On Tuesday, the Stroud District Council approved the layout, scale, and external appearance of an eco-friendly stadium for "the world’s greenest football team."

Nearly a decade of preparation, project finally given the green light

The project by Ecotricity involves a fully wooden 5,000-seat stadium for Forest Green Rovers (FGR), 1,700 parking spaces, and a business park near junction 13 of the M5 motorway in Gloucestershire. The new stadium is designed with climate change in mind and integrates energy efficiency measures and resilience to extreme weather conditions, as discussed at the meeting. This will be a huge message for those coming to this area, creating the first impression and vision of what Stroud is all about, said Colin Peake, a lifelong member of Forest Green Rovers.

The concept for the new facility was created in 2015 following a global design competition, which resulted in a win for the Zaha Hadid Architects office in 2016. After years of rigorous preparations, the outline plan was approved in August 2020. Now, more than a decade later, the layout, scale, and external design of the stadium have been approved by the council.

Councillor Robert Brown noted that two out of the six nearby councils raised concerns about parking on match days, advising Forest Green Rovers to set parking fees at a level that would not discourage visitors from parking on-site. The council members unanimously voted in favor of the proposal.

© Zaha Hadid Architects

The end of the current stadium’s story

Currently, the team plays at The innocent New Lawn, built in 2006, which can accommodate 5,032 spectators. The stadium offers four stands, and the main stand houses not only the changing rooms and club offices but also a fitness club and banquet halls for 200 people. During the same council meeting, plans for demolishing The innocent New Lawn were approved. In its place, 95 new homes will be built.

Ecology at the forefront

FIFA described Forest Green Rovers as the greenest football team in the world after their players began wearing kits made from recycled plastic and coffee grounds, and the club introduced an entirely vegan menu. Since 2011, the pitch has also been the world’s first fully organic football field, meaning no chemical additives are used, and the only fertilizer is cow manure. As the greenkeeper put it, The smell is strong, but the grass is beautiful. The grass is also mowed without human intervention, using a solar-powered mower.

Forest Green Rovers generate about 10% of their energy from solar power, thanks to a small farm on the roof of the southern stand and in front of the stadium. Rainwater is also collected. The United Nations also declared FGR the first carbon-neutral football club in the world, recognizing its ecological initiatives. This was achieved after the club was taken over by Dale Vince, the owner of Ecotricity, a giant in the renewable energy sector.

© Zaha Hadid Architects