Split backs new Poljud stadium plan with referendum and temporary relocation option

Split has been advised to build a new stadium on the current Poljud site as the most financially viable route to modernise the city’s football infrastructure and secure long-term matchday and commercial revenues for Hajduk Split.A feasibility study by consulting firm UHY Savjetovanje assessed four scenarios, ranging from basic renovation to a new-build on the outskirts, and concluded that a new Poljud delivered alongside a rebuild of Park Mladeži offers the strongest cost-benefit outcome.Tomislav Šuta, Split’s mayor, positioned the report as the starting point for a formal decision on scope and funding, including a public vote on the preferred route.Šuta said: “After 50 years, it is time for the city of Split to get a new stadium. This is the first time that the City of Split has such a comprehensive and expertly based document that clearly shows what the realistic possibilities are and what the directions for the development of our football infrastructure are.“The study has shown that the option of building a new stadium at Poljud, along with the reconstruction of the Youth Park and the development of the camp, is the best and most sustainable for Split.“Now we are in the decision-making phase, and we will also organise an advisory referendum on this issue so that citizens can express their opinion.”The preferred option carries an estimated cost of about €316m and would see Hajduk remain at Poljud until 2029, before moving temporarily to a reconstructed Park Mladeži with a capacity of roughly 10,700 and UEFA-standard compliance while the new stadium is delivered.The study also set out a lower-cost upgrade of the existing Poljud at about €82m, described as faster but limited in what it would deliver for Hajduk, alongside two higher-cost alternatives involving a parallel new stadium in Brodarica or a new venue outside the city.Ivan Bilić, president of Hajduk’s management board, said the club would back any solution that results in a new-build and argued the current venue constrains premium inventory and event hosting.Bilić said: “The study lasted quite a long time, some four to five months. It showed that one of the most realistic options, financially speaking, is a new stadium at the current location.“The new stadium is of strategic importance to us, any option that a new stadium offers us is the one we represent.”The recommendation sets up a multi-year infrastructure programme in Split, hinging on political alignment, procurement and financing design, with the study intended to serve as the base document for selecting a delivery model.Hajduk are positioning a new stadium as a commercial reset, with the business case centred on increased matchday yield, hospitality and ancillary revenues that are difficult to scale in an ageing venue.