page_title: Ullevaal Stadion
section_title: Construction and early years
hierarchical_section_title: Ullevaal Stadion / History / Construction and early years
caption_attribution_description: English: Football match at Ullevaal stadion
context_page_description: Ullevaal Stadion is an all-seater football stadium located in Oslo, Norway. It is the home ground of the Norway national football team, and the site of the Norwegian Cup Final. From its opening in 1926 to 2009 it was the home ground of FK Lyn and from 1999 to 2017 was a home ground of Vålerenga IF. With a capacity of approximately 28,000, it is the largest football stadium in Norway. The national stadium is fully owned by the Football Association of Norway.
  The stadium opened on 26 September 1926 as the home ground for Lyn and several other local teams. The first international match was played in 1927, and NFF started gradually purchasing part of the stadium company. The peak attendance dates from 1935, when 35,495 people saw Norway play Sweden. Since 1948, Ullevaal has hosted the finals of the Norwegian Football Cup, and in 1967 the Japp Stand was completed. A new renovation started with the completion of the single-tier West Stand in 1985, and continued with the two-tier North and East Stands in 1990 and the South Stand in 1998. Ullevaal hosted the finals of the UEFA Women's Euro in 1987 and 1997.
context_section_description: The first suggestions for a stadium at Ullevaal were launched by members of Lyn in 1917, but not until 1924 was a committee appointed to look into the matter. Lyn had also considered building their stadium at Holmenkollåsen, Hoff, Tåsen, Frogner, Berg and Marienlyst. The club made an agreement with the tram operator Akersbanerne to purchase land they had acquired as part of the construction of the Sognsvann Line. It was decided that a limited company was to be established, with a share capital of NOK 100,000. Aker Municipality agreed to purchase 30% and partially pay via access roads and utilities. All sports clubs in Aker were given the right to purchase up to 10% of the shares, while the rest was to be bought by Lyn. Any costs exceeding the capital was to be paid for through loans and donations. At the same time, Lyn acquired land to build a training field which they would own themselves and was estimated to cost NOK 20,000. Both plans were passed by the club annual meeting on 23 May 1924.
  A/S Ullevaal Stadion was founded on 27 January 1925. The company was owned 73.5% by Lyn, 24% Aker Municipality and 5.1% by the clubs Ullevaal, Tåsen, Nydalen and Heming. The stadium was built with a running track, allowing the stadium to also be used for track and field, and had a capacity of about 35,000 spectators. The stadium cost NOK 416,000. The grand opening was held on 26 September 1926 by Crown Prince Olav. It was followed by a friendly match between a reinforced Lyn and Örgryte IS of Sweden, where Lyn won 5–1. In the opening game, tickets cost NOK 3 for seats, NOK 2 for standing places and NOK 1 on the end stands. The stadium became both the home ground for Lyn and hosted track and field events. The first international match was held on 29 May 1927 and featured Norway losing 0–1 against Denmark. The match against Sweden from the Nordic Football Championship 1933/36 on 22 September 1935 was held in front of a crowd of 35,495, which still stands as the spectator record. The stadium was served by the Oslo Metro with the opening of the Sognsvann Line in 1934. In 1938, a new East Stand (Klokkesvingen) was opened.
  The Football Association bought Aker's share of the stadium during the 1930s, and in 1945 also part of Lyn's share. From 1948, the Cup Final was held at Ullevaal, and has been held there since. Other activities held during the first decades included boxing, and a revival meeting hosted by Billy Graham in front of 40,000 people in 1955. In 1960, NFF bought more shares from Lyn and became the majority shareholder with 50.7%, while Lyn retained 44.2%. The reason was the planned expansion could not receive public grants with such a strong tie to a single club, but the state was willing to give grants to the stadium if it was controlled by the federation. In 1967, a new South Stand was opened, and the following year NFF moved into offices at the stadium.
caption: Spectators at a match in 1935
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