September 14: Rome’s Stadio Olimpico is set for a major overhaul ahead of Euro 2032, with plans worth €150m designed to bring one of Italy’s most famous grounds into line with Europe’s best stadiums.
Sport e Salute, the state-owned company that owns Olímpico, is expected to present the project in the coming weeks. With this framework in place, work would begin next year and run until 2031, just in time for Italy’s co-hosting of Euro 2032 with Turkey.
The plan is ambitious, bringing the ground’s capacity back to around 80,000, roughly where it stood for the 1990 World Cup, while expanding hospitality areas, adding new screens and implementing wider improvements to the spectator experience.
The intention is for the Olimpico to continue hosting Italy matches, rugby, athletics, concerts and other major events, alongside its role as the permanent home of AS Roma and Lazio, with the redevelopment designed to keep it competitive for the biggest occasions.
There is even hope in Rome that it could host the final of Euro 2032. Obviously, nothing has been decided, but Italy have some catching up to do before they start worrying about the work.
The FIGC is currently working through submissions from 13 cities covering 16 stadium projects, with only five Italian venues on UEFA’s tournament list. Final approved and funded plans must be submitted by October 1st.
Rome is expected to be among the strongest contenders alongside Turin, Milan and Naples, with Florence and Palermo also pushing for inclusion.
The biggest concern is Milan, where the long San Siro saga has left Italy’s biggest football city without anything approaching a simple stadium solution.
UEFA president Aleksander Čeferin has already warned that Italy’s hosting position cannot be taken for granted if stadium infrastructure is not improved.
Rome, at least, seems ready to move. The reported cost of €150m has yet to be formally confirmed by Sport e Salute (previous estimates had been closer to €130m), but the project is now understood to be ready for presentation, according to reports from Italian channel La Repubblica.
In the capital there could be two large modern football fields. Roma are separately progressing plans for their own stadium in Pietralata, which is also expected to be completed around 2030-31.
Contact the writer of this story, Harry Ewing at (email protected)
