[Observation] Decode the plan for the new stadium in Milan City: This time, can it finally be achieved?

Sports Weekly All Media Reporter in Italy Shen Tianhao

Get it to... destroy it?

This is a true story, the protagonists are the Milanese two heroes and the San Siro Stadium. On the afternoon of September 29, 2025, local time in Italy, the Milan City Council held a discussion and vote on the future of San Siro Stadium. This long "match" lasted for more than 11 hours before finally getting a result. At 3:46 am the next day, the city council finally made a resolution to sell the land of San Siro Stadium and surrounding areas to two clubs in Milan City for 197 million euros, and then give the green light to the construction of the new stadium, and the existing San Siro Stadium will be demolished later. The fate of San Siro and the prospect of the new stadium have been hot topics in the past few years, but the project decision-making mechanism in Italy is too complex, and the new stadium plan has been reversed several times, wasting a lot of feelings between the two clubs and fans, so many people have almost lost interest in it. Remember Sesto, Asago and San Donato? In the end, they will not usher in the new version of "Football Scala". Remember Scaroni’s remarks about San Siro? He said, "Wembley is more iconic than San Siro, but the British still built the new Wembley", which was jaw-dropping. Do you still remember the "cathedral" design plan of Bopu Lesi Office? It looks great, but the only cathedral in Milan City is still located in the city center.

This time, things finally made real progress, but the process is still full of twists and turns. The Milan City Council consists of one mayor and 48 elected members, with a total of 49 people, of which the center left wing accounts for the majority, with a total of 31 members. In addition to Mayor Sarah, they generally support the new stadium plan, but their internal positions are not united. For example, the Green Party, which pays great attention to environmental protection, is opposed. In addition, the opposition also includes the center-right Italian Forces Party, Italian Brothers Party and Coalition Party and other members. Last Thursday, 24-24 out of 49 people appeared, plus one abstained from the right - a veritable Italian political comedy.

At a critical moment, the Italian Power Party, founded by Berlusconi, played a decisive role. Among the four Italian Power Party members, three announced their abstentions, and the balance finally tilted towards the positive side, and the vote was finally passed 24-20. The sister-in-law of former Inter Milan president Massimo Morati and former Milan mayor Letizia Morati are one of the three MPs who abstained from power. Another MP stated: "We will not vote for it because there are still many flaws in this bill, but we will not vote for it, because it is equivalent to punishing the city of Milan and its people." The reason why the pace of the voting meeting was so slow is that the content of the bill was revised and added several times in the intervening to meet the requirements of all parties as much as possible. A new clause worth paying attention to is related to the construction supervision of the new stadium: companies that are subject to organized crime penetration need to be avoided during the construction process, which means that Milan and Inter Milan must select construction companies from a "white list" at that time.

Blueprint for the new stadium in 1955, San Siro underwent a large-scale renovation, with the second floor stands and presenting the spiral structure that it has now appeared. The architect Armando Longca would not have thought that his project would affect the project plans of the new stadium in a unique way nearly 70 years later.

Yes, "nearly" 70 years later. More than a month later, on November 10, 2025, the main works of the second-floor stands in San Siro will celebrate the 70th anniversary of its completion. What does this mean? If San Siro is still a public asset by then, it will be included in the heritage protection list of relevant institutions in the Metropolitan Milan and cannot be demolished. Therefore, the Milanese two-man and municipality must now step up the agenda: the sale of San Siro Stadium and land must be completed and notarized by November 10. In the next 40 days, the two clubs need to complete a series of relevant procedures and obtain bank support.

If everything goes well, the two architectural firms selected by Milan's Twins will carry out specific design work for the new stadium. MANICA has rich experience in stadium projects, including the new Camp Nou and the NBA Golden State Warriors home Chase Center, and is currently in charge of designing Miami International's new home "Miami Liberty Park". Foster + Partners was founded in 1967 by British star architect Lord Norman Foster, and its representative cases include the Apple Park in California, the West Kowloon Cultural District in Hong Kong, etc. It is worth mentioning that the Lussel Stadium, where the final of the 2022 Qatar World Cup was held, was also designed by MANICA and Foster + Partners.

Although the design plan has not been announced yet, it is certain that the new stadium will not follow the current cuboid structure of "Scala" and is more likely to present a popular ellipsoid in the contemporary era. The court ceiling will be fixed instead of retractable, so it will not fully cover the entire court. AC Milan's Hongbird Capital clearly refers to Tottenham's home stadium New White Hart Lane in its new stadium concept, where the turf relies on a track system and 68 motors, and can even be moved! However, according to existing information, New San Siro should not use "movable turf" as a selling point.

Unlike the current San Siro, the stands of the new stadium will only have two floors. But don't worry: the stadium will not be much reduced in capacity than it is now. Previously, the two clubs had considered limiting the capacity of the new stadium to 60,000 people. Perhaps the hot market of Milan's two giants in recent years has changed their views. Now it seems that the new San Siro will likely accommodate 71,500 people, about 4,000 seats less than the current stadium. VIP seats and private rooms will occupy a larger proportion in the new stadium to ensure higher average ticket prices and game day revenue. All stands will also be equipped with barrier-free areas (now only some stands are available). In addition, the stadium will also be equipped with restaurants and shops to ensure that fans have a better viewing experience. The location of the new stadium is located in the parking lot area of ​​the current San Siro. A tunnel located behind the stadium will be redirected to make room for construction. The Milan Municipal Government will provide subsidies for tunnel reconstruction and soil restoration, but the amount has been set at 36 million euros to 22 million euros now. According to the plan, the new stadium will start in the first half of 2027, with a construction period of about four years. If everything goes well, it will be completed in 2030-2031. It should be noted that if the new stadium has not started construction on February 28, 2027, the Milan Municipal Government has the right to terminate the transfer contract with the two clubs, which is also the biggest time pressure point for the entire project.

The significance of welcome to the new year

According to this scenario, San Siro will hold the opening ceremony of the Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics in a few months and witness the construction of the new stadium in about a year. In the next few years, "Football Scala" will continue to take over the home game between the two Milan heroes and silently watch the building that is getting taller day by day and destined to replace itself soon. After the new stadium is completed, the old San Siro will be demolished within a year, and only part of the second floor of the south stand and a small piece of the orange stand on the east side will be retained, which will account for about 9% of the current San Siro building volume, and this part may be converted into a commercial entertainment area or the San Siro Stadium Museum.

The two clubs previously submitted a nearly 300-page document to the Milan Municipal Government, which mentioned that the estimated investment of the new stadium project is about 1.2 billion euros (including urban infrastructure, purchasing existing stadiums, land and demolition costs), of which the construction cost of the stadium itself is about 700 million euros. If the various expenses are included, the total investment of the project will be between 1.5-2 billion euros - such a high cost is also the basis for the two heroes to decide to jointly build and share the new stadium. Nevertheless, they are full of expectations for the prospects of the new stadium: According to the two clubs, the new stadium complex will attract about 11.6 million tourists each year, bringing about 4.6 billion euros of economic effects. Another meaning of the completion and opening of the new stadium in 2031 is related to the 2032 European Cup. Italy will co-organize this event with Türkiye, with both countries having five hosted stadiums each. At present, the only one in Italy that meets UEFA standards and is determined to be one of the venues is the Juventus Arena in Turin (which is also the last modern stadium in Italy so far), and the existing facilities of the Old San Siro and the construction prospects of the New San Siro have been strongly questioned. If Milan City really fails the European Cup right to host the European Cup, it is both a regret and a shame. On the other hand, if the new stadium can be completed as scheduled, the European Cup will naturally become its first international event in seven years, just like the opening ceremony of the "Summer of Italy" in 1990, allowing the whole world to see the newly renovated San Siro.

In addition, both clubs said in their official statements: "The new stadium will meet the criteria for hosting the Champions League final." San Siro was likely to host the 2027 Champions League final, but due to the uncertainty of the renovation plan, it was eventually disqualified by UEFA last fall - something like this may not happen again in the future. On the other hand, children born in 2025 probably will no longer have image memories of the spiral tower and the red ceiling, nor will they have the opportunity to watch the home team's game in "That San Siro", or the Guns, Rolling Stones, and Springsteen's concerts. This is also the price of change.