The Morioka City Council has revealed that it will include funds required for the permanent placement of J. League-standard floodlights at the city-owned Iwagin Stadium under its supplementary budgets next month, according to the local TV Iwate web media.
The football stadium is primarily used as the home of the Japanese third-tier J3 League side Iwate Grulla Morioka. The stadium, however, currently does not have adequate floodlights to host evening matches, and the city of Morioka had been given a deadline of June 2022 by the J. League to come up with a solution. Failure to comply with the league’s stadium requirement within the timeframe given would mean the football club’s J3 License to be revoked.
The City Council on Friday held a meeting to discuss the placement of the required floodlights at the stadium, not only to ensure that the club will keep its J3 status but also to provide a pathway for the club to mount a serious challenge on their pursuit for promotion to the J. League Division 2 (J2).
The floodlight project is estimated to be JPY700m (£4.84m/€5.78m) but about half of the project cost will be covered by the national government while JPY200m (£1.38m/€1.65m) will be paid by private funding while Iwate Prefecture will also provide approx. JPY375,000 (£259,400/€310,000) so in reality the city will only need to allocate another JPY375,000.
The city council and club are hoping that the floodlights will be ready by February next year as this placement will ensure that the floodlight standard required for the club to apply for the J2 License will be met. Should the club do well in the upcoming season, therefore, promotion to J2 could be a real possibility.
Image: Tankobodg
Article provided by The Stadium Hub
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