Zaragoza City Council has voted in favour of proceeding with efforts to draw up plans for a new stadium on the site of Estadio La Romareda, home of Segunda Division football club Real Zaragoza.
The proposal is with an eye towards La Romareda becoming a host venue under Spain’s joint bid for the 2030 FIFA World Cup with Portugal. Earlier this month, La Romareda was included on a 15-venue shortlist revealed by the Spanish Football Federation (RFEF).
Eleven venues in Spain will ultimately be used if the joint bid is successful. A further three stadiums will be used in Portugal. Local newspaper Heraldo de Aragón reported that a Council vote held yesterday (Thursday) gave broad backing to the proposal for a new stadium at La Romareda, with no votes against.
This came after the Council released a report, conducted by Spanish consulting, engineering and architecture company IDOM, earlier this week stating that the La Romareda site would fall in-line with the main FIFA requirements for a World Cup venue in terms of aspects such as public transport, car parking, approach roads, VIP space and service areas.
The Council said: “Knowing this study gives comfort to this government team to know that we are making a correct decision in accordance with Zaragoza hosting the World Cup and that it is in line with what they are doing in other cities such as Madrid, Barcelona or Bilbao.”
With a current capacity of around 33,600, La Romareda first opened in 1957 and hosted three games during Spain’s staging of the 1982 World Cup. The stadium is owned by the Council.
Image: Campeones 2008/CC BY-SA 4.0/Edited for size
