Italian soccer club AC Milan has unveiled plans for a new stadium to be constructed in the Portello area of the city – just two-and-a-half miles from the team’s current San Siro home, which it has played at since the 1920s and shared with rivals Inter since 1947.
Designed in collaboration with Arup, who also designed Bayern Munich’s Allianz Arena and the Bird’s Nest stadium in Beijing, the arena will be part of a larger regional development that intends to remain open seven days a week. The stadium, which is estimated to cost in the region of US$343m, will boast a total match day capacity of 48,000 and includes a hotel, sports college, a variety of restaurants and integrated areas of public greenery.
In order to reduce the visual impact on the existing urban fabric, the structure will be partially positioned underground, and will not exceed a total height of 30m (unlike the San Siro’s 60m). The venue can be easily accessed by public transport and is forecast to create 1,000 jobs during the construction phase alone. Developers hope that the stadium will be ready within three and a half years – ahead of the 2018/2019 Serie A season.
According to the club, the project team studied more than 70 stadia and the new stadium will share similarities with the English model in terms of access and security, while architect Emilio Faroldi says the plan was inspired by Arsenal’s Emirates Stadium. The very latest technology and soundproof materials will be used in a bid to keep noise from within the stadium on match days to a minimum to those on the outside.
Final approval of the plans is expected in March.
To view a scale model representation of AC Milan’s new stadium, vist https://stadia-magazine.com/ac_milan.php now!
