Saudi Arabian gigaproject developer Roshn has invited firms to prequalify for a contract to build a new stadium located adjacent to the National Guard facilities in the southwest of Riyadh.

MEED understands that the notice was issued earlier this month with a deadline of 22 October.

The planned facility, which is understood to be called the National Guard Stadium, will cover an area of over 450,000 square metres and have the capacity to accommodate 46,000 spectators.

The scope of work also covers the construction of auxiliary facilities, including training academy offices, two hotels, and retail and food and beverage outlets.

The stadium is scheduled to host 32 Fifa World Cup tournament games in 2034.

In August, MEED reported that Saudi Arabia plans to build 11 new stadiums as part of its bid to host the 2034 Fifa World Cup.

Eight out of the 15 stadiums will be located in Riyadh, four in Jeddah and one each in Al-Khobar, Abha and Neom.

The proposal outlines an additional 10 cities that will host training bases. These are Al-Baha, Jazan, Taif, Medina, Alula, Umluj, Tabuk, Hail, Al-Ahsa and Buraidah.

The bid proposes 134 training sites across the kingdom, including 61 existing facilities and 73 new training venues.

Saudi Arabia formally kicked off the World Cup participation process in October last year after it announced that it planned to bid to host the event. At the time, it was announced that the Saudi Arabian Football Federation would lead the World Cup bid.

Later the same month, Saudi Arabia was effectively confirmed as the 2034 Fifa World Cup host after Australia, the only other bidder for the tournament, withdrew from the race.

This was followed by Saudi Arabia’s official bid campaign reveal and the submission of its bid to Fifa.

The official selection of Saudi Arabia as the 2034 host is expected to be confirmed on 11 December.