New Wembley

Audio slideshow: Wembley architect Lord Foster
Lord Foster, who has designed some of the world's most famous buildings, talks through his original sketches for the new Wembley Stadium and explains why he hopes its 133-metre arch will become an iconic sporting symbol.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/4694868.stm

Wembley Arch lights the way

The Wembley Stadium Arch has been officially lit for the first time in a milestone ceremony attended by Tony Blair and David Beckham. A dramatic firework display marked the momentous occasion in explosive style.

When lit, the arch – which at 133 metres high is taller than the London Eye – can be seen from Canary Wharf, 13 miles away. It is set to become a famous London landmark but it’s more than just a decoration. The arch will support all of the weight of the north roof and 60% of the weight of the south roof. This means there are no pillars to obstruct views and that the south roof can be retracted to let light and air onto the pitch.

The stadium was scheduled to be finished in 2006 in time to host that year’s FA Cup Final. Construction is ahead of schedule, however, and the first event is now likely to be an England football international.

The story so far

Demolition of the old stadium began on 30 September 2002 but the story really began seven years earlier.

In 1995 when the National Lottery Panel of the English Sports Council (ESC), now Sport England, was asked to allocate fund to develop a new England national stadium for football, rugby league and athletics. Cities bid to become the preferred venue and Wembley and Manchester were short-listed for further review. Wembley was named by the ESC as the chosen site in December 1996 and the council also contributed £120m of lottery funds.

Wembley National Stadium Ltd (WNSL) was formed in 1997 to design, finance, build and operate the new stadium. WNSL bought the old stadium from Wembley PLC in March 199 for £103m and paid £3m in stamp duty to the Government.

The new stadium, which is designed by the World Stadium Team consortium, is primarily intended to host football, rugby and music events. However a new feature, similar to that being proposed by the New York Olympic bid team, means the stadium can be adapted to host a world-class athletics meet.

Football and rugby fans complain that multi-use stadiums leave them too far away from the action as they have to sit behind an athletics track. In Wembley, a prefabricated platform can be built over the lower part of the stadium, covering some of the seats but creating the increased surface needed to fit the track. The platform will take just a few weeks to install and remove, making Wembley a versatile, multi-sport venue.

It will hold 90,000 people – 10,000 more than the Stade de France – and each seat will have more legroom than seats in the old stadium’s royal box.

Total costs of this innovative project are £757m. This includes WNSL’s contribution to redeveloping the local transport infrastructure, buying and demolishing the old stadium and designing, building and fitting out the new.

For more information about Wembley Stadium click here

Wembley facts:
The entire Wembley Stadium project will cost £757m.

This includes:
Purchase of the land and early design fees £120m
The basic cost of building the stadium £352m
Demolishing the old stadium and fitting out the new £99m
Contribution to local infrastructure improvement of £21m
Financing the project, management and other costs amounts to £165m

The projects stakeholders are:
Sport England
Football Association
London Development Agency
Departure for Culture, Media and Sport
Brent council

The stadium is being designed and built by the World Stadium Team consortium. This is formed by:
Foster & Partners
HOK Sport

The main construction contractor is Multiplex Constructions

http://www.sportengland.org/wembley_update.htm