Ostrava announced a narrowed architectural competition for the construction of a new stadium at Bazaly

Ostrava – The city of Ostrava has announced a narrower international architectural competition for the construction of a new football stadium at Bazaly. It is to be built on the same site where the first league team Baník Ostrava operated from 1959 until the 2014/15 season. It is expected to be the best facility of its kind in the country. Therefore, the city hall will approach world-renowned studios that have experience with similar projects. Interested parties can apply until January 24, and the winner will be known in November 2025. The stadium for 20,000 spectators is expected to cost around 2.5 billion crowns. CTK was informed by the spokesperson of the Ostrava city hall, Gabriela Pokorná.

"The aim of the narrower architectural competition is to find the most suitable design for a modern football stadium that will meet contemporary operational requirements and trends. The city wants to build a new modern football stadium that will allow hosting international matches, including those of the Czech national football team," she said, adding that the hosting of football matches will return to the site where Baník Ostrava has long operated.

According to her, the city aims to build the best football stadium in the country. Therefore, it has chosen a narrower competition, during which it will invite well-recognized and experienced studios worldwide that have proven experience in designing and constructing similar significant buildings. "They will thus guarantee that their solutions will be of high quality, timeless, and especially feasible," she said.


The deadline for submitting applications is January 24, 2025, at 1:00 PM. The city council should then decide on the winning proposal in November, and a presentation of proposals is planned for December of the following year. The new stadium is expected to be certified according to the BREEAM standard. The structure will include a museum of the football club as well as other services, restaurants, fan shops, or organized tours. Currently, the estimated cost is 2.5 billion crowns. The stadium capacity is intended for approximately 20,000 seated spectators.

Bazaly was the traditional home of Baník, but the players had to move to the City Stadium in Ostrava-Vítkovice because the original one no longer met the established conditions. The operation of footballers and athletes in a shared facility has repeatedly been deemed quite problematic, unsustainable in terms of capacity, and furthermore, the prospect involves further development of athletics at the City Stadium.

The city decided to buy Bazaly in 2013 when the club was facing significant financial problems. The city paid about 115 million crowns for the complex and saved the club from bankruptcy. The purchase of Bazaly had many critics, and it was successfully pushed through at the council only after a repeated vote. The city subsequently had the complex renovated for about 320 million crowns, and since 2019, it has been serving young footballers for training. The spectator capacity of the main playing field stadium is currently 450 seats.