From 1950 to 2006 in St. Petersburg on Krestovsky Island there was a stadium named after. Kirov. It was one of the largest stadiums in the world - it was the largest in the entire Soviet Union, Russia and Europe.
The last official match on that field was played on July 6, 2006, and by the end of 2006 the stadium was dismantled in order to begin construction of a new and almost the most expensive stadium in the world on the same site. The project budget is approximately 35 billion rubles.
And construction began...
During 2007, the pile field was completed and the earthworks were completely completed. In 2008, the project was ready, it passed the state examination, but due to various conflicts, construction was stopped.
In December 2008, construction work was resumed. But already in December 2009, after checking the stadium project for compliance with FIFA requirements, it became clear that, according to a number of criteria, the stadium already under construction did not meet these standards. The main complaints were made about the configuration of the stands (ensuring comfortable visibility, the location of hatches) and the layout of the sub-tribune rooms, which were divided by thick walls into small compartments. There were practically no halls or open spaces inside. To correct the identified deficiencies, in April 2010, a new general designer was brought in - Mosproekt-4, which has extensive experience in designing sports facilities (for example, the Lokomotiv stadium in Moscow).
The layout of the premises under the stands and the configuration of the stands were brought in accordance with the FIFA requirements for stadiums of this level. Large halls and free spaces appeared, and places were found to accommodate additional cafes and bars at all levels of the stadium. Due to the changes being made, construction was stopped again in December 2009 and resumed in full in August 2010.
Since 2008, construction has been carried out by Inzhtransstroy, part of the Transstroy structure.
The new stadium will host World Cup matches in 2018. Including the semi-finals. The final match will take place in Luzhniki. It is planned that by the time construction is completed, the stadium will become one of the most technologically advanced and sophisticated sports facilities in Europe. There will be no athletics tracks on it and it will be intended only for football matches.
Let's take a look at this engineering marvel. I will reveal several technical solutions that are worth focusing on:
- roll-out football field;
- a huge reinforced concrete bridge with a span of 100 meters on which the stand is located;
- sliding roof.
And stopping construction was only beneficial. During this time, the pile field has stabilized and now it no longer produces sediment. There is another story connected with him. The fact is that the first general contractor (Avant) overdid it a little with the piles, and there were more of them than necessary. As a result, the bearing capacity of the field turned out to be twice as large as planned according to the project. In general, a dark story happened with them... But then, when the project was changed, it played into the hands - the new stadium project and all the changes fit perfectly into the limits of weights and loads. It was only necessary to strengthen the grillages under the stadium bowl.
Well, enough introductions, it's time to watch!
Beautiful view from the Primorsky district. The stadium itself resembles a flying saucer. By the way, it has a specially aerodynamic shape, since wind loads had to be especially taken into account here.
The construction of the Zenit Arena stadium is the longest undertaking in Russian football. The long-term construction began in 2007 and has not yet been completed, the deadline for the completion of the project is constantly being postponed, and the cost is growing day by day. Encouraging statements from contractors and managers about the construction of the stadium regularly appear in the newspapers.
Zenit is already waiting for a new arena, but the players cannot influence the speed of construction in any way. So, let's fast forward ten years ago, when the idea of building a new stadium first appeared.
2005 year
In March 2005, information appeared that the Kirov Arena on Krestovsky Island would be demolished, and in its place the construction of a stadium would begin from scratch. Zenit was still far from the UEFA Cup and the Hulk in the lineup. Management announced that the new arena would cost one hundred and fifty million dollars and have a capacity of 50 thousand spectators.
Already in April, the concept of the future stadium appeared. The basis was Old Trafford. This idea was later criticized by Demit Momot, who considered the open stadium unsuitable for the Russian climate. Six months later, management announced that the construction of the Zenit Arena stadium already costs $250 million.
2006
In January, the organizers of the construction promised to commission the Gazprom Arena (as they planned to call the stadium) by 2009. Even then, analysts predicted repeated postponements. In April, the vice-governor of St. Petersburg promised that construction of the Zenit Arena stadium would start at the end of this year.
In the summer of 2006, the arena project, which was developed by a Japanese company, was presented. The structure was supposed to have a roof in the shape of a spaceship with the possibility of heating. The project cost was $225 million. At the end of the year, a builder was identified. It was the company SINTEZ-SUI LLC, which promised to build the Zenit Arena stadium for 6.7 billion rubles.
2007
In March, Valentina Matvienko said that construction would be completed by the end and the team would spend the next season at the new stadium. A month later, the governor of St. Petersburg said that the Zenit Arena stadium would receive a retractable field, which would cost additional money. In September, the lieutenant governor gave a statement in which he indicated that construction was ahead of schedule. He promised that the arena would be ready in December 2008.
2008
In March, he reported that the construction of a new stadium could become more expensive. Gazprom was brought in for additional investment. A month later, Alexander Dyukov made it clear that in 2009 he would not see the new stadium of FC Zenit. The deadline for delivery was presumably moved to 2010. In addition, the cost of construction now amounts to 13-14 billion rubles.
In the middle of summer there was another increase in the price of the Zenit Arena stadium. Now the price was a whopping 23.7 billion rubles. Management promised a capacity of 62,000 people. At the end of the year, it was announced that the construction would be carried out by the Inzhtransstroy company, which signed a contract for 13.2 billion rubles.
year 2009
In April, information appeared in the media that in 2010 the famous Metallica would perform at the opening of the stadium. In December, the arena under construction was inspected and it was found that it did not meet FIFA requirements. There were complaints about the location of the stands and the rooms under the stands.
2010
In February 2010, they decided to make the stadium more spacious (67,000), which affected its cost. Due to budget adjustments in April, construction timelines are increasing again. Because of this, the cost rises again. At the end of the year, the president of Zenit announced the completion of the redesign of the arena. The new capacity will be 68,000 people.
2011
In January, Glavgosexpertiza orders the dismantling of the arena's already constructed roof, which leads to additional costs and postponement of completion. Now the total cost of construction is already a cosmic 33 billion rubles. In October, the roof was demolished again, which the customer did not like. In November, delivery of the finished arena is scheduled for 2013. The cost increased to 40 billion rubles.
year 2013
At the beginning of the year it was published that the stadium was 34.4% ready. In February, the Investigative Committee begins to investigate a case of fraud related to the construction of the arena. The case involves the first contractor and the amount of 500 million rubles.
In March, the construction management promises to commission the arena in the summer of 2016. In the summer it turns out that the construction of the Zenit Arena stadium, which will host matches at the home 2018 World Cup, is only 35% complete.
year 2014
In April, the exact date for the commissioning of the facility was set - June 15, 2016. The vice-governor ruled out an increase in the cost and named the figure at 34.9 billion rubles.
2015
In March, the case of the theft of 145 million rubles was closed. The reason is the expiration of the statute of limitations. In November it was announced that Zenit would play the first match at the new arena in September 2016. A month later, the date was again moved to December.
2016
In February, the contractor asks to increase the construction amount to 35.3 billion rubles. In the summer, 144.5 million rubles are lost, which were intended for the installation of a video board. Information has emerged that workers are not receiving wages. On July 13, according to the general contractor, a raider takeover attempt took place. He did not rule out that in this way the city administration is trying to delay the delivery of the facility.
How a stadium in St. Petersburg became one of the most expensive football arenas in the world
Ruble devaluation prevented Krestovsky from setting an absolute price record
Metropolitan Barsanuphius of St. Petersburg and Ladoga (pictured in the center) on September 12, at the request of the city authorities (pictured left - Vice-Governor Igor Albin) and the contractor, served a prayer service at the Zenit Arena stadium for the successful completion of construction work
Journalists who gathered on September 10 to cover the visit of a FIFA inspection to a football stadium under construction in St. Petersburg were initially not allowed into its territory. The security regime at the site was sharply tightened: all entering cars were searched with dogs, the construction site was fenced with wire sections in addition to the permanent fence installed along the perimeter. Something collapses and falls there all the time, the organizers explained to journalists. It is impossible to climb the stadium bowl, since the freight elevators have been dismantled, they added.
In the end, photographers were allowed to take a few pictures of the structure, and journalists were allowed to listen to the inspectors speak.
Construction of the stadium will officially end in December. Construction deadlines are being met, says Vice-Governor of St. Petersburg Igor Albin. But all the work will not be completed by this time. “This is a normal situation,” said FIFA competition director Colin Smith. FIFA hopes that the arena will host two matches of the Confederations Cup in June and July 2017, and that it will be ready in time for the 2018 World Cup games, as follows from the speeches of Smith and the head of the Russia 2018 organizing committee, Alexei Sorokin.
Back in early September, few people believed that the stadium would be built on time. The facility was 85% ready, in addition, the contractor was changed: the administration of St. Petersburg terminated the contract with the Engineering Corporation Transstroy-SPb (Inzhtransstroy) and the Transstroy Corporation, which had been building the arena since 2008. At the same time, the new contractor was owned by city, Metrostroy found many shortcomings at the facility, a company representative admitted: the worst thing is that mold has spread throughout the lower tier of the stadium, in some places about 1 meter from the floor, now it is necessary to replace the wall coverings and finishing work can only begin after They will close the roof and dry out the building. The bowl of the stadium also flooded and had to be drained.
In general, the construction period for the arena dates back to 2004, when the construction site and stadium design were selected (see inset on page 21). Then it was planned to build it in three years and 7.2 billion rubles. Why did it take four times as long and six times as much money? A comparison is now often made on football fan forums: the football stadium in St. Petersburg took longer to build than the Colosseum in Rome. It took eight years to build the ancient arena; Russian construction did not even take ten. The stadium in St. Petersburg remains the only truly problematic facility in the preparation program for the 2018 World Cup, says a person close to the Russia 2018 organizing committee.
Apparently, the main problem with this construction project is that a lot of things were done for it on the basis of agreements, not documents. And every time something changed - the ruble exchange rate, the governor of St. Petersburg, or plans for using the stadium - we had to negotiate again.
Oil and gas exchange
The project to build a stadium on Krestovsky Island in St. Petersburg arose from two ideas: in the early 2000s, the city authorities negotiated with Gazprom, which had been headed by St. Petersburg resident Alexey Miller since 2001, about transferring part of the subsidiaries to the city, the other - developers they wanted to build up Krestovsky Island with luxury housing, recalls a former city administration official. Valentina Matvienko, who was then the governor of the Northern capital, called “ Gazprom» strategic partner. The company carried out large projects for gasification of the city, financed social and charitable projects, and was also a minority shareholder in the football club " Zenith”, for which the governor was rooting. Matvienko supported the idea of building a new arena for Zenit with 60,000 seats: the Petrovsky stadium with 22,000 seats, where the club played, did not meet FIFA requirements. The company's top managers caught fire with the idea of construction " Open investments", part of Interros, recalls Vedomosti's interlocutor. The company is ready to invest up to $150 million in a new stadium, and in return receive the territory of the stadium for residential development. Kirov on Krestovsky Island, Sergei Belikov, who then held the position of deputy general director of Open Investments, told Vedomosti in 2004. “Zenit looked at the site and decided that Krestovsky Island would be useful to them. And to ensure that this option was definitely chosen, Gazprom decided to finance the project itself, recalls a former Smolny official. Matvienko signed a decree on the construction of a stadium at the expense of Gazprom. They decided to build according to an ambitious project by the architectural bureau of Kisho Kurokawa - the layout of the stadium in his design resembled a spaceship. In 2005, the gas monopolist gained control over Zenit and began re-registering several of its subsidiaries, including Gazprom Neft in St. Petersburg. A year later, Matvienko announced that the new stadium, under the working title “Zenith Arena,” would be financed by the city: from tax revenues from Gazprom Neft to the city budget. In the same way, the city promised to finance the construction of a new office center for Gazprom, which decided to move its headquarters to St. Petersburg.
The first contractor, the Sintez-SUI company, undertook to build the facility for 6.6 billion rubles. But in 2008, the project was changed for the first time - a roll-out floor and a transformable roof were added - and it turned out that the construction would cost 23 billion rubles. Due to the crisis, the city did not have enough money - the authorities refused to finance the Gazprom office complex and began to look for a new contractor for the stadium. The competition was won by Inzhtransstroy, part of the Transstroy corporation. "Transstroy" was a holding structure " Basel» Oleg Deripaska. The winner undertook to build a stadium for 13 billion rubles. It was obvious that this money would not be enough, but the administration of St. Petersburg promised that in return the Basel companies would receive other profitable projects, recall an acquaintance of Basel top managers and a former official of the city administration. For example, Glavstroy-SPb promised to give Deripaska a project to build a new multifunctional complex on the site of the historical Apraksin Dvor complex in the center of St. Petersburg, they recall. In 2008, Glavstroy won the competition for the reconstruction of Apraksin Dvor, expecting to build 300,000 square meters on its territory. m of real estate. When Inzhtransstroy “entered” the stadium project, it became clear that everything was even worse, such a complex stadium could not be built for reasonable money, and the corporation began negotiations with the city administration about redesigning and increasing the estimate, explains another former top manager of Transstroy .
Championship ambitions
In 2010, Russia won the right to host the 2018 FIFA World Cup. It turned out that the stadium needed to be improved in accordance with FIFA requirements: increase the capacity (up to 66,000 seats with the possibility of increasing to 80,000 seats), strengthen security. The project, finalized by the Mosproekt-4 Institute, began, as Matvienko admitted at its presentation, to resemble a regular spaceship instead of a spaceship - in particular, its roof became simpler: instead of a complex fan-shaped one, the usual sliding one, the stadium was surrounded by a wall, etc. How No matter how hard the institute tried to simplify the project, its cost exceeded 22 billion rubles. - and the administration accordingly increased the cost of the contract with Inzhtransstroy. In 2011, the governor of St. Petersburg changed: Matvienko left for the Federation Council, and Georgy Poltavchenko was appointed in her place. His team’s relationship with Basel did not work out. For example, he insisted that the reconstruction of Apraksin Dvor be carried out while preserving historical buildings - this made the project less interesting for Deripaska's structures. As a result, the city did not renew the investment contract with Glavstroy-SPb.
Some are more expensive
The list of the most expensive football stadiums in the world is headed by Wembley Stadium in London. The construction of an arena for 90,000 spectators on the site of the old stadium cost $1.25 billion. The complex belongs to the Football Association of England, which governs football in the country.
The Brazilian Estadio Nacional Mane Garrincha in the capital with 71,000 seats cost $900 million in 2010. The arena hosted the 2014 FIFA World Cup and the Rio 2016 Olympic matches.
The construction of the Olympic stadium (also known as London stadium) in London for the 2012 Olympic Games cost the city budget $775 million. Since 2013, it has been leased by the English Premier League club West Ham United for 99 years.
Arsenal's home ground, London's Emirates Stadium, built in 2009, is valued at $750 million.
In 2013, the city once again changed the project and construction costs, increasing it to 24 billion rubles. and terminated the contract with Inzhtransstroy due to a significant change in the project. However, the company won a new contract - already an annual one, and then another, and as a result, Transstroy structures carried out construction until 2016. “It was not without difficulty that we agreed,” recalls the former manager of Transstroy. The company could not withdraw from the project, which by that time had acquired national significance, without damaging the reputation of the beneficiary, Deripaska, he says. But relations with the city administration were getting worse. In 2014, Basel announced the sale of Transstroy to Deripaska’s classmate, co-owner of the Chelyabinsk Uralavtotrailer, Egor Andreev. Deripaska became disillusioned with the general contracting business, his friends explained.
All participants and construction supervisors have accumulated a lot of complaints against each other. There were also problems with city officials, recalls a person close to the Russia 2018 organizing committee. It came to this: they could add something to the stadium project and go demand money on the grounds that these changes were required by FIFA. It was necessary to arrange a confrontation with representatives of FIFA and employees of the organizing committee in order to figure out who said what to whom, he continues. The city simply wanted to build a luxury stadium with the maximum and unique engineering equipment, Inzhtransstroy-SPb representative Nikita Pavlov defends officials.
How a football stadium in St. Petersburg was built and became more expensive
Force majeure at a construction site
According to the St. Petersburg Construction Committee, in 2016 Inzhtransstroy began to fall sharply behind the construction schedule. If in March the share of completed work was 67% of the plan, then in April it was only 17%, and in May - 20%. “It would be correct to talk not about a decrease in the pace of work, but about the suspension of the customer’s acceptance of completed work,” retorts Pavlov, “accordingly, the volume of financing and the pace of work production have fallen. Difficulties arose in mutual settlements with contractors and suppliers.” In fact, the general contractor was forced to work at his own expense and after two months exhausted the possibilities for independently financing the construction, he explains. Work completed but not accepted during this period accumulated to the tune of 1.8 billion rubles, says Pavlov.
All delays from the schedule were explained solely by the fact that the customer did not submit design, estimate and working documentation in full and on time, as well as due to the customer’s instructions to change individual space-planning and architectural solutions, says Pavlov.
All work provided that the as-built documentation was available was paid for immediately. Another question is that the general contractor intended to receive payment without documentary evidence of the work performed, which is not only impossible, but also illegal, Albin objects.
“Since May 2015, a number of problems have really accumulated at the construction site. They could only be resolved jointly – by the customer and the contractor. This is a budget deficit for the stadium due to the devaluation of the ruble, the economic crisis and an unfinished, constantly changing project. Construction work was carried out at 2013 prices. In the spring of this year, the budget increased. But it was late, and the money never reached the construction site. This is the overall effectiveness of project management on the customer's side. This is a constantly changing project and the lack of a complete set of construction documents. This is the absence of an agreement with the operating organization, which should have accepted the facility a long time ago. The customer chose to solve these problems belatedly – and not with us,” lists Pavlov.
In July 2016, the St. Petersburg Construction Committee terminated the general contract agreements for the completion of the stadium with Inzhtransstroy-SPb and for the improvement of the adjacent territory with the Transstroy corporation. Then the FAS included both companies in the register of unscrupulous suppliers, which prohibits firms from participating in government contracts for two years.
The Committee, through the court, demanded from the first contractor the return of the outstanding advance in the amount of 2.74 billion rubles, from the second - in the amount of 861 million rubles. As follows from the documents on the government procurement website, the reasons for terminating the contract were cited by the city as violations of migration legislation, work schedules and deviations from the requirements of project documentation identified by Rostechnadzor - in particular, changes in the heating technology of the football field, technical solutions for filling the structure of the retractable field and the drainage system . "Inzhtransstroy-SPb" in 2015–2016. has never been brought to justice for violating the requirements of migration legislation, Pavlov emphasizes, and changes to the design solutions were made by the customer himself - for the purpose of operational improvements, including according to the recommendations of FIFA and Zenit.
The Construction Committee also complains about the high percentage of defects in the work performed by Inzhtransstroy. For example, according to officials, defects are now being inspected and eliminated on the retractable field, seats for fans are being dismantled and new ones are being installed, defects are being eliminated in the metal structures of the bowl, reinforced concrete structures, in the waterproofing of internal premises, etc. “Claims are being made regarding actually unfinished volumes,” Pavlov is surprised. – Such comments are removed routinely during the process of planned work. By the time the project was handed over, all deficiencies had to be eliminated. There are no complaints about the structural safety of the stadium. Rostekhnadzor has no complaints about the work of Inzhtransstroy-SPb as of August 2016.” He does not consider the mold that the new contractor Metrostroy is currently struggling with to be Inzhtransstroy’s fault: “Until the circuit [of the building] is closed, constant drainage is necessary, which was not carried out properly after we left.”
Perhaps the administration of St. Petersburg simply decided to complete the construction of the stadium, where some of the most complex work remains, by a city-run organization, suggests a person familiar with the managers of Inzhtransstroy. The organizing committee did not demand to change the contractor; at this stage it is a mega force majeure, says a person close to the organizing committee. The organizing committee did not comment on this officially.
In August, the ex-contractors filed claims against the FAS (the third party is the St. Petersburg Construction Committee), and then against the Construction Committee. The companies hope to recover 1.8 billion rubles from Smolny. for work performed but not accepted, and also to challenge the regulator’s inclusion in the register of unscrupulous suppliers. The third parties in the claim against Smolny are the bank VTB and the Capital Construction and Reconstruction Fund.
VTB, taking into account the Bank of Moscow, issued Inzhtransstroy-SPb guarantees for stadium contracts for 3.8 billion rubles. until January 17, 2017
VTB President Andrei Kostin told Interfax in early September that VTB is ready to pay the guarantees through the court, which will decide who owes whom and how much. He has already discussed the return of guarantees with Poltavchenko and is going to discuss it with Deripaska, Kostin added. “Inzhtransstroy” has nothing to do with “Basel”; perhaps the statement was made “out of old memory,” a representative of “Basel” suggested. VTB guarantees were issued before the sale of Transstroy to Andreev, said a person close to Inzhtransstroy. VTB does not comment on questions about guarantees for the stadium. In a telegram addressed to Poltavchenko, Deripaska wrote in June 2016 that Basel is not the owner of Inzhtransstroy-SPb, but out of respect for Poltavchenko, he is ready to assist in the successful completion of construction.
Albin believes that the city does not owe Inzhtransstroy anything. Works worth 1.8 billion rubles were submitted for payment, but Inzhtransstroy presented supporting documents for only 328 million rubles, of which 78 million rubles. he has already been paid, and the rest will be paid, Albin says. The rest of the advance will have to be returned, even in court. “There is a lot of deceit in the actions of this organization,” Albin comments on Inzhtransstroy’s statements.
The required amount to complete construction of the arena is 2.6 billion rubles. The city administration withdrew from the targeted investment program of the construction committee for 2016 - they were supposed to build 29 social facilities, including a residential building, six schools, and seven kindergartens. The redistribution will not affect the time frame for putting social facilities into operation: the funds will be taken into account in the investment program when adjusting the draft city budget for 2017 and the draft budget for 2018–2019. at the autumn session of the Legislative Assembly, Poltavchenko promised.
The stadium, which received the name “Krestovsky” in April of this year by decision of the Toponymic Commission of St. Petersburg, will be transferred to Zenit for operation. The name may change, but the memorandum of transfer has been signed, the stadium has been leased with subsequent transition to a concession, Albin told Vedomosti. He did not disclose the financial terms of the agreement. Poltavchenko has already written a letter to the club with a request to purchase the equipment necessary to put the stadium into operation. The current contracts do not include equipment for catering, medicine and a sports component; this will be the responsibility of the operating organization, Albin explained. The amount it will cost, as well as the terms of the lease and concession, have not yet been determined, according to the official. According to an official of the St. Petersburg administration, the operation of the stadium is estimated at approximately 600 million rubles. in year. Representatives of Gazprom and Zenit did not answer questions from Vedomosti.
The administration of St. Petersburg estimated the final construction costs at 42 billion rubles.
Of course, a unique stadium was built in St. Petersburg; nowhere in the world is there a structure of this size with a retractable roof and a roll-out field, but its cost is still too high, just like many other Russian stadiums that are being built at the expense of the state for the 2018 World Cup , says Thomas Speck, CEO of the consulting company Arena Com. A construction cost of €4,500–€5,000 per site is considered to ensure high quality, explains Speck. With this calculation, the Zenit arena should have cost no more than 400 million euros. Speck recalls that, although at the current euro exchange rate the St. Petersburg stadium is valued at less than 580 million euros, when submitting an official application to host Euro 2020 in 2014, Russia estimated the cost of the stadium on Krestovsky Island at 934 million euros. According to European experts, the real price of the stadium is at least 1 billion euros, he continues. In this case, the stadium could compete for the status of the most expensive football arena in the world with London's Wembley, built at a cost of $1.25 billion.
The problem is that another “white elephant” is being created with government money, Speck worries. In order to recoup the operating costs of the arena and make money, it is necessary to hold at least 100 events a year, he believes. This is very difficult, especially considering that the stadium has several competitors in the neighborhood: indoor " Sibur arena" on the same Krestovsky Island and the sports and concert complex "Petersburgsky", the expert points out.
Bela Lauw, Rinat Sagdiev, Alexandra Terentyeva participated in the preparation of the article
During the construction phase, the new home stadium of St. Petersburg Zenit repeatedly became the object of everyone's attention. This is primarily due to constant postponements of delivery deadlines and regular budget increases. Nevertheless, in 2017, the long-awaited project was completed, and the northern capital of Russia received a modern stadium on Krestovsky Island.
general information
Official site: arena.fc-zenit.ru
Capacity: 56,196 seats (at sporting events)
Address: St. Petersburg, Football Alley, 1
GPS coordinates for the navigator: 59.972878, 30.221394
Year of construction: 2017
Field: 105×68 m.
Scoreboard: electronic.
Roof: sliding.
Coating: natural.
The inner thicket of the stadium is traditionally divided into two tiers and four sectors: A, B, C, D. Tickets for Zenit matches can be purchased in various ways: through the official website, in the club store, client office, using terminals. The address of the client office is Dobrolyubova Ave., 16, lit. A, building 2. Addresses of stores and other places where you can purchase tickets to the Zenit Arena must be checked on the official website of the stadium or on the website of FC Zenit.
One of the easiest ways to buy a ticket is to use the official Internet portal. It contains all the necessary information for clients, as well as a convenient graphical interface that allows you to quickly select and book a suitable place.
Despite the protracted construction process, confusion with names and other unpleasant nuances, the St. Petersburg Stadium (Zenit Arena) has every chance of becoming the central sports facility of the northern capital of the Russian Federation. UEFA assigned the new stadium on Krestovsky Island the 4th maximum category, thereby placing the St. Petersburg arena on a par with the best football facilities.
St. Petersburg Arena is not only a place for football matches. The structure, like almost all modern stadiums, is multifunctional. At cultural and entertainment events, the capacity of the bowl can be increased to 80,000 seats. This makes the stadium an excellent venue for large-scale festivals and performances by world stars.
How to get to the stadium. Infrastructure
Metro
About two kilometers from the main sports arena of St. Petersburg is the Krestovsky Island metro station. Fans can also use two more stations - “Staraya Derevnya” and “Chkalovskaya”, which are located within walking distance from the stadium. It is worth noting that the travel time from the Krestovsky Island station to the arena will be about 25 minutes.
Tram
No. 48, No. 19. The tram schedule and the availability of additional routes need to be clarified.
Buses and shuttles
Buses No. 10, No. 14, No. 25, No. 25A, K-131. Special shuttle buses run two hours before and after the match. Their schedules and final stops may change, so such information should be checked on the official website before visiting the stadium.
You can also walk to the stadium via the Yacht Bridge, which opened at the end of May 2017. It is assumed that the bridge will be pedestrian. However, it can also be used to transport fans on buses.
By car
There is also the option to get to the St. Petersburg stadium by your own personal transport. The car can be parked in external parking (2,732 spaces) or internal parking (240 spaces). Both parking areas are located on the bay side. The address where you can purchase a car pass, and all the conditions can be found on the official page of the stadium.
Zenit Arena is the main, but not the only sports facility on Krestovsky Island. Not far from the football stadium is the Sibur Arena multifunctional complex, which can accommodate 7,120 fans. During boxing matches and MMA competitions, the spectator capacity is up to 8,000 seats.
In addition to the Sibur Arena, the St. Petersburg stadium on Krestovsky Island is accompanied by the Locosphinx cycling track and the Athletics Arena. Among all these sports facilities there is also the Park Krestovsky Hotel, which was built in 2009.
Lengthy construction
The construction of a new stadium in St. Petersburg was regularly accompanied by scandals that were actively discussed in society. The construction of the arena was seriously delayed, and its budget was constantly increasing. This caused negative sentiments and mistrust both among St. Petersburg fans and among people quite far from football. Journalists calculated that more than 40 billion rubles were spent on construction. Naturally, this colossal amount was compared with the costs of building the best stadiums in the world. For example, Juventus Stadium was built in just over three years, and the costs amounted to just over 100 million euros.
Zenit Arena was built on the site of the former stadium. Kirov, which operated at Krestovsky since 1950. It is noteworthy that the previous stadium also had a complex and long history of construction. Work began in 1932, and the stadium was put into operation. Kirov was introduced only 18 years later. True, in that case the reason for the protracted construction was the Second World War.
In 2006, work began on dismantling the stadium. Kirov, after which the construction of the future St. Petersburg arena began. At that time, it was assumed that the stadium would be named Gazprom Arena. Quite interesting metamorphoses took place with the name of the complex. Even representatives of the press at different stages called the stadium either “Gazprom Arena”, or “Zenit Arena”, or “St. Petersburg”. This confusion was partly due to the ambiguous situation surrounding the construction of the complex. Initially, the work was to be financed by Gazprom. The presence of the name of the corporation in the name of the stadium in this case was quite logical. However, later money for construction was allocated from the city budget. The issue with the name of the arena remains relevant. For the duration of the matches of the 2017 Confederation Cup and the 2018 FIFA World Cup, it was decided to use the name “St. Petersburg Arena”.
In 2007, the old stadium on Krestovsky was completely demolished. After ground work, the first stone of a new modern sports complex was laid. The architectural design competition was won by the agency “Kisho Kurokawa architects & associates” of the famous Kise Kurosawa, who passed away in the same 2007.
The project deadline was repeatedly pushed back, and the cost of the stadium regularly increased. Nevertheless, the complex construction on Krestovsky Island was completed in 2017. The 2018 World Cup undoubtedly became one of the main catalysts for the logical conclusion of the famous and controversial construction in St. Petersburg. The first official match at the new arena took place on April 22, 2017.
Sport events
The debut unofficial game at the Zenit Arena stadium took place at the end of 2016. Then the teams of Metrostroy and the builders of St. Petersburg took to the field. The stadium on Krestovsky hosted the official match in April 2017. The match took place as part of the 24th round of the Russian Football Championship. St. Petersburg Zenit beat Ural with a score of 2-0.
Already at the first game, obvious problems with the lawn appeared, which were added to the multiple excess of vibration standards. Work was urgently carried out to re-lay the lawn, which was completed at the end of May. Nevertheless, St. Petersburg Zenit was forced to return to Petrovsky and finish out the 2016-2017 Premier League season at the old stadium.
The Gazprom Arena stadium in St. Petersburg, better known as the Zenit Arena, was officially opened in 2016. The main architect of the building is Japanese Kisho Kurokawa.
For a long time they could not decide on the name of the sports facility; at first they wanted to call it the Krestovsky stadium (after the name of the island where it is located), then more popular ones appeared - Zenit Arena and the St. Petersburg stadium. The final option - Gazprom Arena - was chosen only in December 2018 - 11 years after the start of construction. Over the years, residents of the Northern capital and tourists have become accustomed to calling the stadium differently, so today you can hear different versions of the name.
Even before the opening, Gazprom Arena became famous as the most expensive stadium in Russia. Indeed, a fabulous sum was spent on the construction of the facility. According to various sources, the cost of the Zenit Arena is more than $1 billion. Over the years of construction, the stadium earned the notoriety of the country's main long-term construction project, the costs of which only increased every year. However, in preparation for the 2018 World Cup, the rental was completed.
Characteristics of the Gazprom Arena stadium:
- Capacity - up to 68,000 people;
- The area of all premises is 287.68 thousand square meters. meters;
- Height - 9 floors (75 meters), including pylons - 110 meters;
- The area of the football field is 9,840 square meters. meters.
Today, Gazprom Arena is one of the best venues in the city, suitable for both sports and musical events. The stadium's retractable roof allows the facility to be used in any weather. The infrastructure of the building makes it possible to organize events of any scale. Tenants have at their disposal premises of various sizes, a catering service, a venue and experienced employees.
Most significant events stadium "Gazprom Arena" in St. Petersburg:
- Football tournament “Confederations Cup 2017”,
- FIFA World Cup 2018.
In 2019, the arena will host UEFA Europa League matches. Of the musical events, the most memorable was the concert of the Leningrad group at the Gazprom Arena, held in October 2018.
Schedule of matches at the Gazprom Arena stadium
Sports competitions of various levels are held at the stadium all year round. Of course, the most striking event was the 2018 FIFA World Cup. Today, Gazprom Arena is the base of FC Zenit - home matches of the most popular and beloved football team in St. Petersburg are held here. In winter, hockey competitions are held at the arena. The game calendar for the 2018/2019 season is available on the official Gazprom Arena website.