to medieval pilgrimages and the probable presence of an important hospice near the Po River, which had to be crossed in both directions for those traveling along the German road.

From medieval times there are records of a fortress area (the present "Public Gardens" and the building of the elementary schools and Technical Institute) and walls that marked the perimeter of the village, which were destroyed in 1700 and along the route of which currently runs Via Circonvallazione Fosse.

It became quite famous in Europe in the 2000s thanks to the town's 15-a-side rugby team, Viadana, which participates annually in European competitions in addition to winning the Scudetto in 2002 and six Italian Cups and Trophies Eccellenza.

Together with Benetton, they are the only two Italian rugby teams to represent the country in the prestigious professional Celtic League, a competition previously reserved exclusively for clubs from Scotland, Ireland and Wales.

The center currently houses the Civic Gallery of Modern and Contemporary Art, the Permanente, the Fratelli Azzolini photography club, and the Luigi Parazzi municipal library, which is a member of the Sistema bibliotecario Ovest Mantovano.

In addition, every month, it is possible to attend meetings of the Viadana Reading Group (Letto e Mangiato) with the background of books from the Municipal Library.

Cicognara (in dialect, Sigugnéra), the westernmost hamlet of the Viadanese territory (bordering the territory of the municipality of Casalmaggiore) and the second in order of inhabitants after Cogozzo, has become famous for the great entrepreneurial spirit that has made it a major industrial reality, being able to count on several dozen small and medium-sized companies that provide employment for many people in the Oglio-Po district.

The symbol of the town is a stork on a strip of land representing the Insula Cicunaria, an island on which the settlement arose and which was separated from the mainland by continuous flooding and the irregular course of the Po River, unlike what it looks like today.

The patron saint of the village is Santa Giulia, to whom the parish church is dedicated; Don Primo Mazzolari was pastor from 1921 to 1932 and parishioner Grazia Deledda was married in 1900 to Rag.

Three valuable stained glass windows (the Nativity, the Holy Family, and St. Giulia) by Cremonese painter Giuseppe Moroni can be admired in the church.

Between 1886 and 1933 Viadana served as the southern terminus of another rail link, the Mantua-Viadana tramway, operated by the Valentini and Mazzorin company and, since 1903 directly by the provincial administration.