Helsinki Areena in Ilmala has been empty and out of use since EU sanctions affecting its Russian owners made it impossible to pay them any money.
It's a big facility, and it leaves a big hole in the capital's sporting and music calendars. It has caused a problem for Jokerit, who had played in Russia's KHL league and used the arena as their home venue, but will now return to the second-tier Mestis league for the 2023-24 season.
The ice hockey world championships were held at Tampere's brand new arena for the last two years, with the capital unable to offer a suitable venue.
But there might now be a chance to take the arena back into use.
Ilta-Sanomat reports that the owners have failed to pay July's instalment on the ground rent, and a reminder has been sent. If the bill is not paid after a further reminder, the city could start proceedings that might lead to new owners for the venue.
If the city began to recover the debt, it could eventually lead either to the cancellation of the rental agreement or sale of the asset to raise the unpaid rent.
The municipality could also make use of legislation to execute a compulsory acquisition of the hall, which mayor Juhana Vartiainen (NCP) says he wants to see in western — or Finnish — hands.
Health centre problems
The last government brought in long-awaited reforms to Finland's system of managing health and social care. Rather than the 300 or so municipalities in the country, services outside the capital are now arranged by 21 wellbeing services counties.
Helsinki retained its right to organise these services, as the largest council in the country containing around ten percent of its population.
The goal of the reform was to save money and rationalise services, but the details are only now being thrashed out and those who think they might lose out are not happy with the plans.
Aamulehti reports that in Pirkanmaa, the region around Tampere, smaller towns are concerned about the plans. The local health authority plans to shut down 19 of the region's 40 health centres, increasing travel times to get medical care for large numbers of patients.
Now municipal leaders in many of those towns set to lose their health centres have signed a joint statement criticising the plans. They claim their residents are sicker than the average Pirkanmaa community's, and therefore it would be foolish to shut down their local health centres.
They also question the financial calculations underpinning the move to shut down their health centres, asking if it is actually cheaper to centralise services than to maintain smaller health centres' operations.
Inappropriate baseball
Helsingin Sanomat has a lengthy expose on harassment in the world of Finnish baseball (known as pesäpallo in Finnish). The sport resembles its American cousin and is mostly played in provincial, inland regions of the country.
The paper has interviewed numerous women playing in the top flight, finding evidence of unsolicited explicit photos being repeatedly sent, players being propositioned, sponsors making inappropriate comments and girls as young as 15 being targeted.
One of the interviewees reported being targeted by a male elite player who sent explicit pictures and videos. The interviewee had also been sent inappropriate messages from a series of unknown, prepaid mobile numbers. As soon as one was blocked, another would start sending explicit messages. She was under 18 at the time.
"As a child, I accepted it thinking that I just have to put up with it," said the interviewee. "As an adult, I've received several explicit pictures."
Research also supports the interviewees' statements. In 2020 the sports ethics body FINCIS found that 46 percent of female players at the highest level had experienced harassment of some sort. The same study found that 25 percent of male players had experienced something similar.
Would you like a roundup of the week's top stories in your inbox every Thursday? Then sign up to receive our weekly email.