The battle for a place on the final list of host cities for the 2030 World Cup is entering a decisive phase. La Cartuja seems assured of a place, but the regional government wants to renovate the arena to retain its position.

La Cartuja needs renovation

Looking at the number of countries where the games will be played, the 2030 World Cup will undoubtedly be unique. Three continents, six countries and 'only' 15-20 venues ultimately hosting the tournament. While the other countries already have their certain stadium candidates, the fierce battle for a place on the list continues in Spain. At the first stage of selection, Andalusia, despite having three large and reasonably modern arenas, decided that only the largest one, Estadio Olímpico de Sevilla, would compete for the right to host matches of the upcoming championships.

The general revamps of Santiago Bernabeu and Spotify Camp Nou, as well as the development of other Iberian venues make it impossible for Andalusia to be 100% sure that La Cartuja in its current form will find appreciation from the event's organising committee and FIFA. Hence the idea of the Minister of Tourism, Culture and Sport in the regional government, Arturo Bernal, to upgrade Sevilla's largest stadium and compete additionally for yet another prestigious status.

© Cruz y Ortiz Arquitectos

La Cartuja will officially be Spain's national stadium?

Currently, La Cartuja has a maximum capacity of 57,619 fans. The plan of the member of the regional government in charge of sport is to increase the capacity of the venue to 75,000 as a result of the redevelopment. According to the canalsur.es portal, this change will be made possible by transforming the function of the arena to a football stadium and what that means is removing the athletics track and lowering the level of the pitch. The most important question, however, is how much will the work cost?

The media estimates that the demolition of the infrastructure, in the place of which new seats for fans will be created, will cost approx. €40 million. The construction, on the other hand, has been valued at around €200 million. Bernal pointed out that the Andalusian government has already pumped €5 million into the changes at La Cartuja in recent months. Also noteworthy is the fact that the changes described are to apply not only to the 2030 World Cup, but also to the venue's plans to gain official national stadium status.

Bernal admits that this upgrade is to help reach a long-term agreement with the Real Federación Española de Fútbol (RFEF), making La Cartuja the home of the Spanish national team for years to come. It will also mean abandoning the idea of the local football federation building an arena for the first team on an exclusive basis, as we wrote about a few months earlier.

© Валерий Дед (CC BY 3.0)