Arena Zabrze – construction description

When was the construction permit for the stadium in Zabrze obtained?

In order to redevelop the stadium, in late 2007 the City of Zabrze set up a company called Stadion w Zabrzu (Stadium in Zabrze). In 2008, an architectural concept was selected, and in 2009 the construction design was commissioned. On 23rd April 2010, the company received preliminary design documentation, and on 15th July 2010 it applied for a construction permit, which it obtained on 19th November 2010.

What was the first phase of rebuilding the Górnik Zabrze stadium?

On 15th March 2011 a tender was announced for the first stage of the project, including the reconstruction of the north, east and south stands. Polimex-Mostostal was selected as the main contractor and committed to carry out the project for more than PLN 192.5 million (it was the only bid which did not exceed the budget allocated for the task, which amounted to less than PLN 199 million). The construction contract was signed on 24th August 2011, and the works were to be completed in April 2013.

Why was the initial agreement with the first contractor for the stadium in Zabrze terminated?

On 8th September 2011 the construction site was handed over to the contractor. On 14th September the foundation act was solemnly signed in the company of, among others, representatives of the club, city authorities, sponsors, designers and contractors, as well as former Górnik Zabrze stars and fans. However, Polimex-Mostostal ran into trouble over time and had problems with the planned finishing of the investment. The completion date was pushed back to November 2013, and when this too was not met, the Stadion w Zabrzu company decided to remove the contractor from the task.

What did the redevelopment of Zabrze stadium look like after the contract with the developer was terminated?

After Polimex-Mostostal left the construction site, the Stadion w Zabrzu company carried out an evaluation and decided to take over the responsibility for completing the works, starting in March 2014 by issuing tenders for individual stages of further works. However, the construction was significantly prolonged in time compared to the original assumptions.

Throughout the redevelopment, the stadium remained in use and Górnik Zabrze continued to play its Ekstraklasa matches there. New, temporary lighting masts were erected to replace the demolished ones, which stood just outside the corners of the field. The capacity of the stadium was significantly reduced to around 3,000 spectators who were seated in the (only undemolished) main stand on the west side, completed in autumn 1935 (a year after the stadium opened). In August 2015 additional seats were made available to fans on the lower tier of the new stand behind the south gate, and in October 2015 similar spaces on the opposite side.

On 21st February 2016, the new stands were made fully accessible to fans for the first time, and the Great Derby of Silesia between Górnik and Ruch Chorzów (0:2) was attended by a sold-out crowd of 24,563 spectators. Work on the completion of the first phase of construction continued until June 2016. After the opening of the new auditorium, the old west stand was used by journalists covering the on-field action. As part of phase one, an entrance walkway was also constructed on the eastern side, along with an underground car park beneath it.

When will the fourth stand be built in Zabrze?

The realisation of the first phase of the project came at the cost of a major organisational and financial effort. After its completion, it was clear that the construction of the fourth stand, which would fill the gap and turn the facility into a closed, coherent architectural block, would not start immediately. The main obstacle was, of course, financial.

The first step on the way to completing the construction was the demolition of the old main stand. To make it possible, its infrastructure first had to be moved to the new part of the stadium. In 2018, new changing rooms, press areas, a gym, regeneration rooms, coaches' rooms and other function rooms were completed in the south-west corner. The final element was the television infrastructure, which was moved to the east stand in early 2023.

The key decisions on the way to the construction of the fourth stand were made in 2022. On August 22, 2022, the city signed an agreement with Pekao S.A. bank to handle and guarantee a bond issue that would provide financing for the investment.

The tender for the construction of the fourth stand was called at the beginning of March 2023. At the same time, the demolition of the old main stand also started, which was carried out by AKPE Group. The tender for the construction was won by Mostostal Zabrze, which offered a sum of just under PLN 46 million. The contract with the contractor was signed on June 19, 2023, and the company was given one year to complete the task. Work was already underway at the end of June 2023.