Gazprom Arena is the most expensive Russian football stadium located in St. Petersburg. This football arena has other names as well:

• SPB "Zenit-Arena";
• St. Petersburg "Zenith" or the stadium "Zenith";
• stadium "Krestovsky";
• "St. Petersburg".

The general designer of the Gazprom Arena stadium was an architect from Japan - Kisho Kurokawa. The area of ​​the Zenit-Arena stadium, taking into account all the premises, is almost 290 thousand square meters, and the roll-out football field is about 10 thousand square meters. However, according to the original design, the area of ​​the "St. Petersburg" arena should be smaller.

Zenit-Arena stadium is a landmark of St. Petersburg, which is undoubtedly one of the most beautiful buildings on Krestovsky Island. It has a sliding dome with a diameter of about 290 meters. The dome of the St. Petersburg football arena rests on masts. There are 8 such masts in total. The evening view of the stadium attracts with its unusual design - from afar, the arena resembles a flying saucer, from which multi-colored light emanates.

How the name was chosen for the Zenit-Arena stadium

From the moment the foundation stone was laid during construction until 2018, the Gazprom Arena has had many different names. The key points in choosing a name for the arena are as follows:

1. FSZCHKO or "Football stadium in the western part of Krestovsky Island" - this was the name of the stadium at the time the construction of the "Gazprom Arena" was underway. Initially, it was decided that an official name would be given only after the facility was fully completed.
2. Due to the fact that the St. Petersburg football club "Zenith" and the company "Gazprom" expressed a desire to participate in the construction of the future stadium "Krestovsky", the arena was planned to be named one of the following options: "Gazprom Arena", "Zenit" or "Zenit-Arena" ...
3. By the end of winter 2010 it became known that the Government of St. Petersburg will make a final decision on the name of the future stadium only after the arena is put into operation.
4. "Saint Petersburg" - this is the name FIFA proposed for the St. Petersburg stadium under construction in the fall of 2015. However, at the end of April of the same year, the St Petersburg Toponymic Commission chose a different name for the football arena - "Krestovsky". A year later, it was confirmed that the most expensive football arena in Russia will be named after the island on which it is located - the stadium was named "Krestovsky".
5. However, after the approval of the official name for Gazprom Arena, during some events taking place in this arena, the stadium was called differently. For example, it is known that at the time of the Confederations Cup (in 2017) and the World Cup (in 2018), the new stadium on Krestovsky Island was called St. Petersburg.
6. In early December 2018, the most expensive Russian stadium changed its old official name Krestovsky to a new one - Gazprom Arena.

The cost of the Zenit-Arena stadium

The St. Petersburg stadium on Krestovsky Island is one of the longest-building and most expensive Russian football arenas.

At first it was decided that the funds for the construction would be allocated by the Gazprom company, but then it was reported that the money for the construction of the Zenit-Arena would be taken from the city budget. It was also known that the cost of construction increased from the original 6.7 billion rubles to 14 billion.

In the period from the end of summer 2008 to December 2016, 42 billion rubles have already been spent on the construction of a new football arena in St. Petersburg. The cost of the facility under construction was influenced by the introduction of changes to the project to comply with FIFA requirements.

At the beginning of 2017, the cost of building the stadium increased to almost 44 billion rubles. However, according to some reports, it is known that the Gazprom Arena stadium costs more than 44 billion rubles. The media named such amounts as 48 billion and 50 billion rubles.

How many years has the Zenit-Arena stadium been under construction?

The stadium delivery dates have been postponed many times. Construction of the arena began in 2007 and was supposed to be completed in 2009, but this did not happen. The stadium was commissioned only at the end of 2016, that is, 9 years after the start of construction. And the opening of the stadium "St. Petersburg" took place at the end of April 2017.

Chronology of the construction of the stadium "Zenith-Arena"

The construction of the Krestovsky Stadium can be divided into stages by year:

2006 year- this year the old stadium named after S. M. Kirov was demolished for the future construction of "Zenit-Arena".

2007 year- after the earthworks were completed on the partial dismantling of the hill, the first stone was laid.

2008 year- the Krestovsky project was ready, but in November the contractor and the St. Petersburg construction committee signed an agreement to terminate the contract due to the fact that the project became more expensive. But thanks to the fact that the necessary funds were later allocated by the decision of the budgetary and financial committee of the Legislative Assembly, the construction of the arena was resumed at the end of the same year.

year 2009- at the end of this year, it was revealed that the Zenit-Arena stadium under construction does not meet FIFA standards, - the complaints were mostly about the layout of the under-stands, as well as the configuration of the stands. Because of this, construction on the third level of the arena was stopped until the identified inconsistencies in the project were corrected.

2010 year- construction was resumed on the third level of the stadium thanks to a new general designer who made the necessary changes to the design to comply with FIFA standards. After the amendments were made to the project, the Zenit-Arena area increased from 170 thousand to 260 thousand square meters. The number of seats has also increased. However, this entailed an increase in the value of the object.

2015 year- by August of this year, the construction of the Krestovsky stadium was completed by about 76% and the dismantling of the fixed roof was completed. The installation of the heating system was completed in September. Work was underway to install the seats, as well as to decorate the appearance of the arena stands.

2016 year- in March, the readiness of the St. Petersburg "Zenith" was 84%. Facade work was almost completed, and in December the arena was put into operation.

Gazprom Arena stadium capacity

The exact number of spectators that Krestovsky can accommodate is unknown. However, during construction on the developer's website there was information that the future Zenit-Arena stadium will have 80 thousand seats for spectators during various concerts and theater events. And also 68 thousand spectators at football matches.

In addition, it is known that in 2018, during the hockey match Russia - Finland (Channel One Cup), the stadium was visited by 81 thousand people.

The Gazprom-Arena can also be visited by people with disabilities, for whom special places are reserved. So, out of 560 places for disabled people, 266 places are intended for those who cannot walk and move in a wheelchair.

Location of the St. Petersburg stadium "Zenith"

The stadium "Zenit-Arena" is located on Krestovsky Island, where the stadium named after S. M. Kirov was located earlier. The stadium's address is easy to remember: Football Alley, Building 1 (St. Petersburg, Russia).

The new home stadium of St. Petersburg Zenith has repeatedly become the object of general attention during the construction phase. First of all, this is due to the constant postponements of the deadlines and the regular increase in the budget. Nevertheless, in 2017, the long-awaited project was completed, and the northern capital of Russia received a modern stadium on Krestovsky Island.

general information

Official site: arena.fc-zenit.ru

Capacity: 56196 seats (at sporting events)

Address: St. Petersburg, Football alley, 1

GPS coordinates for navigator: 59.972878, 30.221394

Year built: 2017

Field: 105 × 68 m.

Scoreboard: electronic.

Roof: sliding.

Coating: natural.

The inner thicket of the stadium is traditionally divided into two tiers and four sectors: A, B, C, D. Tickets for Zenit matches can be purchased in various ways: through the official website, in the club shop, in the client office, using the terminals. The address of the client office is Dobrolyubova Ave., 16, letter A, building 2. The addresses of shops and other places where you can buy tickets for the Zenith Arena must be specified on the official website of the stadium or on the website of FC Zenit.

One of the easiest ways to buy a ticket is to use the official internet portal. It contains all the information you need for clients, as well as a user-friendly graphical interface that allows you to quickly select and book a suitable seat.

Despite the lengthy construction process, confusion with names and other unpleasant nuances, Stadium Saint Petersburg (Zenit Arena) has every chance of becoming the central sports facility in the northern capital of the Russian Federation. UEFA has assigned the 4th maximum category to the new stadium on Krestovsky Island, thereby placing the St. Petersburg arena on a par with the best football facilities.

St. Petersburg Arena is not only a venue for football matches. The building, like almost all modern stadiums, is multifunctional. At cultural and entertainment events, the capacity of the bowl can be increased to 80,000 seats. This makes the stadium an excellent venue for large-scale festivals and performances of world stars.

How to get to the stadium. Infrastructure

Underground

The Krestovsky Ostrov metro station is located about two kilometers from the main sports arena of St. Petersburg. Also, fans can use two more stations - "Staraya Derevnya" and "Chkalovskaya", which are within walking distance from the stadium. It should be noted that the travel time from Krestovsky Ostrov station to the arena will be about 25 minutes.

Tram

No. 48, No. 19. The tram schedule and the availability of additional routes should be checked.

Buses and shuttles

Buses # 10, # 14, # 25, # 25A, K-131. Special shuttle buses run two hours before and after the match. Their schedule and final stops are subject to change, so this information should be checked on the official website before visiting the stadium.

On foot to the stadium, you can also go through the Yacht Bridge, which was opened at the end of May 2017. It is assumed that the bridge will be pedestrian. However, it can also be used to transport fans by bus.

By car

There is also an option to get to the St. Petersburg stadium by your own transport. The car can be parked in the external parking lot (2,732 spaces) or in the internal parking lot (240 spaces). Both parking areas are located on the side of the bay. The address where you can buy a pass for the car, and all the conditions can be found on the official page of the stadium.

Zenit Arena is the main, but not the only sports facility on Krestovsky Island. Not far from the football stadium is the Sibur Arena multifunctional complex, which can accommodate 7120 fans. During boxing matches and MMA competitions, the seating capacity of the audience is up to 8,000.

In addition to the Sibur Arena, the Lokosphinx cycling track and the Athletics arena are the company for the St. Petersburg stadium on Krestovsky Island. Among all these sports facilities there is also the Park Krestovsky Hotel, which was built in 2009.

Protracted construction

The construction of a new stadium in St. Petersburg was regularly accompanied by scandals that were actively discussed in society. The construction of the arena was seriously delayed, and its budget was constantly increasing. This caused negative sentiments and mistrust both among the St. Petersburg fans and among people who were quite far from football. Journalists calculated that over 40 billion rubles were spent on construction. This colossal amount, of course, began to be compared with the cost of building the best stadiums in the world. For example, Juventus Stadium was built in over three years, and the costs amounted to just over 100 million euros.

Zenit Arena was built on the site of the former stadium. Kirov, which has functioned at Krestovsky since 1950. It is noteworthy that the previous stadium also had a complex and long history of construction. Work began in 1932, and the stadium was put into operation. Kirov was introduced only after 18 years. True, in that case, the Second World War became the reason for the protracted construction.

In 2006, work began on the dismantling of the stadium. Kirov, after which the construction of the future arena "St. Petersburg" began. At that time, it was assumed that the stadium would bear the name "Gazprom Arena". Quite interesting metamorphoses took place with the name of the complex. Even representatives of the press at different stages called the stadium either Gazprom Arena, Zenit Arena, or St. Petersburg. This confusion was partly due to the ambiguous situation around the construction of the complex. Initially, the work was to be financed by Gazprom. The presence of the corporation's name in the name of the stadium in this case was quite logical. However, later the money for the construction was allocated from the city budget. The arena name remained relevant. During the matches of the 2017 Confederation Cup and the 2018 FIFA World Cup, it was decided to use the name "St. Petersburg Arena".

In 2007, the old stadium on Krestovsky was completely demolished. After the excavation works, the foundation stone of a new modern sports complex was laid. The competition for architectural projects was won by the agency "Kisho Kurokawa architects & associates" of the famous Kise Kurosawa, who passed away in the same 2007.

The deadline for the project was repeatedly postponed, and the cost of the stadium increased regularly. Nevertheless, a complex construction project on Krestovsky Island was completed in 2017. The 2018 World Cup has undoubtedly become one of the main catalysts for the logical conclusion of the famous and controversial construction in St. Petersburg. The first official match in the new arena took place on April 22, 2017.

Sport events

The debut unofficial game at the Zenith Arena took place at the end of 2016. Then the teams from Metrostroy and the builders of St. Petersburg entered the field. The stadium on Krestovsky hosted the official match in April 2017. The match took place within the 24th round of the Russian Football Championship. Petersburg Zenit beat Ural 2-0.

Already in the first game, obvious problems with the lawn appeared, which were added to the multiple excess of vibration standards. Urgent work was carried out to re-lay the lawn, which was completed at the end of May. Nevertheless, Zenit St. Petersburg was forced to return to Petrovsky and play out the 2016-2017 Premier League season at the old stadium.

Football club "Zenith" cares about the accessibility of the arena for all guests and makes every effort to make it as comfortable as possible for the fans.

Stadium seats

Special places:

Promenade (third floor)

141 wheelchair spaces. The companion's chair is located nearby. Of these - 10 seats for the fans of the guest team in wheelchairs, which are located in sectors B-103 and B-104.

Sectors A-102 and A-103

50 seats for visually impaired fans. Each fan has the opportunity to come to the match accompanied by one person.

On the tribune, a service of audio-descriptive commenting (AOK) of matches is provided. Spectators can get the equipment of the AOK free of charge from the MGN escort service.

Additional places (do not require special conditions):

Sector C-111

• 30 seats for fans with hearing disabilities
• 30 places for children with disabilities (without POD)
• 30 places for supporters with I group of disabilities (without POD)

Each visitor with a disability has the opportunity to come to the match accompanied by one person.

Invitation Cards

You can apply to attend the match at.

In the application, you must indicate the match that you are going to attend, the desired sector, the full name of the fan with a disability, the full name of the accompanying person, and also attach a document confirming the disability.

Acceptance of applications begins with the start of ticket sales for the game and ends 2 days before the match.

Parking

There is a parking lot for disabled fans near the entrance to the Gazprom Arena. Parking passes are free and distributed on a first come, first served basis. You can apply for a car pass via e-mail or at the club's client office at Dobrolyubova, 16A, presenting a ticket for the match, a document confirming disability, and also indicate the make and number of the car.

Acceptance of electronic applications begins with the start of ticket sales for the match and ends 2 days before the match. After that, the auto-pass can only be obtained at the client's office.

Shuttles for MGN

Due to the restriction of entry to Krestovsky Island on the days of matches, for MGN using personal vehicles, a parking lot is provided on Petrovskaya Square, where they transfer to equipped minibuses with subsequent delivery directly to the stadium and on the return route after the match.

Shuttles start their work 2 hours before the start of the match.

Social Taxi

On the day of the match, social taxis can drive to parking lots P1 and P21 (next to the Sibur Arena) only for fans to disembark / disembark.

Entering the Gazprom Arena territory is possible only with an official social taxi pass.

MGN escort service

Stewards of the MGN escort service work at each match. They can be recognized by their blue vests with the sign "escort". They are located at parking lots P1, P2 and P22, as well as at entrances 2a, 10a and 16a. Each of these entrances has wheelchairs that fans can use to get to their seats in the stands if needed (without the right to rent).

Also, escort stewards are located near the entrances to Grandstands A, B and C, as well as on the inner promenade of the stadium. MGN fans can always turn to them for any necessary help.

For fans with children

The Krestovsky stadium in St. Petersburg will go down in history as the longest building one. There were a lot of jokes, scandals and money around him. During the World Cup, 67 800 thousand spectators will be able to visit the stadium. The cost of "Krestovsky" is 43 billion rubles. The stadium is operated by Gazprom, which leases it to the local football club Zenit.

Location and address of the stadium in St. Petersburg

The name "Krestovsky" comes from the fact that the stadium is located on Krestovsky Island. Earlier this place was the arena named after Kirov. Stadium address: Battery road, building 1.

How to get to the stadium "St. Petersburg"

Metro

Going down to the subway, take the train to the Krestovskiy Ostrov metro station. Then you need to walk 2 km through the park along the Battery Road. Fans hurrying to the stadium can get closer from the Novokrestovskaya metro station - 1.6 km along the pedestrian bridge across the Yuzhnaya road.

Shuttle buses

As in other cities participating in the 2019 World Cup, free shuttle buses will run in St. Petersburg, which begin their work to transport fans three hours before the match. You can get to the stadium by shuttle bus from the Petrogradskaya metro station (S3), Vyborgskaya metro station (S4), from Pulkovo airport (S10) - all buses go to the Krestovsky Ostrov bus station. Buses from the Vyborgskaya metro station (S4) and from the Chkalovskaya metro station (S6) will take you to Battery Road.

By tram

- From the metro station "Staraya Derevnya" and further to Yakhtennaya street can be reached by tram number 19, then along Yakhtennaya street, Yakhtenniy bridge and Northern road (2.3 km). The tram takes about 10 minutes.
- From the metro station "Chyornaya Rechka" and further to Yakhtennaya street you can get by tram No. 48, 48A, then along Yakhtennaya street, Yakhtenniy bridge and Northern road (2.3 km). The tram takes about 20 minutes.

Scheme of seats and sectors at the stadium "St. Petersburg"

The stadium in the cultural capital of Russia is the most expensive and modern in Russia. The main highlight of the arena is the sliding roof, which is very relevant due to the weather in St. Petersburg.

Opening of the stadium in St. Petersburg

On October 27, 2016, the stadium hosted the first football match on a retractable field between the teams of Metrostroy and the St. Petersburg builders. The official opening of the arena took place on April 22, 2017 with a match between Zenit and Ural. On June 17, 2017, during the opening match of the Confederations Cup, technical problems of the new stadium were discovered: the roof was leaking in the room under the stands and the elevator did not work. Let's hope that other problems will not "pop up" by the World Cup.

World Cup matches at the stadium in St. Petersburg

Group B match: Morocco - Iran June 15.
Group A match: Russia - Egypt June 19.
Group E match: Brazil - Costa Rica June 22.
Group D match: Argentina - Nigeria June 26.

Playoffs and third place games in St. Petersburg

1/8 finals match between the best team in group F and the second team in group E will be held on July 3rd.
1/2 final match will take place on July 10.
3rd place match will take place on July 15th.

Check out the full in Russia.

In 2010, Metallica was supposed to perform at the Zenit arena

According to Mikhail Zhvanetsky, the repairs cannot be completed - just stop. Perhaps the most striking example of this is the Krestovsky construction site.

As the famous satirist writer Mikhail Zhvanetsky used to say, repairs cannot be completed - just stop. Perhaps the most striking example of this is the construction of a stadium on Krestovsky Island. We present the chronology of the construction of the loudest football long-term construction in Russia - from the idea of ​​creation to the present day.

March 2005 "The Kirov Stadium in St. Petersburg will be demolished"
The first reports about the construction of a new arena on the site of the stadium. CM. Kirov, located on Krestovsky Island, appeared more than 10 years ago. Then it was about the stadium, the approximate cost of which would be $ 150 million, and the capacity - 50,000 spectators.

April 2005 "The new Zenit stadium will be built on the Manchester model"
The concept of the future stadium was announced. It was assumed that the prototype for it will serve as a project for an arena in Manchester, created by the English company Arup. General Director of the State Unitary Enterprise "Stadium im. CM. Kirov " Demid Momot later criticized the idea of ​​an open stadium in Russian climatic conditions. And then a member of the Board of OJSC "Gazprom" Valery Golubev said that the stadium in Dortmund could become a model for the stadium. Also, the management of JSC "Gazprom" has specified the cost of construction. In six months, the figure has grown by almost 70% - to $ 250 million.

January 2006 The stadium is promised to be built by 2009

According to the head of the St. Petersburg Sports Committee Vyacheslav Chazov, he is 1,000,000% sure that the Gazprom Arena (that is what it was supposed to be called) will appear on the site of the stadium named after Kirov by 2009. However, experts predict that these dates will be repeatedly shifted.

April 2006 When will construction start?
According to the vice-governor of St. Petersburg Alexander Vakhmistrov, the construction of a new stadium for Zenit will begin at the end of 2006, immediately after the end of the dismantling of the Kirov stadium, which is scheduled to be completed in November. “At the same time, we plan to sign an agreement on construction with the general contractor,” Vakhmistrov said.

July 2006 Projects for a new stadium in St. Petersburg presented
An exposition of the developed architectural solutions (pre-design proposals) of the stadium has opened in St. Petersburg. It featured projects developed by the winners of the first stage of the competition, including Kisho Kurokawa architect & associates (Japan).

The Japanese proposed a design for the stadium, shaped like a spaceship. The roof, 200x90 meters in size, is made of polymer material, rests on metal masts and is equipped with a special mechanism that blows hot air, which helps to melt the snow. The Japanese estimated the cost of their construction at just over $ 225 million. It was this project that was singled out among others by the former president of Zenit Sergei Fursenko.

December 2006 The builder of the new stadium of FC Zenit became known
The stadium was built by the St. Petersburg company SINTEZ-SUI LLC, which offered to carry out all the work for 6 billion 664 million 308 thousand 170 rubles.

March 2007 "Zenita" stadium will be built before the end of 2008 "
At a meeting with the participation of the Governor of St. Petersburg Valentina Matvienko it was announced that the construction of the arena on Krestovsky Island will end on December 30, 2008, and next season the team will be able to play home matches at the new stadium. At the same time, the customers of the project have not yet decided what kind of sports arena to make - retractable or non-retractable. “Based on the difficult weather conditions in St. Petersburg, experts believe that the retractable field can greatly increase the cost of the project, but not give the effect that we want. We need to weigh everything, ”said Matvienko.

April 2007 Matvienko: the field will be retractable at the new Zenit stadium
The Governor of St. Petersburg, Valentina Matvienko, announced that a retractable field will be located at the new Zenita football stadium on Krestovsky Island. Comments are superfluous.

September 2007 "Construction of the Zenit stadium is ahead of schedule"
Vice-Governor of St. Petersburg Alexander Vakhmistrov told reporters that the construction of the new Zenita stadium on Krestovsky Island is ahead of schedule: “The completion of the construction period has not changed, it is roughly December 2008. We hope that Zenit will play the first matches of the 2009 season at the new stadium. "

March 2008 "Gazprom" will be asked for money for a new stadium for "Zenith"
RFU President Vitaly Mutko said that the construction of the arena may rise in price. To implement the project, Gazprom may be involved as an additional investor.

April 2008 "Commissioning of the new Zenit stadium is postponed for a year"
"In 2009, the stadium is unlikely to be put into operation," says the president of "Zenith" Alexander Dyukov... - In the future, maybe in 2010. At the moment, the project for the construction of the stadium on Krestovsky costs approximately 13-14 billion rubles, instead of the previously announced 6.67 billion. This is due to the increase in prices for the cost of work and materials, as well as the peculiarity of the soil. In addition, the price included work on dismantling the old Kirov stadium. "

July 2008 "The new Zenit stadium has risen in price by 3.5 times"
After the approval of the estimate, the new football arena in St. Petersburg has risen in price by 3.5 times to 23.7 billion rubles. It is reported that if the budget money is not enough, Gazprom, which controls FC Zenit, will join the financing. According to the official estimate prepared by Glavgosexpertiza, the football stadium on Krestovsky Island will cost 23.7 billion rubles. Now it is planned to increase the arena's capacity to 62,000 spectators.

December 2008 "Inzhtransstroy" will be engaged in the construction of the "Zenith" stadium
In November last year, the St. Petersburg Construction Committee terminated the state contract with the previous construction contractor, the Avant company, and in December signed a new contract with the Engineering Corporation Transstroy CJSC, owned by Oleg Deripaska... The cost of the contract amounted to 13 billion 22 million 282 thousand rubles, with an initial price of 18 billion 603 million 260 thousand. The starting price was reduced by 30%.

April 2009 Metallica will perform in St. Petersburg at the opening of a new stadium "
News agencies report that the legendary American band Metallica will perform in St. Petersburg in 2010 at the opening of a new stadium on Krestovsky Island. Metallica will present its latest album, Death Magnetic.

December 2009 Stadium does not meet FIFA standards
After checking the design of the stadium for compliance with FIFA requirements, it turned out that, according to a number of criteria, the stadium under construction does not meet FIFA standards. The main complaints were about the configuration of the stands (ensuring comfortable visibility, the location of hatches) and the layout of the rooms under the stands, which were divided by powerful walls into small compartments. Halls and open spaces inside were practically absent.

February 2010 Zenita stadium will become larger and more expensive
Chairman of the Construction Committee of the St. Petersburg Administration Vyacheslav Semenenko announced the decision to expand the stadium. “Since the city received a proposal from the bid committee to host the semifinal match of the FIFA World Cup, we asked all the participants: either we continue construction with minor adjustments to the project, or we suspend work and change the project so that the new stadium meets all UEFA requirements. and FIFA. But this will require additional funding, "- said Semenenko. Thus, the new version of the stadium must accommodate at least 67,000 people.

April 2010 The construction time of the Zenit stadium is further extended
Due to adjustments in the budget of St. Petersburg, the project for the construction of a football stadium on Krestovsky Island lost 1.5 billion rubles. For this reason, the dates for the commissioning of the new arena of St. Petersburg “Zenith” have undergone changes again. Head of the Budgetary and Financial Committee of the Legislative Assembly Vladimir Barkanov said that because of this, the cost of the project will also rise.

December 2010 Redesign of the new arena in St. Petersburg completed
Zenit President Alexander Dyukov announced that the redesign of the new arena in St. Petersburg has been completed. The stadium will now seat 68,000 spectators.

January 2011 Builders hurried to dismantle the roof
The timing of the construction of the new Zenita stadium has been revised again until November 2012. The conclusion of Glavgosexpertiza on redevelopment was received by construction organizations three months later than the expected date, so the builders, who rushed to start work, faced the need to dismantle the roof of the future arena. The amendments made by Glavgosexpertiza inevitably led to an increase in the cost of construction, which had already been revised five times by that time.

In addition, as the vice-governor of St. Petersburg Roman Filimonov said, the cost of the Zenit stadium has grown. In comparison with the previous estimate, construction work has risen in price by 8.4 billion rubles, and now the total cost of the stadium has grown to 33 billion rubles ($ 1.1 billion).

February 2011 The new Zenit stadium fell from 33 billion to 28.7 billion
The final estimate of the stadium was not 33 billion, which was announced at the end of January, but 28.7 billion. Contractor "Inzhtranstroy" gave a discount.

July 2011 Season 2013/14 Zenit wants to start in a new arena
General Director of "Zenith" Maxim Mitrofanov: “We calculate as follows: if the construction really ends in November 2012, then about six months will be spent on various commissioning works, on the installation of technological and catering equipment. We would like to start the 2013/14 season in a new arena. "

October 2011 "The constructed part of the stadium will have to be partially redone"
The design change was caused by the fact that the customer, the Construction Committee of the Government of St. Petersburg, two months after the transfer of the documentation to Mosproekt-4, decided to make a different roof. Mosproject-4 originally designed a sliding structure, which should only cover the stands. And the customer wanted the roof to cover the entire stadium together with the field. And these are completely different loads on beams, columns and foundations. It will take another 12 to 18 months to install the roof.

November 2011 New project deadline and new estimate
The deadline for the completion of the new stadium for Zenit on Krestovsky Island is 2013. This was announced by the Governor of St. Petersburg Georgy Poltavchenko during a joint meeting with Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Kozak at the construction site of the future sports arena. There was also information that the price of the stadium could grow from 33 billion rubles to 40 billion rubles ($ 1.3 billion).

January 2013 Construction readiness of the Zenita stadium is 34.4%
By this time, the construction readiness of the facility is 34.4%. As of November 1, 2012, expenditures were made from the St. Petersburg budget to finance the construction of a football stadium in the amount of RUB 14,417.1 million, with accounts receivable amounting to RUB 3,759.8 million.

February 2013 The Investigative Committee took over the stadium
The Main Investigation Department of the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation in St. Petersburg has confirmed the fact of the initiation of a criminal case on the fact of fraud during the construction of a stadium for Zenit on Krestovsky Island. We are talking about the work of the first contractor for the project - Sintez-Sui LLC, which later changed its name to Avant LLC, which at the end of 2006 signed a contract with the Construction Committee of the Government of St. Petersburg. In the concluded subcontracting agreements, the cost of the work was overstated by more than 500 million rubles.

March 2013 The new Zenit stadium is promised to be commissioned no later than July 2016
Head of the Capital Construction Fund of St. Petersburg Roman Skladnev said that the installation of the roof of the stadium for Zenit on Krestovsky Island in St. Petersburg will begin in the second-third quarter of 2014, and all monolithic work will end in the fourth quarter of the same year. According to him, 21 months will pass from the beginning of the installation of the roof to the commissioning of the stadium.

June 2013 The new Zenita stadium is currently 35% built
After six years of work on Krestovsky Island, the new Zenita stadium, which will host the matches of Russia's 2018 FIFA World Cup, is about a third built. Vice-Governor of St. Petersburg Marat Oganesyan, meanwhile, believes that, despite the problems with the construction of the stadium on Krestovsky Island, the city is a leader in preparation among Russian cities that will host the 2018 World Cup.

April 2014 Zenit-Arena will be put into operation on June 15, 2016
Perhaps now the fans can breathe easy? Vice Governor of St. Petersburg Marat Hovhannisyan named the exact date of the opening of the Zenit-Arena stadium on Krestovsky Island. In April, the roof was erected at the stadium. Zenit President Alexander Dyukov later noted that such a forecast looks realistic.

Hovhannisyan ruled out the likelihood of an increase in costs for the construction of a stadium on Krestovsky Island. According to him, the final cost of the facility will be 34.9 billion rubles and "not a penny more."

October 2014 Construction in St. Petersburg will be completed by "Transstroy"
Transstroy, the general contractor for the new Zenita stadium on Krestovsky Island in St. Petersburg, won a RUB 9.129 billion tender to complete the construction of the arena. It remains to assemble a sliding roof, a roll-out field, engineering systems, finishing, installation and commissioning of the arena equipment.

December 2014 Alluvium for another 2.33 billion rubles
The State Procurement Committee of St. Petersburg has announced a tender for the creation of an artificial land plot in the area of ​​the territory of Krestovsky Island for the construction of a stadium for the 2018 World Cup. The amount of allocated funds will amount to almost 2.33 billion rubles, according to the procurement portal.

March 2015 The case of embezzlement of 145 million rubles in the arena was closed over a period of years
Vasileostrovskiy District Court terminated the criminal case against Sergey Gerliman, who was accused of illegally cashing in 145 million rubles, stolen from the construction of Zenit-Arena. The reason for the decision was the expiration of the statute of limitations.

April 2015 An arena construction worker sustained a gunshot wound
As a result of the conflict at the Zenit-Arena stadium under construction on Krestovsky Island in St. Petersburg, a construction worker received gunshot wounds to the head. A concrete mixer arrived at the construction site the day before. After unloading, the driver began to wash the car, after which an employee approached him and made a remark. Presumably, after a verbal conflict, the driver took out a traumatic pistol and fired at the opponent's side three times, hitting twice in the head.

November 2015 The first match at Krestovsky will be held in September 2016
Construction Committee Chairman Mikhail Demidenko said that the level of readiness of the stadium on Krestovsky Island is now 79%. At the meeting, it was decided that the first match at the new site should take place in September 2016. However, a month later, the general contractor moved the announced dates until December 2016.

February 2016 The general contractor asks to increase the estimate to 35.3 billion rubles
The company "Inzhtransstroy-SPb", the general contractor for the construction of the stadium "Zenit-Arena", sent an official appeal to the Committee for the construction of St. Petersburg about the rise in the cost of construction of the facility by 435 million rubles. This information was confirmed by the press service of the committee. Thus, the total estimated cost of the arena may exceed 35.3 billion rubles.

July 2016 Investigators are looking for a video board of the Krestovsky stadium for 144 million rubles
The Investigative Committee and the Economic Police of St. Petersburg have begun large-scale searches, which concern 144.5 million rubles, which were initially required to carry out work on the installation of a video display complete with a lifting and lowering system at the Krestovsky stadium, as well as a control system for LEDs on this display. Meanwhile, the readiness of the stadium is estimated at 85%. In addition, there were reports of delayed wages to builders again.

July 2016 An attempted raider takeover in the arena?
Inzhtrasstroy-Spb, the general contractor for the construction of the stadium on Krestovsky Island in St. Petersburg, reported an attempted raider takeover that took place on July 13, accusing the city administration of attempting to disrupt the completion date of the arena. “There is a situation in which the customer, represented by the city administration, is doing everything to disrupt the completion date of the project. One of the key problems is caused by the lack of approved design solutions and documentation. We do not have the documents according to which we actually have to build, ”the company said to Championship. Later, the city authorities did not rule out that the state contract with the contractor could be terminated.