The construction of National Football Stadium in Bratislava, September 4, 2018. (source: TASR)
Bratislava will soon have one of the most modern football stadiums in Europe, Prime Minister Peter Pellegrini said after visiting the construction site of the National Football Stadium (NFS) on September 4. He admitted that the state’s investments in this project could increase.
This is partly because the construction costs will be higher than the original amount resulting from the tender. Ivan Kmotrík Senior, the head of the construction investor – National Football Stadium – admitted, as quoted by the TASR newswire, that the price has changed over time. This is a consequence of increased labour costs and new UEFA demands regarding lighting and certain parts of the stadium’s infrastructure, according to him. “It will be €7 million, perhaps €12 million more expensive. I’d be glad it if it weren’t more than five-six million,” said Kmotrík, according to TASR.
Setting priorities and negotiating
Whether the state will eventually pay more than expected when buying the stadium is a question of negotiations as well as priorities, the PM noted. “We must clearly determine whether we want the most up-to-date lighting and infrastructure possible, or if we’ll require something cheaper that lags behind the modern world,” Pellegrini said.
He added that “if we are to build a stadium, it must be in such a way that all who come to it will admire it”. According to the PM, it also depends on what's left on the investor’s shoulders as a result of the increased investments and what the state can contribute.
“We’re ready, I repeat ready to talk about it,” said Pellegrini, stressing that the decision must be transparent and that it's the right thing to do.
In this regard, he argued that the cost of the stadium, with the technical parameters that it is supposed to have, will be one of the lowest in current conditions when calculating cost per seat (the capacity will be 22,500 seats). “In any case, the capital city deserves a modern football stadium,” he stressed, as cited by the newswire.
Other potential use of the stadium
Bratislava Mayor Ivo Nesrovnal agrees, pointing out that the new “Tehelné Pole” (meaning Brick-field, name of the area and the previous stadium) will allow Slovakia to host teams and hold big matches. The stadium will also become the site of great cultural events.
“The background of the stadium can help create opportunities for developing congress tourism, which has huge potential,” Nesrovnal said, as quoted by the Sme daily.
The new stadium should receive final commissioning approval by the end of the year or early 2019. Although it is possible that the first match will be played there as early as this year, regular matches should be played from the beginning of the spring during the current football season, TASR wrote.
The new stadium is being built by STRABAG Pozemné a Inžinierske Staviteľstvo which, according to the contract with the investor – NFS – is supposed to complete the stadium within 76 weeks for €49.81 million ex-VAT (€59.77 million VAT-included). The state pledged to complete the construction and subsequently buy the non-commercial part of the stadium and to provide NFS with a contribution worth €27.2 million, which is due to be deducted from the purchase price.
On the same day, the football pitch, which the investor built in the complex of the nearby athletic elementary school Kalinčiakova, was opened. Another similar football pitch will be built in the school premises by the investor, Sme reported.
