Paris To Build New 7,000-Seat Sports Venue For Handball, Basketball Clubs

The city of Paris will build a new venue “with at least 7,000 seats close to the AccorHotels Arena,” according to L’ÉQUIPE. The new building “will be built in the Parc de Bercy.” City of Paris Assistant to the Mayor for Sport & Tourism Jean-François Martins said, “We need a venue that is between Coubertin (almost 4,000 seats) and AccorHotels Arena of Bercy (15,000-17,000 seats). The idea is to construct a building with 7,000 to 8,000 seats, perfect for hosting handball and basketball clubs.” According to Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo, “the project is not related” to the city’s bid for the 2024 Olympic Games. She said, “The venue will be built no matter what happens.” It is expected to be finished between ’20 and ‘21 (L’ÉQUIPE, 1/25). In Paris, Pretti & Ventouillac reported when asked about the cost of the project, Martins said, “The cost of a modern arena starts at €10,000 ($10,825) per seat. So we arrived at a budget between €50 and €100 million ($54M-$108M)” (L’ÉQUIPE, 1/25).