Industry News

Gibraltar FA submits stadium plan

The Gibraltar Football Association has submitted a project to construct a new national stadium on the site currently occupied by Victoria Stadium.

The GFA submitted the proposal to the Development & Planning Commission for the purposes of public consultation. The development follows a year of work between the GFA, project manager ANS and The Stadium Consultancy to develop a concept and design for an 8,000-seat stadium.

The GFA said the stadium will meet all of UEFA’s Category IV infrastructure regulations. The body is also working with the Centre for Access to Football in Europe (CAFE) to deliver a model stadium on accessibility with more than 80 wheelchair spaces, spaces for wheelchair companions and a sensory room for spectators with autism.

The GFA has appointed Ramboll to provide multi-disciplinary engineering services for the project, in association with The Stadium Consultancy.

Martin Willis, Ramboll global sports sector lead, said: “This will be a great facility for the people of Gibraltar and can be a driver for a sustainable society. The design has a strong link to the Ramboll values and considers options for integrated energy solutions and sustainable building solutions with an ambition to create value for the GFA. This unique stadium integrates wider community uses along with being a new home of which the teams and fans can be proud.“

It is hoped that, following the conclusion of a public consultation period, the GFA will present the plan to the Development & Planning Commission in September, with construction scheduled to begin in the first quarter of 2019.

The stadium would take two years to build, with the current stadium to remain unaffected during the construction period. The current Victoria Stadium seats just 2,300 people.

Jack Noble, Ramboll’s Gibraltar director, added: “What an amazing success story of collaboration for such a high-profile project. With the provision of structural; building services; infrastructure; fire; vertical transportation; facades; acoustics; highways; environmental and project management services, supported from 10 different Ramboll office locations, including Gibraltar, six UK offices, Madrid, Singapore and India. This truly demonstrates collaboration and cooperation at its best.”

Ramboll are a sponsor of TheStadiumBusiness Design & Development Summit 2018 at Wembley and will be showcasing this and other projects during the annual meeting of stadium projects from around the world.

Image: Ramboll