Foster speaks about need for new San Siro, design ideas and necessities: “Two clubs, one city”

To build the new stadium, AC Milan and Inter have brought Lord Norman Foster and David Manica in to design it.

The excitement for a new stadium is massive, given that it has taken years to actually come about. Ultimately, Milan and Inter have both been needing a new home for a while, and now it is actually happening.

With San Siro, though, you have one of the most recognisable stadiums in the world, and recreating that effect will be difficult. However, faith can be placed in the project leader, Norman Foster, considering his previous works.

Foster talks about new San Siro

The renowned architect met with Mayor Beppe Sala, Manica and representatives of the Rossoneri and Nerazzurri this week to discuss the project, and today, he spoke on the sidelines of an event at the Triennale.

He covered a range of topics, including what he sees in the current stadium and what the new stadium must do, as MilanNews relays from Corriere di Milano.

“Have I ever been to San Siro? Of course! Looking up from the pitch at the rings of this heroic and astonishing architectural structure, you instantly realise that it’s all about performance, about spectacle.

“Designing the unknown is the designer’s job: to anticipate with an optimistic spirit. We have to plant the seeds, but only time will tell whether a piece of architecture will be successful or not and capable of becoming a true classic. The journey has begun. We’re starting to design: let’s see what comes out. It’s an exciting and crucial moment, a difficult but fascinating challenge.

“It will be a jaw-dropping project. Two teams, two clubs, one city.

Photos: Shaun Botterill + Marco Luzzani/Getty Images

“San Siro is an extraordinary icon that already exists, but there are gaps that make the path to a new stadium inevitable.

“The history and memory will have to be preserved somehow. A complex match? That’s normal given the many parties involved, first and foremost the fans, who are constantly growing and whose needs are constantly evolving.

“The stadium is a bit like a city, constantly changing and the product of the intersection of many different dynamics.”