Anderlecht mourns football club’s move to new stadium

The Anderlecht football club will after all become the tenants of the planned new national stadium to be built by 2020 on what is now Parking C of the Heizel complex in Brussels. This week the club signed a lease with developers Ghelamco and the city.

Anderlecht had previously withdrawn from talks on the lease, preferring to consider renovations to their existing Constant Vanden Stock stadium in the Anderlecht commune (pictured). But that option fell through when it was determined how much renovations would cost.

“Of course this is emotional news,” said Anderlecht alderwoman Elke Roex. “People know our municipality thanks to the football club. Of course, they will still be known as Anderlecht, but it’s a shame they have to leave.”

The commune also received about €1 million a year from the club in local taxes, which covers some of the cost of policing around matches and cleaning up afterwards. “But after they’ve gone we’ll still have to sweep the streets and pay the police,” Roex said.

The area will also lose income from parking and from the restaurants and cafes around the stadium. “That’s why it’s important to find a new purpose for the stadium site,” she said. “The region has a role to play there because this is a huge building that’s about to become vacant. And 2020 isn’t very far off.”

It is expected Anderlecht will pay rent of €9,950,000 a year for the new stadium, though details have not yet been made public. Construction of the new stadium is expected to begin next spring.

Photo: David Edgar/Wikimedia