Palais des sports de Caen

The arena in Caen does not look like a football ground at all. The original Palais des sports de Caen , which opened in 1968, still stands nearby, but it has been reduced to a training hall for the junior teams. The new venue, which took over the role of the main sports hall in August 2023, is built for flexibility. A removable Taraflex floor allows the surface to change from a parquet for basketball to a hard court for handball in a matter of hours. The capacity of 4,200 is enough to feel crowded without being overwhelming. The home teams, Caen Handball and Caen Basket Calvados , fill the seats regularly. The handball side, nicknamed the Vikings, has been drawing crowds that average over three thousand fans per match, a figure that has drawn attention within the Proligue . The basketball team, playing in Pro B , has seen every home game sell out. The venue has hosted international fixtures, including qualification matches for EuroBasket 1995, and served as a fan zone during the Rugby World Cup 2023. It also welcomes the Open de Caen tennis tournament. The name changed to Palais des sports Caen-la-Mer in June 2023 to reflect the wider metropolis, but most people still call it Vol'Caen . The new floor is synthetic, a practical choice for a multi-use hall.