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The 5 biggest teams moving to new stadia soon

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Football stadiums are the very fabric of the world’s most historic football clubs.

They embody everything about their culture, with so much heritage oozing out of every stand. However, there comes a time when football clubs need to move with the times.

Whether it’s for commercial reasons or simply to create a new legacy for a fast-growing club, new stadia are an unfortunate reality for sentimental football fans. With that in mind, let’s look at some of the world’s biggest football clubs that are planning to move home in the coming years.

Guangzhou Evergrande

Guangzhou Evergrande are one of the most successful football clubs in China. They will soon be moving into one of the largest stadiums in the world exclusively for football use. The 100,000-capacity stadium is being built at a cost of $1.7 billion, which equates to 12 billion yuan. The eye-catching roof is one of the most impressive design features here, inspired by the Bingdi Lotus, a flower which is fitting since Guangzhou is regarded as the ‘City of Flowers’.

If architects’ designs are to be believed, the internals of the stunning roof structure are also set to offer a feast for the eyes inside the stadium. That’s because they will feature video screens for fans to look up and watch instant replays of the action above – a really unique way of showcasing video without big screens.

Hertha Berlin

There is no doubt that German football fans are some of the most vociferous and passionate on the planet. So much so that most Bundesliga clubs opt to assign their number 12 jersey to supporters in recognition of them as an unofficial 12th man on the terraces. Hertha Berlin’s fans are no different. Hertha have been playing in Berlin’s Olympiastadion for some time now, which many traditional football fans believe to be a stadium that doesn’t suit football, with the cavernous feel and running track surrounding the pitch.

That’s why proposals for the Hertha Fussballarena were born. With their lease of the Olympiastadion expiring in 2025, Hertha are keen to build their own 55,000-seater stadium over the next four years. The design features a striking glass façade, with the club hoping to build it on the Olympic Park adjacent to the Olympiastadion.

Everton

Everton’s Goodison Park will always be the Toffees’ spiritual home, but it’s clear for all to see that the time has come to move on to pastures new. Set within a crowded neighbourhood of terraced houses, Goodison Park does not have the potential to be fully redeveloped. Instead, the Toffees have taken the decision to build a new stunning 52,888-capacity stadium on the Bramley-Moore Dock, north of Liverpool.

Approval has been secured from the UK government and construction work began on 26 July 2021, with Everton hoping to be in their new home for the commencement of the 2024/25 Premier League campaign. The brick-clad façade is inspired by the past, with the lattice pattern a nod to Archibald Leach who helped design Goodison Park. Ironically, the first Everton manager to take charge at Bramley-Moore Dock could be a former Liverpool boss, with Rafael Benitez appointed as Carlo Ancelotti’s replacement on the eve of the 2021/22 EPL season.

AEK Athens

Greek giants AEK Athens have been plying their trade in the Greek capital’s Olympic Stadium since 1982. The 75,000-seater stadium is far too big for AEK Athens and the running track has proven to be another major turn-off for AEK supporters through the years. Although AEK were doing the noble thing to prevent the Olympic Stadium from becoming a white elephant, a purpose-built stadium is something fans have craved for too long.

The Agia Sophia will provide just that, opening in 2022 with a capacity of 32,500. Based adjacent to the site of their old stadium before the Olympic Stadium was constructed, there is a sense that AEK are returning to their spiritual home in the city. The historic exterior creates a genuine sense of theatre to build the pre-game atmosphere.

Valencia

La Liga outfit Valencia have been plotting a state-of-the-art replacement of their Mestalla home, which would be lovingly known as Nuevo Mestalla. Construction first began on this project way back in 2007 but the build was paused in 2009 due to funding issues. It has sat half-built for more than a decade, but Valencia are finally planning on finishing what they’d started.

The hope is that Nuevo Mestalla will recommence construction in 2024, with the aim of moving into their new home for the 2026/27 La Liga campaign. The stunning 61,500-capacity stadium has a grand amphitheatre-like appearance which will rapidly become one of Spain’s most iconic football stadiums.

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