Remnants of WWII are the reason why new stadium in Karlsruhe just became more problematic. Budget had to increase, time frame changed entirely and interim use became more difficult.

The plans for brand new stadium in Karlsruhe have been debated for many years and it's one of the last German cities still without significant progress. This time round, during the tender process ongoing since 2016, it turned out that landfill stands of Wildparkstadion may contain dangerous elements, including contamination and explosives from WWII.

In case it doesn't sound serious, let us explain how it has impacted the planned works. First, the timing. It requires much more careful removal of the landfill and, at the same time, it forces the crescent-shaped part of the auditorium to be removed in advanced, before construction can begin. Which means Karlsruher SC cannot use the old stands as temporary infrastructure during reconstruction.

This in turn means that new temporary stands will have to be erected for some 10,000 people in order for the stadium to be usable during erection of new stands, as seen below:

Should the tender follow as expected, demolition of the old crescent will begin in October, enabling construction of the new stadium in 2019. This is a change itself, because previously it was hoped that construction would already be ongoing and in 2019 or 2020 be done.

Not only that, the problematic landfill raised the stadium's total cost from €113.7 million to €122.95 million despite cost-cutting efforts. For example, Karlsruher SC agreed to reduce final capacity to 34,000, scale down hospitality facilities and cover the price of VIP parking and €3 million of the €12 million needed for demolition of the landfill. In return, KSC were given the benefit of returning the public expense in 35 years, instead of 33.

Below you will find the renderings of the proposed development. Please mind, however, these are preliminary and do not represent precisely how the stadium will look, when finally delivered.