 The flat and clear nature of the area had always made Prati di Caprara the ideal site for horse racing organized by the Bolognese Horse Racing Society.The mixed military-equestrian use of the area was sealed in 1897 with the inauguration of a racecourse that replaced the inadequate one of the Montagnola park, in the city center.With the permission of the military authorities, in 1909 the area welcomed the soccer field of the newly founded Bologna Football Club.