The extraordinary design of the future Stade Brestois 29 stadium was already awe-inspiring when it was presented. However, the architectural gem that is to appear on the Breton peninsula in the next few years has encountered its first problems.

When will the new stadium in Brest be built?

The popular "Pirates” currently use Stade Francis-Le Blé, which is more than a century old but has been renovated several times. The possibilities to improve and modernise have practically run out, hence the decision that SB29 should have a new home. The 15,000-seater Stade au Froutven is to stand in the Guipavas commune on the outskirts of Brest. Visualisations of the arena were presented at the end of March 2022 and immediately made an incredible impression. It resembles a red-and-white boat and looks truly magnificent. With its shape, it fits in perfectly with the history of Brest on the shores of the Atlantic Ocean.

Initial plans stated that construction of the stadium should begin in 2024 and take two years. The cost of the Stade au Froutven was estimated at €86 million. However, reality verified these plans very quickly. In France, as in the rest of Europe, the problem of inflation is hitting emerging sports facilities hard. As the portal "DayFR Euro'' reports, work is expected to start a year later than expected and to cost more than €106 million. As they report, the arena will have to be partly financed by public money, which may cause some concerns.

© Stade Brestois 29

How much will the Stade Brestois 29 stadium cost?

The owner of Stade Brestois 29, Gérard Le Saint, together with his brother Denis, tried to explain the source of the problem during one of the recent press conferences on future investment. – Inflation has hit us hard. We were hit hardest by the rising costs of raw materials and energy. We were forced to change the financial model for construction. We entered into new agreements with investors, through which we raised additional funds. However, it is necessary that all the territorial units are involved in this project, which will guarantee 25% of the money needed for this investment, or around €27 million. The capacity of the facility is to remain unchanged.

Le Saint has also decided to call in the big guns and has threatened to withdraw from both football's Stade Brestois 29 and the local handball club, Brest Bretagne Handball, if the local authorities' responsibility in the Stade au Froutven funding issue is avoided. However, the mayor of Brittany's third largest city, François Cuillandre, remains calm in response to these words, saying he will not comment on them. He understands the impatience of the owner of the "Pirates", but he does not intend to enter into a verbal melee. He added that another renovation of the Stade Francis-Le Blé is out of the question, as it would cost around €50 million and the facility would not meet all the requirements like a new arena anyway. He has already announced that a residential area with lots of greenery will be built on the site of the still existing structure in the near future.

© Stade Brestois 29