Warsaw is ready to join the club of posh venues

After years of lagging behind other European capitals when it comes to fancy stadiums, Warsaw (the capital of Poland) is now set to join the club of posh venues with plans to build a state-of-the-art sports hall and entertainment arena.

“TVP WORLD” The estimated costs of 350 million euros were first announced in May by Sławomir Nitras, Polish Minister of Sport and Tourismand now seems to be close to being realized.

The building will be located next to the national stadium on the east bank of the Vistula, the land must first be transferred by the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage, which Nitras described as a “done deal”.

The more than 58,000 Kazimierz Górski National Stadiumknown for sponsorship reasons as National PGE has been a football stadium with a retractable roof in Warsaw, Poland since 2015. It is mainly used for concerts and football matches and is the home stadium of the Polish national team.

“TVP WORLD” further explained that the above-mentioned site was originally earmarked by the former ruling Law and Justice Party as the site for a renowned Museum of Technology and Nature, but the land was now instead sold to the Ministry of Sports and TourismAccording to current status, this could happen as early as July.

After the transfer is successful, the first work will begin “immediately,” government officials promised.

The need for a modern sports hall was first raised over two decades ago, but the plans were left to gather dust. There are fears that the previous episode could repeat itself, but the relevant authorities, including Nitra, have allayed these fears.

Renata Kaznowska, Vice President of Warsawhas also underlined the importance of the above development: “I am aware that Warsaw and Poland are lagging behind when it comes to hosting flagship events. That is why the construction of the above venue in Warsaw is of great importance and doubly important.”

She added that the city had already worked on the finances – “We have already prepared a preliminary cost estimate for the above-mentioned project. The price is estimated at about 1.5 billion zlotys (350 million euros), but this amount takes into account inflation and the technical equipment with which the hall will be equipped. It should not be forgotten that a few years ago the National Stadium cost almost two billion zlotys (464 million euros), but apart from the pandemic, the venue’s coffers were ringing.”

Nitras noted: “The hall, similar to the National Stadium, will have a ‘national character’ and will host exceptional events of the country. The construction of the hall is important not only for the city, but for the whole country. The only fancy arena in Poland is the 22,000-seat Tauron Arena in Krakow. Having major acts in Poland would also boost tourism in the nation and attract fans from all over the world to Warsaw once the planned venue sees the light of day.”

Warsaw is the only capital city in Europe that does not have a state-of-the-art sports arena. In fact, even small countries like Andorra (a country in Europe), Cyprus (a country in the Middle East), Montenegro (a country in the Balkans) and Luxembourg (a country in Europe) boast fancy arenas.

Although currently a 6,000-seat venue is being built Gym in the city’s SKRA complex, currently the only indoor venue in Warsaw, the 4,800-seat Torwar Hall their facilities leave much to be desired. In comparison, every neighboring capital city – Vilnius (capital of Lithuania), Minsk (capital of Belarus), Bratislava (capital of Slovakia), Prague (capital of the Czech Republic) and Berlin (capital of Germany) – has fancy arenas that can hold at least 10,000 spectators.

However, the construction of an arena with a capacity of 22,000 spectators would significantly improve Warsaw’s international image, and the hall planned above – once it is put into operation – will have an advantage over the arena with a capacity of 17,000 spectators. Uber Arena in Berlin and the 20,000-seat The O2 Arena in London (Great Britain).

Although the planned hall will cost a fortune, those involved in the entire construction project have pointed out that Krakow’s Tauron Arena cost 83.3 million euros 10 years ago, but now brings in rich revenues, as does the 15,000-seat stadium. Ergo Arena in Sopot and the 13,806-seat Atlas Arena in Lodz.

The country’s newest sports hall, which has a capacity of 17,178 Gliwice Arenais also expected to generate considerable revenue. The venue, which was completed in 2018 for 97.4 million euros, will host 213 events in 2022.

Since the spatial plan has already been adopted and the other official procedures, such as the rules for a design competition, have already been determined, Kaznowska assured that the city is ready to move the project forward.

Financing will most likely be provided through a public-private partnership (PPP) or a special purpose vehicle (SPV) established by the State Treasury. A draft law on financing has already been prepared, Nitras said. If everything goes according to plan, it is estimated that two years will be needed to obtain the necessary permits and another three years for construction.

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