AXA Arena

The AXA Arena in Winterthur does not look like a place where you might expect to see a crowd. Built in the last few years, the hall sits without much fuss near older apartment blocks, and its exterior is plain compared to the grander stadiums in the city centre. It opened for business in 2018, replacing the old Winterthur Central Sports Hall, and while it carries the name of an insurance company, it remains a working facility for the community.

What makes the place work is the tightness of the seating. The capacity is a modest 2,000, but the stands go right down to the edge of the court. Pfadi Winterthur, the handball team, call this their home, and the proximity of the fans to the players means they can hear the squeak of shoes on the wooden floor. The pitch is a standard 20 by 40 metres, large enough for a handball game or a floorball match, but small enough that a single error can be seen from every seat. The synthetic surface is bright, and the lights above are powerful enough to turn the evening into day without spilling out into the street.

The arena also hosts the national team for floorball. The Unihockey World Championship 2022 drew a great many visitors, and the crowd swelled even further for the Faustball Final4 Tournament in 2024. These are not events where the crowd spills onto the terraces; the space is contained, and the energy stays inside. A derby against Kadetten Schaffhausen saw nearly 2,000 people fill the seats.

There is a separate annex building nearby used for tennis training, but the main hall is for the teams that play on the hard court. The name changed from WIN4 shortly after the doors opened, but the function of the building has not shifted much. It is a sheltered space for winter sport, and the only thing that stands out is how quiet the building looks when the lights are off.