On Saturday against RB Leipzig, SC Freiburg will play in its new stadium for the first time – where the memory of the cult Dreisamstadion is also alive.
From the main stand, you can look out over the dark green hills of the nearby Black Forest – if you sit in a favourable position. An almost more beautiful view than in the time-honoured Dreisam Stadium, which bordered directly on the small river and the forest. The new Europa Park stadium of SC Freiburg is no longer so picturesquely situated between the trade fair buildings and the airfield in the north of the city.
The municipality contributed an investment grant of 9.5 million euros to the 76.5 million euros planned for the building. The rest was provided by the SC, which closed the business year with a profit despite Corona and the stadium project: 26.45 million euros came from equity capital and 40.5 million euros from outside loans. These are to be repaid via an annual lease of 3.8 million euros (2nd division: 2.5 million euros). The stadium is owned by a joint sponsoring company of the city and the club – and is intended to catapult the Sport-Club into a new era. This is what fans can expect in the new stadium:
Capacity: 34700 fans will fit in the stadium in total – provided it can be used to full capacity without restrictions. 9,000 standing places in the south stand will form the heart of the SC fan block, and there will be a second standing area in the opposite north stand – just like in the Dreisamstadion. In total, 36 per cent of the seats are standing: 12400. In every block around there are seats for wheelchair users (144) and accompanying persons. In addition, there are 2000 business seats, 200 of which are in 20 boxes, which also significantly increase the VIP capacities.
Free view – from every seat
Construction: The pitch has been placed around five metres lower than the surrounding terrain. This is partly due to the nearby airfield, which is so easy to approach. In contrast to the Dreisam Stadium, the roof construction inside the stadium does not need any supports, so there is a clear view of the pitch from every seat. Instead, struts on the outside of the stadium pull the roof load up to 12 metres deep into the foundation. There are no longer any floodlight masts – the pitch is now lit by LED floodlights mounted all around the stadium roof. To ensure that plenty of light enters the stadium during the day, parts of the roof construction are transparent.
Flair: The concourse area still looks very grey, mostly bare concrete. This has led to criticism from the fan scene. However, the club emphasises that there is a working group that will provide more colour. In the business rooms and the functional rooms in the main building, on the other hand, a lot of wood has already been used; in the entrance area, for example, there is a large photo of the Dreisam Stadium.
charging columns for e-cars and 3700 parking spaces for bicycles
Sustainability: The interiors are heated by district heating, which comes from a nearby industrial estate. A photovoltaic system is also to be installed on the roof early next year, providing electricity from solar energy. Freiburg’s new stadium is to become arithmetically climate-neutral.
Infrastructure: There are 3,700 parking spaces for bicycles and 2,100 spaces for buses and cars. The development of the grounds cost the city of Freiburg 51 million euros and new stops for trams, suburban trains and buses were built especially for this purpose. There are also plans to install charging stations for electric cars in the future. Guest teams can theoretically land on the airfield next door – but this is not possible with every aircraft.