1928–1945

The foundation stone was laid in November 1928 in honor of the 10-year celebration of the Republic of Austria. The stadium was constructed in 23 months, from 1929 to 1931. It was built according to a design by the Tübingen architect Otto Ernst Schweizer and the second Workers' Olympiad. Schweizer also designed the adjacent Stadionbad (with 400,000 sq m, Europe's largest swimming pool). According to its location in Vienna's Prater, it was initially named Prater Stadium. It was a modern stadium at the time, particularly in Europe, because of its short discharge time of only 7 to 8 minutes. Initially the stadium had a capacity of approximately 60,000 people.

During the National Socialist Era following Anschluss (1938–1945), the stadium was used as a military barracks and staging area and as a temporary prison for the deportation of Jewish citizens.^[2] Between 11 and 13 September 1939, after the attack on Poland, over a thousand Polish-born Viennese Jews were detained on the orders of Reinhard Heydrich. They were imprisoned beneath the grandstands in the corridors of Section B. On 30 September, 1,038 prisoners were deported to the Buchenwald concentration camp. The next day, the stadium was back to being used as a football pitch. 44 men were released in early 1940, 26 were freed in 1945, the rest were murdered in the camps. In 1988, one of the surviving victims, Fritz Klein, was awarded compensation by the Austrian government equivalent to 62,50 euros for being detained in the stadium. In 2003 a memorial plaque, commemorating these events, was unveiled in the VIP area by a private initiative. In 1944, the stadium was severely damaged during a bomb attack on the Wehrmarcht Staff offices.

1945–2000

After the war and the reconstruction of the stadium, it was again sporting its original use. In 1956, the stadium's capacity was expanded to 92,708 people by Theodor Schull, but in 1965 the capacity was reduced. The attendance record was 90,726^[3] spectators set on 30 October 1960 at the football match between Spain and Austria (0–3).

In the mid-1980s, the stands were covered and fully equipped with seats. At its reopening a friendly match against archrival Germany was organised. Austria won the match 4–1. After the death of former Austrian top player and coach Ernst Happel (1925–1992), the Prater Stadium was renamed after him in 1992. In 1964, 1987, 1990, and 1995, the Ernst Happel Stadium was the venue of the European Cup/UEFA Champions League final.

In 1970, the stadium was the venue of the 1970 European Cup Winners' Cup Final which saw Manchester City F.C. beat Górnik Zabrze 2–1. Neil Young and a Francis Lee penalty sealed the win for City. This final was played under torrential rain in what was then an uncovered stadium. This along with the fact no Polish supporters were allowed to travel to the match restricted the attendance, which is variously reported at between 7,900 and 15,000 spectators.

Notable matches held in the stadium

• 1964 European Cup Final: Internazionale 3–1 Real Madrid
• 1970 European Cup Winners' Cup Final: Manchester City 2–1 Górnik Zabrze
• 1987 European Cup Final: Porto 2–1 Bayern Munich
• 1990 European Cup Final: Milan 1–0 Benfica
• 1994 UEFA Cup Final: Internazionale 1–0 Austria Salzburg
• 1995 UEFA Champions League Final: Ajax Amsterdam 1–0 Milan
• UEFA Euro 2008 Final: Spain 1–0 Germany