Featured image credit: TurnOnTheNight/CC BY-SA 4.0/Edited for size
The Workers’ Stadium in Beijing is set to reopen in March as work on a major revamp of the venue nears completion.
The stadium, which had a capacity of 66,000 before being demolished in August 2020, served as the main venue for the 1990 Asian Games and also hosted football matches during the 2008 Olympic Games.
The stadium is also known locally as Gongti and had initially been scheduled to reopen in December but a new date has been set for March. It is hoped the revamped venue will become a year-round destination capable of hosting sport and entertainment events.
Ma Xisheng, an official from the Beijing Major Projects Construction Headquarters Office, confirmed on Friday that the two-year renovation project has been completed, according to the Xinhua news agency.
Li Xin, project manager at Beijing Construction Engineering Group, said that former tenant Beijing Guoan FC will be able to return to the stadium once surrounding commercial facilities have been finished. More than 100,000 square metres of commercial facilities are being built.
The new stadium’s capacity will be 68,000 and it will not feature a running track, while a new underground plaza has been added for sports fans. Traffic congestion around the Workers’ Stadium is also set to be eased through a train station that will provide a direct connection to the venue.
The Workers’ Stadium was built in 1959 and served as one of the ‘Ten Great Buildings’ constructed in Beijing to coincide with the 10th anniversary of communist China.
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