With the start of the Indoor Hockey World Cup just days away, we take a look at the venue that will play host to this incredible event – the Arena Leipzig.
It is not for nothing that the Arena Leipzig has been dubbed the home of indoor hockey in Germany. Just one year after its completion, the stunning venue – which has a main stadium capable of hosting audiences in excess of 20,000 people - played host to the inaugural Indoor Hockey World Cup in 2003, where Germany’s men and women dominated proceedings to take both world titles on offer. Burkhard Jung, Mayor of the city of Leipzig, remembers the occasion with great affection.
“Our memories of the 2003 tournament, at which for five days the world’s top- level hockey players battled it out for the title cheered on by incredible crowds, are very fond ones. From a German perspective, the triumph of both the men’s and women’s national teams was of course a fantastic result.”
The state-of-the-art venue boasts a daylight simulating lighting system and is also a renowned concert hall for major international bands and musicians. This combination ensures that it is not only a sensational arena for major international sporting events but it is also extremely well practiced when it comes to putting on a show.
With that in mind, it is hardly surprising that major international hockey returned to the Arena Leipzig in 2012, when a wonderfully successful EuroHockey Indoor Nations Championships cemented its status as the spiritual home of indoor hockey in Germany. Yet again, both Germany’s men and women took top honours, making the Arena Leipzig something of a lucky omen for the national teams.
“The Arena Leipzig is an excellent venue for indoor hockey”, said Stephan Abel, President of the Deutscher Hockey-Bund. “In fact, it may well be the best venue in the world for this exciting, fast-paced sport. Those who experienced the 2003 Indoor Hockey World Cup and the 2012 European Championship here know that visitors to the 2015 event are in for a real treat. We at the DHB are very proud to have been selected for the second time by the International Hockey Federation to host this most important indoor hockey event.”
So, with four gold medals in the bag in the Arena Leipzig, will Germany’s men and women take their stadium tally to six by claiming double gold at the Indoor Hockey World Cup 2015? The home fans will certainly hope so, but you can be sure that the 22 other competing nations will do everything they can to upset the odds.
We will be providing full coverage of the event via the tournament microsites (men & women) as well as via our social media channels, including Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
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