Stadion Rodeni

Stadion Rodeni (English: Rodeni Stadium), previously known as Stadion Vrapcici (English: Vrapcici Stadium), is FK Velez Mostar owned football stadium in Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina, which is in slow process of development since 1995. It is located in the northeastern part of the city, namely the Vrapcici suburb, and is principal stadium and the home-ground of FK Velez Mostar football club. The stadium takes its name from FK Velez's and its supporters' nickname "Rodeni" (English: "own", as in "our own"; literally "born"), and it was decided after an online poll.

History

The first attempt to build a stadium happened at the beginning of 1938. FK Velez management decided to call a loan among the club's supporters and friends, and all Mostar's working class, whose money would be used to buy land and build a playground. A non-interest-bearing loan, with a two-year repayment period after the construction of the playground, was proposed, and coupons called "Loan" were issued in denominations of 50 and 100 dinars. In this way, 100,000 dinars were collected. When an agreement was reached on the purchase of land, the club was banned by the regime on 3 September 1940, and the money collected was than directed to humanitarian cause "Red Assistance".

After the World War II stadium Pod Bijelim Brijegom was built through volunteer labor of young people from Mostar and Bosnia and Herzegovina, between 1947 and 1958.

The club currently plays at the Rodeni Stadium, but its historic stadium is the Bijeli Brijeg Stadium. From time the Bosnian War broke out, and in particular subsequent incitement of Croat-Bosniak hostilities, conflicting ideologies and interests were conveyed from the war times into the post-war era, which continuously manifesting itself through steady political divisiveness in the city of Mostar, among other shown in issues of territorial and ownership disputes. Such political ambiance showed in the forced eviction of FK Velez Mostar from its traditio