#TDS25 Preview: The Valencia Saga… 20 years in the making

One of the most talked-about stadium development stories is nearing its happy conclusion – over two decades after it began.

Plans for a new, 70,000-capacity stadium to replace Valencia CF’s aged downtown Mestalla home were unveiled in November 2006 by former club president Juan Soler. The original design – a collaboration between Reid Fenwick Asociados and ArupSport – featured a futuristic exterior, clad in aluminium depicting the intersection of the city’s rivers and an interior of wood.

The basic concrete structure of the stadium was completed by February 2009, but work then halted for financial reasons.

Following multiple redesigns – and some 15 years in limbo (when the half-built concrete, skeletal structure became a tourist attraction in its own right) – construction work eventually resumed in January 2025.

Valencia CF aims to move into the completed Nou Mestalla for its 2027/28 season.

• How does the 74,500-capacity structure fit with the final 70,000-capacity design?
• Where are the big cost-savings?
• How will the new stadium – built on a 20-year old design – be future-proofed?
• What design changes have been made to meet the ever-changing requirements of its multiple stakeholders – from the club, the city, the banks and investors through to its fans, players and sponsors?

This is stadium tale of intrigue, determination and deal-making – with a supporting cast of 9 club presidents, 3 city mayors and … one architect.

Surely there’s a book – perhaps even a movie – in this story?

We welcome Mark Fenwick, President and Founder of Fenwick Iribarren Architects to share his diary extracts of The Valencia Saga in an exclusive session at #TDS25.

>> Join Mark – and 500+ experts in design, engineering and delivery from around the world – only at #TD25 on 10-11 December in Manchester