August
31st, 2005
Yesterday's agreement between the Mayor of Athens and Panathinaikos
marks the beginning of the end of the long-lasting saga that goes
by the name "Panathinaikos New Stadium". Following several months
of negotiations, the main points of the memorandum that was signed
yesterday are the following:
- The new sports centre will be constructed in the industrial area
of Eleonas, in Votanikos, about 3 km west of the Athens city centre.
- It will include a football stadium with a capacity of 35,000 to
40,000 and an indoor arena for basketball with a capacity of 6,000
to 8,000. It will also include areas for other sports (e.g. swimming
pool, halls for indoor sports such as boxing etc).
- A shopping centre will be constructed next to the sports facilities.
- Financing will come through a Special Purpose Entity (SPE), to
be jointly established by the City of Athens and the National Bank
of Greece. Both parties currently own parts of the area on which
the project will be constructed.
- Panathinaikos are granted exclusive use of the new stadium for
49 years. They will have to pay 15 per cent of gate revenues to
the SPE. They will also have to pay a yearly rent of €3.3 million
for 20 years (amount to be adjusted according to the EURIBOR fluctuations).
- The old stadium of Panathinaikos (Apostolos
Nikolaidis) in the centre of Athens will be demolished and the
area is to be converted into a park.
- Construction of the new stadium will commence in October 2006
and is scheduled to be finished by the summer of 2008. Construction
of the new indoor arena will commence 5 years after the completion
of the football ground.
Related articles:
Plans of new Panathinaikos stadium
at Leoforos revealed (24/10/03)
Proposal for total reconstruction
of Apostolos Nikolaidis Stadium (20/2/03)
Apostolos Nikolaidis (Leoforos) Stadium
may be expanded (31/10/01)
Panathinaikos will build their new
stadium at Hellinikon (1/9/01)
New site proposed for Panathinaikos's
new stadium (12/8/01)
Panathinaikos demand an area to build
their new stadium (7/7/01)