I come from Olsztyn and for years I have been going to the matches of the city’s two best-known clubs: the football club Stomil and the volleyball club AZS – I support both. They play on the same street, Piłsudskiego Avenue, less than a kilometre apart. In this post I have gathered the matches I have photos from: from the derby against Jeziorak in the II liga (third tier), when the club was called OKS 1945, through evenings in the I liga (second tier) and the play-offs against Motor Lublin, to the fight for promotion from the IV liga (fifth tier). On top of that, volleyball in the old and new Urania arena, a Warmia handball match, the ruins of the Forest Stadium and the beach volleyball world championships in nearby Stare Jabłonki. First a short history, and at the end practical tips for anyone going to a match.
Table of contents
- Stomil Olsztyn – “Duma Warmii” (Pride of Warmia)
- The stadium on Piłsudskiego Avenue
- OKS 1945 and the derby against Jeziorak
- Evenings in the I liga
- Play-offs against Motor and three relegations
- The derby against Olimpia and the fight for the III liga
- AZS Olsztyn – a volleyball history
- Matches in the old Urania
- The new Urania
- Warmia Olsztyn – handball
- The Forest Stadium
- Nearby: beach volleyball in Stare Jabłonki
- Practical information
Stomil Olsztyn – “Duma Warmii” (Pride of Warmia)
The club was founded on 15 July 1945 as OKS Olsztyn – on the same day it played the first post-war match in the city. It plays in white and blue, and the fans call it “Duma Warmii”. In 1970–1973 it played as OKS OZOS, and from 1973 as Stomil – both names are linked to Olsztyn’s tyre factory, which today belongs to Michelin. Its white building with the Michelin Man can be seen behind the stadium stands.
The club’s best period was eight seasons in the Ekstraklasa (the Polish top flight), from 1994/95 to 2001/02. Its debut in the top division, on 30 July 1994, ended in a 2–2 draw with Zagłębie Lubin, and Stomil’s highest finish was 6th place, in the 1995/96 season. Matches against Legia and Widzew drew around 15,000 spectators at the time. In 1994 Sylwester Czereszewski and Tomasz Sokołowski became the first Stomil players to play for the Polish national team. Stomil fans have friendships with, among others, the fans of Polonia Bydgoszcz and Wisła Płock, and an even closer alliance (in Polish fan slang a “układ”) with the fans of, among others, Lechia Gdańsk – a club I also support – Hutnik Kraków, Raków Częstochowa and ŁKS Łomża.
The stadium on Piłsudskiego Avenue
Stomil plays at the municipal OSiR stadium at 69A Piłsudskiego Avenue, built in 1978. It has about 4,500 seats, and in 2018 it got a new pitch with undersoil heating and irrigation. In spring 2009 I walked all the way round the stadium – at that time the walls by the stands were covered with the fans’ white and blue paintings. The words “Duma Warmii” are still at the stadium today, on a new mural with the club crest.
On the wall by the stand there was also a huge “Stomil” sign with a painted figure, and the steps up to the stand were painted in white and blue stripes. This is the entrance to the SBN – the White and Blue Sector (Sektor Biało-Niebieski), for years the home fans’ end, now closed.
Olsztyn has been waiting for a new stadium for a long time. In 2023 the city received about €7 million for a new stand, but in the 2024 tender the only bid was more than twice as expensive, and the tender was cancelled. In March 2026 a tender was announced for the design documentation of a new stadium – the whole project is to cost more than €58 million and could be ready towards the end of the decade. Before the match against Mazur Ełk the sprinklers were watering the pitch, and a rainbow appeared over it.
The stadium used to host more than football – I was also here for the “11th Car Super Sprint Grand Prix WBS Bank 2017 for the Cup of the Mayor of Olsztyn”, with rally cars parked next to the pitch. Since the renovation, when the running track around the pitch was removed, there have been no car races here and the stadium is used only for football.
OKS 1945 and the derby against Jeziorak
After relegation from the Ekstraklasa the club changed its name several times, and from July 2004 the team played as OKS 1945 Olsztyn. The fans fought to get the old name back – this happened at the start of 2012. In the 2008/09 season OKS 1945 played in the eastern group of the new II liga, the third tier. On 8 November 2008 it hosted Jeziorak Iława in the regional derby and won 2–1 in front of about 4,000 spectators, making up for the 0–1 defeat in Iława in July. It finished the season in 4th place.
In spring 2009 I went to, among others, the matches against Stal Poniatowa (1–0) and Górnik Wieliczka (0–1).
Evenings in the I liga
After returning to the Stomil name, the club won promotion to the I liga, the second tier just below the Ekstraklasa, and stayed there for 10 seasons – from 2012/13 to 2021/22. In spring 2016 I saw, among others, two 1–1 draws: against Olimpia Grudziądz and against Zawisza Bydgoszcz. A ticket for the Olimpia match cost PLN 15 (about €3.50) at the time.
The match against Zawisza kicked off at 18:00, still in daylight.
On 18 March 2017, under floodlights, Stomil thrashed Znicz Pruszków 5–1. That season the club started with a three-point deduction for failing to meet the licensing requirements and finished 13th.
In April 2018 I went to the match against Ruch Chorzów, which ended in a 2–2 draw. The teams came out onto the pitch in daylight, and the match finished under floodlights.
In autumn 2021 I walked to the match against Skra Częstochowa at dusk – the floodlights could be seen from far away. Stomil lost 0–1 and at the end of that season was relegated to the II liga.
Play-offs against Motor and three relegations
In June 2023 Stomil played in the play-offs for promotion to the I liga. In the semi-final (7 June) it beat Wisła Puławy 3–1, and flares were lit in the stands.
In the final (11 June) Stomil drew 1–1 with Motor Lublin, and promotion was decided on penalties – Motor won the shoot-out. The away section was filled with Motor fans in yellow shirts.
In the following II liga season I saw, among others, the 2–1 win over Chojniczanka Chojnice (3 September 2023), but the season ended in last place and relegation to the III liga (fourth tier). A year later the club dropped even lower, to the IV liga, the fifth tier.
In the III liga I watched, among others, a 1–1 draw with the reserves of Wisła Płock – a club whose fans have a friendship with the Stomil fans.
The derby against Olimpia and the fight for the III liga
Even in the IV liga, plenty of fans still come to the stadium, and they prepare displays for the matches. In 2026 I went to, among others, the derby against Olimpia Elbląg in the last 16 of the regional Polish Cup (8 April, a 1–2 defeat) – the covered stand was full, and after dark flares were lit in the stand.
In the league Stomil beat, among others, Mazur Ełk 5–0 (10 May) – the stand behind the goal was full that day. In the semi-final of the play-offs for the III liga it beat Warmia Grajewo 2–0 (17 June), and white and blue flags waved under the stand roof. In the play-off final, however, Stomil lost 0–1 to Mazovia Mińsk Mazowiecki and stayed in the IV liga.
AZS Olsztyn – a volleyball history
The volleyball club AZS Olsztyn was founded in 1950 as a university team – first of the College of Agriculture, then of the Academy of Agriculture and Technology, and since 1999 of the University of Warmia and Mazury. Over the years it has played as PZU AZS, Mlekpol AZS and AZS UWM, among others, and since 2011 as Indykpol AZS Olsztyn; in 2026 Energa was also added to the name. The club has won five Polish championships (1973, 1976, 1978, 1991 and 1992) and seven Polish Cups, and in the 1977/78 season it took silver in the European CEV Cup. Since 1983 it has played in the Urania arena at 44 Piłsudskiego Avenue.
Matches in the old Urania
The old Urania opened on 1 September 1978. It held about 2,300 spectators, with red seats around the court. Until 2008 it also hosted the Hubert Wagner Memorial, a tournament featuring the Polish national team. European cup matches were played here too – in November 2018 I saw AZS beat Greece’s PAOK Thessaloniki 3–1 in the CEV Cup. Despite losing the return leg 2–3 in Thessaloniki, AZS went through and was only knocked out in the last 16 by Russia’s Kuzbass Kemerovo.
In autumn 2008, when the team played as AZS UWM Olsztyn, I went to two matches here in the PlusLiga, the top Polish volleyball league. On 22 November AZS beat Jastrzębski Węgiel 3–1, and on 6 December it lost 0–3 to ZAKSA Kędzierzyn-Koźle, still unbeaten at the time. Olsztyn’s line-up included captain Wojciech Grzyb and the Finn Olli Kunnari.
A year later Grzyb was already playing for Resovia. I went to the match against them (27 November 2009) in a Kunnari shirt. AZS led 2–0 in sets (25–14, 25–15), but lost 2–3.
I kept going to volleyball in the following years. In November 2016 AZS lost 0–3 to ZAKSA in front of about 2,400 spectators. In October 2017, on the other hand, I saw a 3–2 win over PGE Skra Bełchatów – after a tie-break that ended 15–12.
That season I also saw, among others, 3–1 wins over BBTS Bielsko-Biała and Onico Warsaw. The AZS fans’ green and white flags waved in the stands.
The new Urania
The Urania was rebuilt in 2021–2023 – during that time AZS played its league matches in Iława. The new arena opened on 15 December 2023. From the outside it has a dome and an openwork white facade, and it seats 4,046 people. The complex also has a smaller hall, an ice rink and an underground car park. It hosts more than just matches – there are also concerts, and in June 2024, for example, there was the KSW 95 MMA gala – and in 2027 Olsztyn is to host matches of the volleyball world championships.
In the new Urania I saw, among others, a 3–0 win over Trefl Gdańsk in December 2024. The arena was full that day.
In January 2025 AZS lost 1–3 to Jastrzębski Węgiel, and in November 2025 it beat Trefl again – this time 3–1, after losing the first set.
AZS fans come to matches with green and white flags and scarves, in the new arena too.
Warmia Olsztyn – handball
The Urania was also home to the handball team Warmia Olsztyn – from 2005 to 2012 it played here in the Superliga, the top division. The Polish national team also played in the arena – in 2005 it beat Sweden 32–26 here. In March 2018, still in the old Urania, I went to Warmia’s match against Vive Kielce, many times champions of Poland. Warmia lost 22–41.
In the 2024/25 season Warmia Energa played in group A of the I liga, together with Olsztyn’s other club – Szczypiorniak Olsztyn. On 17 November 2024 I went to their derby, played in the smaller hall of the Urania complex. Warmia led 19–12 at half-time and won 36–28, in front of 299 spectators.
The Forest Stadium
The oldest sports venue on this list is the Forest Stadium (Stadion Leśny), opened in 1920 in the southern part of the City Forest, near Jakubowo. Before the Second World War a shot put world record was set here, and on 5 August 1960, during the Polish championships, Józef Szmidt jumped 17.03 m in the triple jump – the first person in the world to go beyond 17 metres. All that remains of the stands are ruins overgrown with moss. I write more about them and about the City Forest in the post Olsztyn – what to see.
Nearby: beach volleyball in Stare Jabłonki
At the beginning of July 2013 Stare Jabłonki near Ostróda hosted the Beach Volleyball World Championships. I was there for two days, with a tent. Gold went to the Dutch pair Alexander Brouwer and Robert Meeuwsen and the Chinese pair Xue Chen and Zhang Xi.
Practical information
- Addresses: Stomil stadium – al. Piłsudskiego 69A, Urania arena – al. Piłsudskiego 44. Both venues are east of the Old Town, about 1–2 km from it, and less than a kilometre from each other.
- Tickets and fixtures: you will find them on the clubs’ websites and social media profiles. For volleyball matches against top teams the arena is often full, so it is worth buying tickets early.
- Before the match: for bigger Stomil matches (play-offs, derbies) queues form at the entrance – it is better to arrive early.
- Weather: the stadium’s main stand has a roof, but for evening matches in autumn and spring take a warm jacket.
- More of Olsztyn: I describe the Old Town, the castle, the lakes and Kortowo in the post Olsztyn – what to see, and Lechia matches in the post Lechia Gdańsk – my matches.
