Stroud District Council has approved the layout, scale and external appearance of a new all-wooden stadium for Forest Green Rovers.
The 5,000-seat stadium, which will form part of the wider Eco Park development, is set to be built next to Junction 13 of the M5 motorway in Gloucestershire. Forest Green chairman Dale Vince announced in February last year that work on the club’s stadium had commenced with the sinking of a series of boreholes.
At the time, the club was in League One, but back-to-back relegations now see Forest Green in the National League, the fifth tier of English football. Forest Green claims to be the greenest football club in the world, and the stadium project has been in the works for several years.
In January 2022, green energy company Ecotricity revealed revised plans for the 5,000-seat stadium. This came after the project received outline planning permission from Stroud District Council in December 2019.
When announcing last year that work had commenced on the project, Vince said that the move would enable Forest Green to “get an understanding of the ground conditions” so that the foundations of the stadium can be designed.
Councillors have now voted in favour of the project and also approved plans to demolish The New Lawn, Forest Green’s current home, which will be replaced by 95 homes. The Eco Park development will also feature 1,700 parking spaces, a care home, a hotel and office space.
Vince told the Stroud Times: “This ground-breaking stadium will provide a new home for FGR. The 5,000-capacity stadium will be the first stadium to be made almost entirely from wood which is beautiful, natural, durable and sustainable.
“We’ve taken a step closer towards the world’s greenest sports complex and a fabulous facility for the local community.”
The New Lawn has had a number of eco-friendly naming-rights sponsors over the years. It is currently sponsored by mobility app Bolt.
