Permit for new football stadium Club Brugge annulled

The environmental permit for a stadium with just over 40,000 seats was approved by the Flemish government in October 2021. But after an appeal by local residents, who criticized the parking demand and the mobility plan, among other things, the Council for Licensing Disputes decided to annul it.

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Minister Demir: “Quick solution”

Flemish Minister of the Environment Zuhal Demir wants to quickly work out a solution with Club Brugge now that the environmental permit for the new stadium has been cancelled.

“We are analyzing the decision of the Council for Permit Disputes and will bring everyone around the table as soon as possible,” says Demir. “After all, we remain determined to work out a solution for Club Brugge. Since one of the Council’s grounds for annulment is a conflict with a local ordinance of the city council of Bruges, the city of Bruges will also be fully involved in it. They seem at first to play a decisive role.”

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Ships Demon: “Regret Decision”

The Bruges Alderman for Spatial Planning Franky Demon (CD&V) regrets the decision of the Council for Permit Disputes in the stadium file. Demon especially emphasizes the urgency of a new stadium for the Bruges football teams.

“The plans to build a new and larger football stadium for Club Brugge date back to 2006. Time is now really running out: the Jan Breydel Stadium is finished and will possibly also be rejected at European level within a few years. A new stadium is therefore necessary to ensure the further growth of the club, both sportingly and economically.”

“It is a great pity that first-class football in Bruges is being put at risk and that our sporting pride and the economic life that is linked to it are played with,” Demon says. “The city council is currently reading the judgment very carefully and is sitting around the table with the parties involved to see what the best possible situation is.”

Nevertheless, the Bruges ships continue to believe in the file. “After all these years it is becoming increasingly difficult to remain positive, but I still believe in a successful outcome of this file so that we can continue to put Bruges football on the map in the future.”