Italian Serie A football club Parma has selected architecture firm Studio Zoppini to redesign its Stadio Ennio Tardini home ground.
Studio Zoppini specialises in the design of public sports facilities and has worked on a number of venues since launching in 1961.
Parma has appointed Studio Zoppini to oversee the architectural quality and functional design of its redeveloped stadium. The firm is set to unveil the design in due course.
Parma president Kyle Krause said: “We are enthusiastic and totally convinced with the choice we’ve made; the ability in the world of sports and beyond, expressed worldwide by Studio Zoppini, is exactly what we were looking for.
“Studio Zoppini has a unique approach and methodology; they’re environmentally conscious and by extent conscious of the city and its citizens, of businesses and the local area.”
Alessandro Zoppini has been a partner of the firm since 1996 and has been chosen to lead a number of projects over the years. He has contributed to projects for the winter Olympic Games in Turin, Sochi and Pyeongchang.
Zoppini said: “Coming first in this selection process is a success, which makes us extremely proud. Taking part in the first sustainable redevelopment project for an Italian stadium is an unquestionable honour for us, and participating in its realisation will mean playing a role in a fundamental shift in the world of football as well as in environmental sports engineering and architecture.”
Parma announced in December that it would be submitting a new proposal for the redevelopment of the Tardini, with the project being driven by the club’s American ownership group.
Nuovo Inizio, Parma’s former owner, had started the process, founding Progetto Stadio Parma, an entity designed to oversee the Tardini project and its subsequent management. The Krause Group in September completed a deal to take over Parma, with Kyle Krause becoming the Emilia-Romagna club’s new president.
Krause Group acquired a 90% stake in Parma, with Nuovo Inizio retaining a nine per cent share and Parma Partecipazioni Calcistiche, the company that brings together fans as shareholders, holding a one per cent interest. Krause Group also took control of Progetto Stadio Parma.
The club withdrew the previously submitted proposal in December, and announced that a process had begun that will lead to an entirely new project that will involve the city and all stakeholders.
The Tardini first opened in 1923 and has a current capacity of around 27,900. It is hoped that work on the redevelopment of the stadium could begin by the summer of 2022.
Image: Verdi85/CC BY-SA 3.0/Edited for size
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