Prague bears little resemblance to the austere years of Communism, that grey sombre place characterised in the classic Czechoslovak film Proc? from 1987.
But Prague in the late 1980’s was near to escape from the period of Moscow indoctrination. In 5 years it would go from orthodox and belligerence to advertising its broad flexibility and “new thinking” in foreign outlook.
Prague’s convoluted history – it has been occupied by the French, Germans, Austrians, the Soviet Union and Prussia – took its biggest turn after those events of the Velvet Revolution of 1989.
By 1993 the city was the capital of the newly formed Czech Republic.
The next decade in Prague was one of discovery.
The old town has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1992. In the years following the Velvet Revolution the intoxicating mix of riverside nightlife and ancient bridges has meant that this is Eastern Europe’s very own Paris.
The old town neighborhoods of Stare Mesto and Male Strana – joined by the wondrous Charles Bridge – remain largely untouched by development despite the millions of tourist who visit each year.
From that bridge you get one of the best views in Europe. Gazing over to Prague Castle there is a spectacular fortification which dates to the 9th century and there are few tourist sites that match this anywhere in Europe.
Of course if the crown jewels of Bohemia are not what you seek then the royalty of Czech football is not that far away. With each footstep in Prague you are not that far from grandeur and Gothic construction but in truth neither the home of Slavia Prague or rivals Sparta could be called ‘grand’.
That said the modern day Fortuna Arena of Slavia is a far cry from the shabby Stadion Eden which existed in 1989. In one corner of the ground these days a DJ set area blasts out dance tunes before and after each goal together with a flashing disco lights show.
Sitting just east of the ‘Ďolíček’ home stadium of Bohemians Prague, the current Fortuna Arena has its roots in December 2003 when the original worn out Eden Stadium was pulled down.
It was reopened on 7th May 2008 with an exhibition match and Czech league football has been played here ever since.
The Fortuna Arena is now the established home for the successful Czech national teams despite a rather humble capacity of 19,700. Slavia, post 2008, took time to find a permanent footing in European competition but they are now consistent performers in the UEFA Group stages.
Gone at Slavia is the open terracing and rugged electric scoreboard of the cold war era.
The ‘sewn on’ star shaped badge of the club – so simple yet symbolic remains – but the political and cultural symbolism of the Czechoslovakian era – whether party slogan or image and so indicative of Communist years – has been consigned to history where this football stadium is concerned.
Football art inside the Fortuna Arena is largely dedicated to the main ultras grouping of Slavia Prague – Tribuna Sever. Pre-match choreography can reference the communist era as well as the events of 1968 but this area of the ground has become known as one of the most atmospheric and colorful in Europe rather than as a theatre for political posturing.
If it’s fans artwork that dominates the interiors of the new Fortuna Arena so at the Stadion Letná its the exteriors where the most vivid imagery is seen.
The Letná sits near the expansive public park that goes by the same name.
In Proc? the 1987 Czech film, the Letná Stadion was a cold and austere place.
Low level standing terracing area was fit for standing room only; a meeting point for disaffected Czech youth during the last ravages of the hated communist era.
The home of Sparta sits north of the Charles Bridge and the feel in the surrounding neighbourhood is somewhat different to the Prague where Slavia and Bohemians are found.
Once large enough to host over 40,000 fans the modern day Letná lacks the slick modernity of Slavia’s home.
This alone shows how far they have fell behind its greatest rivals in the last 20 years at least on the European stage.
Sparta dominated Czechoslovak football for years with Slavia a mere side show in the 1950’s and 1960’s. They jostled ownership of the Czech titles titles with Slovan Bratislava and Dukla during the post war period with Slavia nowhere to be seen. Only Banik Ostrava and Spartak Trnava come close to posing a real challenge to Sparta Prague dominance.
Such is the passage of time so the coin has flipped in recent decades.
These days Sparta are most likely to be found in the Europa League Group Stages rather than the Champions League Groupings. This factor (as well as the desire to maintain a challenge to the powerful Viktoria Plzen and Slavia on the field of play) has meant real investment in its home stadium has never been made albeit the scene is completely different to 1987.
If Sparta and Slavia are the modern day face of Czech football then Dukla were the figurehead during the Communist era.
At the 1962 World Cup in Chile, Dukla Prague was represented by seven players in the Czechoslovakian national football team which reached the final before losing to Brazil.
Dukla star Josef Masopust scored in the final as Brazil won 3–1, and he was later named as the winner of the 1962 Ballon d’Or.
These days what art that exists at the Juliska Stadium of Dukla comes most recognisably in statue format.
This is dedicated naturally to Masopust and fitting in that the statue is not that far away to another great symbol of the communist era – the Grand Hotel International a noted Czech cultural monument.
Much of those who followed Dukla in the 1950’s and 1960’s have passed and attracting new fans is extremely hard for the club. The exteriors of the Juliska stadium has echo’s of a ‘multi sport’ theme. That said this is a club somewhat ‘restarting’ in football after decades of trauma and ready for a new race.
The art here is fitting as Dukla are and were a club made up of several sports teams but the scene is more or less indicative of a club whose time at the top of the Czech football ladder is gone.
The Juliska is a stadium noted for its athletics track.
Internally it is the large stand to the north that dominates and one that still feels somewhat completely out of scale to the sporting surrounds.
If Slavia and Sparta dominate the modern football scene then so Bohemians Prague are a mere dimple on the face of a much larger footballing landscape.
Despite the global standing of the two giants of Prague football both are still waiting on a major European trophy.
It is ironic then that it was Bohemians who gained the Czech’s first shall we say unusual prize on a global football stage albeit that this came in the shape of a kangaroo, a legacy gift of a 1927 football tour of Australia which ended up in Prague Zoo.
The D’olicek Stadium is as it sounds – a mere small dimple on the face of the Czech Capital. It was nicknamed as such due to its location in a small hallow of earth.
If Bohemians are but a small natural indentation on the skin of modern Czech football so also it would be cheeky to dismiss them as insignificant.
The Dolicek sits only 1 km from Slavia’s home ground and is the most colourful and traditional of all Prague’s football grounds.
Green and white murals adorn two walls of the stadium exterior and it feels like this is a place where time has stood still.
With crowds stable at an average of 4,900 it is an echo of a previous era and redevelopment seems a lifetime away.
More historical times rather than modern day football watching is the overriding message of the murals that run along Vrsovicka.
Most of these are new but amongst the most vivid in the whole of Prague.
Small, compact – and with terracing that has changed little since the 1980’s – Bohemians still feels like a local neighborhood club uncaught up in false ambition and excessive financial outlay.
Given its peripheral standing in Prague Bohemians do lose out on capturing new fans most obviously to the far larger Slavia who are a mere 1 km down the road. However, they can still call upon a loyal following; a following which rejoices in both Klokani symbolism and the green and white club colors it is a fanbase that has saved the club more than once during more difficult financial times.