After a 20-year wait, Club Bruges have received permission to build a new football stadium, with the reigning Belgian champions hoping to wrap up construction by the summer of 2028.
The new stadium will house 40,116 seats and will be built next to the current stadium, the Jan Breydel, in Sint-Andries. A final set of complaints from locals against the plans was rejected by the Council for Permit Disputes.
The new stadium will be integrated into a wider park and function as a public ground on non-matchdays.
Club Brugge presented its plans to build a new stadium in January 2007. At the time, Jan Breydel was an ageing stadium that was not allowing the club to grow.
Nowadays, the stadium is considered old and has severe limitations regarding safety, infrastructure, comfort and sustainability, according to a statement from the club.
It initially eyed multiple different locations, but faced stiff opposition from residents at each planned site. Local councils sided with the complainants on every occasion.
In the summer of 2020, it presented the current plan, with the new Olympiastadium located southwest of the old stadium. The plans were given the necessary permits by the Flemish Government in 2024, but once again faced complaints from locals. Now, it has finally received final permission.
Construction is set to begin later this year. Progress can be tracked on the dedicated website for the project.
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