Sundby Idrætspark
Sundby Idrætspark is a sports complex, that consists of a combined association football and athletics stadium, three sports halls, tennis courts, and a swimming hall, located in the district of Amager Vest, Copenhagen. As of May 2019, the stadium's total capacity of approximately 7,200 spectators, with 2,500 seatings at the main grand stand stretching along one side of the pitch, makes the exhibition field among the 25th largest football stadiums in Denmark. Since the establishment of the facilities in 1922, the site has undergone continuous development through incremental expansion, with new sports facilities added over time in response to evolving demands. As of April 2025, Sundby Idrætspark comprises an area of approximately 16 hectares.
It is the home ground of the association football clubs BK Fremad Amager, B 1908 and Sundby BK, hosting the first senior women's team of Sundby BK in the seasons 2021–22 and 2022–23, and have previously hosted BK Standard and the professional superstructure FC Amager. Other tenants include the athletic club IF Gullfoss, the volleyball club Amager VK, the floorball club Hafnia FC, the tennis club Sundby TK, the badminton club Sundby KFUM BC, the handball club Amager SK and the association football club BK Olympia 1921. Other clubs have rented the stadium to play notable matches there, including Christianshavn IK.
The first international rugby match in Denmark was played between on 19 November 1950 at the stadium of Sundby Idrætspark. The grass fields of the sports complex hosted the preliminary rounds of the 2015 World Archery Championships.
History
Background and founding
Following industrialization in the early 20th century, a new approach to urban planning emerged. This movement focused on providing light and air in housing developments, ensuring that workers – the emerging social class – could enjoy green spaces and engage in outdoor activities close to their homes. The land located in the triangular area between Irlandsvej, Englandsvej, and Sundbyvestervej was originally part of the outlying farm known as Bastiansminde — the farm buildings located in the south-western corner were later demolished, only leaving behind four European beech trees from the original entrance. As part of the urban development of Sundby, the Municipality of Copenhagen acquired the area in 1923 to create both a park and recreational facilities, which eventually led to the establishment of the nearly three-hectare large Sundbyvester Park and Sundby Idrætspark covering over 150,000 m², of which approximately 7,000 m² is building area. The sports complex was established initially in the years 1923 and 1924 by the City of Copenhagen and transferred to the independent institute Københavns Idrætspark in 1925 for management and development.The stadium, referred to as Sundby Stadium, was inaugurated on 10 September 1922 with an association football match between the two then best ranking Amager-based teams, BK Fremad Amager and B 1908 in front of a sizeable crowd — a silver trophy donated by wholesaler O. P. Jansen for the occasion was won by B 1908. At the inauguration in September 1922, the sport's facility, with the entrance located at Englandsvej, consisted of 5 football fields, with one of these fields being specifically fenced and designated for tournament matches. The first match was played at one of the smaller fields rather than the main field, because it was not ready for use. An actual exhibition field was inaugurated with an association football match on 26 April 1925 between a representative team for island of Amager and B 1903, marking the sport complex's take-over by the self-governing institution Københavns Idrætspark. The sports complex now consisted of an exhibition field and four football fields.
Ongoing expansion and improvements
Sundby Idrætspark would soon house a stadium with a wooden grandstand, sports hall, and tennis fields, that would become covered. The oldest sports hall, next to the exhibition field, was designed by architects Arthur Wittmaack and Vilhelm Hvalsøe. At the corner of Irlandsvej and Sundbyvestervej a school was built, Højdevangens Skole, designed by architect Kai Gottlob. Sundbyhallen was used the German during the occupation of Denmark in World War II, and got devastated by sabotage and fire on 20 June 1943, and was again destroyed by fire on 23 April 1956, but this time the ignition of a combustible wall cladding was likely caused by a fault in the electrical installation.BK Fremad Amager moved from the villa district on Irlandsvej to a new single-storey yellow-brick clubhouse on Sundbyvestervej 60 with dressing rooms in the basement, in the south-western corner of Sundby Idrætspark, in 1974. The dismantling of the old wooden grandstand was begun in August 1974 to make way for a new grandstand at a cost of DKK 4,200,000. The new concrete grandstand, with a seating capacity of 1,700, was first used for a top-flight league match on 13 April 1975, when BK Fremad Amager played BK Frem in front of 5,500 spectators. In 1994, a minor renovation and improvement of spectator facilities were carried out at a cost of DKK 300,000. In 1989, Boldklubben 1908’s 400 m² clubhouse was constructed on a site provided by the City of Copenhagen, located on the opposite side of Sundbyvestervej, just outside the sports complex.
An outdoor swimming pool was initially constructed next to the school, which eventually evolved into the facility known as Sundby Bad after buildings were added. The facility was officially inaugurated in 1966. In 1990, the third hall was constructed.
DBU stadium requirements and dispensations
In 2003, the Danish FA published the first edition of "Krav til danske fodboldstadioner", which entered into force on 1 July 2003, followed in 2004 by the introduction of a club licensing system that made specific stadium requirements a condition for participation in the top-flight football league and second tier football league. Two years later, football stadiums for third tier football clubs faced similar requirements, which from 1 July 2013 also applied to the women’s top-flight league stadiums.The gravel pitch, south of the stadium's grand stand, used for training sessions, was upgraded to a full-size 11-a-side artificial football pitch in the spring of 2004, and augurated in August 2004. The implementation of this renovation and modernisation resulted in the stadium being approved as a 2nd Division football stadium. The hosting of 2nd Division matches was conditional only upon a DBU dispensation for secured player access, requiring a protected passage between the changing rooms and the pitch; for high-risk matches, a fixed plan for spectator segregation was also required. 1st Division matches could be hosted under a one-year DBU dispensation, with an expected extension of up to three years, as the absence of a floodlighting system and the size of the changing facilities were among the deficiencies identified by the Danish Football Association.
A budget of DKK 10 million was designated for the stadium's renovation, which was started in 2014 and successfully completed in 2016. The grand stand is reported to have 1,958 seatings. Between June and August 2018, the track of the exhibition venue was converted to Finnish-made MRTX Ultra artificial turf with built-in heating and watering, replacing the original natural grass. Between August and December of 2018, four 40-meter floodlight masts of 1,000 lux were installed at the exhibition field, enabling the broadcasting of televised evening matches from the Danish Superliga — additionally one 24-meter mast and one 20-meter mast delivers a 250 lux LED lighting system meant for training sessions.
B.93's last league match of the 2021–22 season on 11 June 2022 against Hillerød Fodbold was played at Sundby Idrætspark due to an overbooking error. B.93 started playing their home matches temporarily at Sundby Idrætspark beginning from 22 November 2024 due to the renovation of Østerbro Stadium — the first match being against Hobro IK in the 17th round of the Danish 1st Division. Hence, during the last part of the 2024–25, the main exhibition field would host league home matches for teams across the second tier, third tier, fourth tier, and fifth tier. The sports complex marked its 100th anniversary on 7 September 2024, celebrated with an event that included an exhibition in the foyer of the main hall highlighting the facility’s history and development, as well as a programme of sports-related activities.
Stadium firsts and records
The earliest known competitive matches at Sundby Idrætspark were reportedly played in late August 1924, when two league fixtures were held at the venue during the 1924–25 season: a KBUs B-række match in which BK Gefion defeated the local team BK Sylvia 2–0, and a KBUs A-række Hellerup IK match where Hellerup IK won 1–0 against B 1908.A record attendance of 8,391 spectators was recorded at the Danish 2nd Division match on 5 November 1972 between BK Fremad Amager and Esbjerg fB. The match was the final game of the season and determined which team would be relegated to the third tier, with Esbjerg fB being relegated. In the Danish Women's 2nd Division match of the 2024–25 season, on 21 September 2024 Sundby BK Women faced F.C. Copenhagen Women in front of 1,451 spectators, setting a new record for the largest crowd attendance at a women's club football game at the stadium. On 23 September 2025, a new home attendance record of 1,715 spectators was set at Sundby Idrætspark for fourth-tier club Sundby BK, despite a 3–0 defeat to top-flight side Odense BK in the third proper round of the 2025–26 edition of the DBU Pokalen.
The record football attendance at Sundby Stadium for a competitive match not involving any local teams is 5,528 spectators, which was set during the third proper round of the 2025–26 DBU Pokalen in a match between second-tier club B.93 and top-flight side Brøndby IF. The host team, B.93, losing the match 1–4.
Art and sculptures
The sports complex includes two statues are located in the western section af stadionbanen. A bronze sculpture by Danish artist, named "En Fodboldspiller", is situated on a pedestal in the south-western corner of the stadium. It depicting a male football player in motion, in a forward-leaning stance with imminent interaction with a ball, about to kick or move forward with the ball, rendered with detailed anatomical form and balanced proportions. The work was first reveiled in plaster in 1903 and awarded the Annual Medal at the Artists’ Autumn Exhibition, before the sculpture was cast in bronze in 1910 and later installed in Sundby Idrætspark.A second sculpture by Hans Erik Einar Quistgaards, named "Kalchas", from 1915, is situated in the north-western corner of the stadium, representing Kalchas, the seer of Agamemnon’s army in the Trojan War, as described by Homer in the opening of the Iliad. The sculpture depicts the male figure crouching in a compact pose, with the right arm extended forward in a pointing gesture. Originally installed at Københavns Idrætspark in 1915, it was relocated to Sundby Idrætspark in 1954 in between the KI’s grandstand expansions in 1953–55.
A contemporary artwork, titled "Motion", was integrated into the exterior of Indoor Sports Hall 3 and completed on 17 November 2022 after six weeks of work. Measuring 25 × 9 metres, the mural replaced a previously half-faded bluish colour scheme and now depicts two figures—one red and one dark—representing different youths and the ports practices in the park, running at full sprint through a warm field of colour with green nuances. These elements reference the natural landscape of Amager and its sunsets. The façade decoration was created by the artist Andreas Welin, organised by Galleri Rodløs, and supported with DKK 98,800 from Områdefornyelsen Sundby.
Facilities
As of April 2025, Sundby Idrætspark comprises an area of approximately 16 hectares, bordered by the streets Englandsvej, Irlandsvej, Sundbyvestervej, and the listed Englandsparken. Sundby Idrætspark covers an area of approximately 16 hectares and consists of a large outdoor sports complex with a stadium and athletics track, sports halls, a swimming pool, clubhouses, tennis courts, and more. The sports complex's includes the following facilities: 1 stadium, 3 sports halls, 1 clubhouse, 1 clubhouse, 7 tennis courts, 2 padel courts, 9 full-size 11-a-side football pitches, including the stadium, 9 5-a-side football pitches, 1 running track. 1 throwing area, 1 swimming pool, 1 outdoor fitness area, 143 car parking spaces, and icycle parking.Sundby Idrætspark's main entrance is located at Englandsvej 61, and the main buildings can be accessed via Englandsvej and Irlandsvej. The sports park is partially enclosed, with designated openings providing path access for pedestrians and cyclists, and a vegetation belt running along Irlandsvej.
Exhibition field/stadium
The exhibition stadium’s grandstand houses dressing rooms for both teams and referees, press and broadcast areas, VIP sections, storage rooms, and toilet facilities. On the opposite side of the main stand there is a wooden terrace nicknamed as the Sunny Side by the fans of BK Fremad Amager. There are also a couple of smaller terraces at one end of the ground. The stadium has four entrances for paying spectators — three located at the corners and one at the centre of the grandstand, with the north-east and south-east entrances primarily being used for away fans.Surrounding the stadium’s grass field is an athletics track with long jump and high jump facilities located on the western side. The track is constructed of red synthetic material and follows the standard 400-metre layout, measured along the innermost lane. The oval track comprises three lanes encircling the field and includes a straight section widened with two additional lanes, resulting in a total of five marked lanes along the straight.