Stadium

Football club to build wooden stadium



Forest Green Rovers FC is set to build what it claims will be the world’s first stadium to have been constructed almost entirely out of wood.


The Gloucestershire-based club selected the design for its new stadium through a seven-month international competition, which saw over 50 entries from countries such as Sweden, Germany and the United States.

The winning stadium was designed by London-based practice Zaha Hadid Architects (ZHA), whose other works include the London Aquatics Centre, Guangzhou Opera House and the Glasgow Riverside Museum of Transport.

Dale Vince, chairman of Forest Green Rovers, said: “We’re thrilled with the concept and the amount of thought Zaha Hadid put into their design – their experience of stadia design and their ability to put environmental issues at the heart of what they do really stood out.

“The really standout thing about this stadium is that it’s going to be almost entirely made of wood – the first time that will have been done anywhere in the world.

“They took a really challenging brief, ran with it, and have given us an iconic and original new stadium.”

Forest Green selected the design in part due to the low carbon impact of building with wood, as the stadium will be the centrepiece of a £100m ‘Eco Park’ development in Gloucestershire.

Half of the park will consist of sporting facilities, while the remainder will comprise a green technology business park.

Jim Heverin, director at ZHA, added: “We are very proud to be selected to build the new home for Forest Green Rovers – it will not only be a new stadium, but also an important addition for the community.

“The club’s heritage, ambition and vision reflect our own, combining the latest material research and construction techniques with new design approaches to build a more ecologically sustainable and inclusive architecture.

“The buildings on the site, and their embodied energy, play a substantial role in achieving this ambitious target and demonstrate [that] sustainable architecture can be dynamic and beautiful.”



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