Bollaert-Delelis Stadium

Project description

Restructuring of Bollaert-Delelis Stadium: Upgrading to meet Euro 2016 standards and improving spectator comfort (38,223 seats). New developments in existing stands increasing the stadium’s capacity to 51,000 for events and 45,000 for soccer/rugby.

Heritage of a historic stadium
Inaugurated in 1932, the Bollaert-Delelis Stadium was built by the powerful Mining Company of Lens for the Lens football club. In the 1960s, as the mining company faltered, the city took control of the club’s future. The stadium underwent major transformations in the 1970s and 1980s: from an oval shape, it was converted into an “English-style” stadium.
In 2002, the city of Lens granted a 50-year emphyteutic lease to the Lens club. Now, the RCL is planning the restructuring of the Bollaert Stadium. The opportunity presented by the creation of the Louvre-Lens Museum nearby and the need to modernize the Bollaert-Delelis Stadium to meet European standards for its bid for Euro 2016 led to an ambitious project worthy of the stadium’s historical significance.

The spirit of an English-style stadium
The stadium has four stands: Trannin, Marek-Xercès, Delacourt, and Lepagnot. Each stand will undergo renovation: extension of the Lepagnot stand, creation of a new covered interior forecourt and a mezzanine for the Marek-Xercès stand, improvement of public areas in the Trannin stand (with the creation of a mezzanine) and Delacourt stand, harmonization of facades, creation of a new roof covering all the seating areas, and reorganization of access controls and the exterior forecourt.
The reorganization of the access controls at the base of each stand will allow for the sectorization into four independent stands. The new Bollaert Stadium will have a capacity of 38,223 spectators.

A homogeneous architecture in landscape integration
The creation of rear facades for all existing stands will unify the overall appearance of the stadium while maintaining the clear sectorization into four fully independent stands.
A new roof will cover all the seating, contributing to the overall visual cohesion. The modernization and expansion project of the stadium is complemented by a landscape design aimed at enhancing the sports facility and integrating it into a green framework that reflects the transformations of the city of Lens, the proximity to the Louvre-Lens Museum, and the Euralens project.
The development of the existing embankments and the modification of access points to the sports structure will create a landscaped facade that acts as a green filter in front of the residential areas across the street, renewing the urban space at the heart of an area undergoing significant transformation.