A Real Madrid members' assembly gave the go-ahead to redevelopment of the Santiago Bernabéu on Sunday, according to Pablo Polo of MARCA. There were 1,017 votes in favor, 57 against and 23 abstentions regarding a €525M ($618M) loan "to help pay for the work." The project "will go out to tender and the company that is chosen will be named" at the start of '19. The club plans for the work to begin at the end of this season and take three-and-a-half years. Club President Florentino Pérez explained that the new stadium will bring in an extra €150M ($176.5M) in revenue thanks to improvements to services, the Bernabéu Tour and the official store. He said, "Right now is the ideal moment with interest rates low, it is an opportunity to be taken advantage of. The best way to do it is to have long-term financing to give us economic solidity" (MARCA, 9/23). Polo also reported Pérez said, "It will be more modern, more secure. There are two objectives: improving comfort and accessibility for our fans and secondly, to obtain more income. All locations will have new seats, new services, two new towers in Castellana will allow for better exiting, better access and the movement of fans will be more fluid. Technological advances and audiovisual media will be present throughout the stadium as well as a new screen. There will be 800 new locations for people with different disabilities and two new club stores, one in Castellana and the other in Padre Damián" (MARCA, 9/23).
THE GOING RATE?: Polo also reported Real Madrid fans' "main concern was the cost of the project." It will be more expensive than, for example, Atlético Madrid's Wanda Metropolitano or Athletic Bilbao's San Mamés and "many members felt they were not given enough information over the work" while they also believe that the decision "should have gone to a referendum as stated in the club's statutes" (MARCA, 9/23).
