Denmark: New Aarhus Stadium facing further delays and rising costs
source: StadiumDB.com; author: Jakub Ducki
Skovens Arena project has once again run into the risk of schedule slippage. According to the latest assessments by the municipal administration, delays could translate into multi‑million financial consequences.
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Delays and potential financial impact
The new AGF stadium was originally scheduled to be handed over to the club in the summer of 2026, allowing the team to move relatively quickly from the temporary ground to its permanent home. Over time, however, the opening date has been revised several times – first to the end of 2026, and then to March 2027.
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Information from documents prepared within the municipal Kongelunden project shows that an alternative scenario is also being considered, in which the opening would be pushed back to August 2027, effectively adding several more months to the latest schedule.
The potential postponement also has a financial dimension. Notes prepared for the City of Aarhus estimate that the economic impact could range from a few to several dozen million Danish kroner, depending on how large the actual delay turns out to be compared to the current plan. In the worst‑case scenario, the total slippage compared to the original assumptions could reach roughly one year, increasing the pressure on both the contractors and the municipal authorities overseeing the project.
Despite these projections, the official stance of those supervising the investment remains cautiously optimistic. The project manager on the Kongelunden side still cites March 2027 as the date when the stadium should be ready for use. AGF’s managing director takes the same date as a reference point, emphasising that the club is planning to move into the new arena at that time.
Architecture and capacity of Skovens Arena
The new stadium in Aarhus, provisionally known as Skovens Arena, is being designed as a pure football venue with a capacity of around 24,000 spectators. The pitch will remain aligned on an east–west axis, surrounded by a continuous bowl of single‑tier stands fully covered by a roof to ensure good acoustics and spectator comfort in all weather conditions. The main stand will be located on the north side and will house most of the back‑of‑house functions – from dressing rooms and player areas to technical rooms and commercial spaces.
A defining feature of the arena’s architecture will be the slender reinforced‑concrete columns encircling the stadium. Their rhythm and slightly curved geometry are intended to evoke the trunks of trees growing in the surrounding sports complex, reinforcing the forest motif of the entire scheme. This idea is further underlined by a wooden, openwork façade that creates a semi‑transparent skin around the stands and gives the stadium a more natural
character than conventional metal‑and‑glass envelopes.
Inside the stadium, the spectator circulation has been planned as a simple and legible system. Apart from the zone beneath the north stand, where the key back‑of‑house areas will be located, the remainder of the perimeter will consist of a wide, partially open concourse beneath the stands. It is meant to make crowd flow easier, provide space for food outlets and sanitary facilities, and create a natural transition between the stadium and the surrounding park.
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