17%. This is how much more the cost of completing the Nou Mestalla will be according to the revealed audit. Although the real amount will be much more than Valencia had anticipated, if the club avoids delays in the work, the document will not have any consequences.

An underestimated budget

Not 292, but €341.5M will be the total - that is, from the start of work in 2007 - cost of building the Nou Mestalla according to the firm Vielca, which was commissioned by the Valencia City Council to audit the project. This is about 17% more than the club had anticipated. However, the maintenance and repair of the stadium's skeleton does not come into the budget, so the costs could be even higher.

According to the audit, the planned capacity of 70,044 seats is realistic, and could be even slightly increased. Vielca also rated the materials and equipment used in the construction highly, stressing that they come from market leaders.

The audit also stated the adaptation of Nou Mestalla to the requirements for the highest, UEFA Category 4 and compliance with both national or FIFA standards, but also World Athletics’. The latter are to be met by a solution already introduced at Wembley: a temporary structure would cover the lowest row of stands, increasing the playing area, around which there could be, among other things, a running track.

The installation of a temporary structure with a running track at the Nou Mestalla would reduce the stadium's capacity by around 22,000 seats.

A 'scandalous' audit

The audit is, however, incomplete. As the experts themselves admitted, the analysed documents lack detailed information, although according to them this is normal in such projects. Vielca was therefore unable to verify whether Valencia CF's proposed timetable was sufficient.

Peter Lim [the club's owner - editor's note] cheated the city, assessed the difference in costs declared by the club and according to the audit the spokesman for the opposition Socialists. In a similar vein, a spokesperson for another opposition party, Compromis, called the audit scandalous and far less rigorous and comprehensive than it should have been.

An unknown outcome

The main purpose of the audit was to investigate the cost of completing the Nou Mestalla, in case the work is delayed. If the club misses the set date for the stadium's completion - 10 July 2027 - it will have to pay a deposit equivalent to the amount of the stadium's completion. The club has declared that this cost will be €203m, but the audit indicates a number higher by €34M.

If the contractor - Spain's FCC - manages to hand over the stadium on time, the club will avoid paying a deposit and the audit will have no consequences. So far, work on the Nou Mestalla is a month and a half ahead of schedule.

© Amunt Mestalla | Architectural work is ongoing in the interior of Nou Mestalla.

The result of the audit therefore does not mean that this will be the final cost to complete the construction. Valencia and the FCC could negotiate better prices than the market by lowering the budget. On the other hand, inflation could further increase this amount.