At the end of June, an important step was taken towards the construction of Cagliari's new stadium. The club's management submitted supplementary documents to the City Council, which will then be sent to the Sardinia region for an environmental impact assessment using the PAUR method.

Awaiting all permits

A response from the regional Department of Environment is expected by November at the latest. One of the most important issues to be resolved concerns the parking area between the stadium and the San Bartolomeo district. After receiving the PAUR results, the Cagliari City Council will have to decide on the public utility status of the facility. The city authorities have already approved it, but the project has now changed, so the entire procedure must be carried out anew.

According to l’Ansa, the tender to select the investment contractor will be held in February 2025, and construction is expected to begin between May and June. It is already known that the economic and financial plan will need to be updated due to the additions recently requested by the City Council. This will involve an increase in expenditures of around €8-10 million for additional work in the San Bartolomeo area. The club hopes that these costs will be covered by public authorities.

© Cagliari Calcio

What does the investment involve?

The work will begin with the demolition of Sant'Elia, which was opened in 1970 and can accommodate 16,000 fans. This stadium has not been used by Cagliari since 2017, when it was decided to build a new, although very modest, facility, Unipol Domus, with a capacity of 16,416 seats. It will now be replaced by a stadium with 25,200 seats, with the possibility of expanding to 30,000. The project includes a 4-star hotel with 122 rooms, a panoramic restaurant, a wellness center, and conference spaces capable of accommodating over 1,000 people. The project was initially valued at around €160 million, but it is not yet known how recent changes will ultimately affect this amount.

© Cagliari Calcio

Special fund?

In April, Italian Sports Minister Andrea Abodi announced plans to create a special fund to help clubs with investments related to the construction or renovation of stadiums, primarily with an eye on hosting Euro 2032. Potential financial support mainly concerns facilities in Florence, Cagliari, and Parma.

In 2017, we began construction of a temporary stadium – Unipol Domus – in a very short time, 120 days, using only our own resources. I think it’s a record in Italy, said Tommaso Giulini, President of Cagliari Calcio, as quoted by L’Unione Sarda. The problem is that we are dealing with a national system where the main Italian banks do not finance the football world, because this world is unbankable, a world of risk; and if the main Italian banks do not finance stadiums, I believe very few will be built in Italy.