Saudi Arabia has begun the procurement process for an estimated SR7bn ($1.8bn) contract to develop the kingdom’s next major sporting destination.

MEED understands that Qiddiya Investment Company (QIC) has received expressions of interest from contractors to build what is referred to as the National Athletics Stadium.

The client has scheduled further clarification meetings with prospective bidders in the coming weeks.

The multipurpose stadium will cover an area of approximately 182,000 square metres and is being benchmarked against the design of the London Olympic Stadium.

UK-based firm HOK is the project’s lead design consultant. It is supported by Canadian engineering firm WSP and Germany’s Schlaich Bergermann Partner.

UK-headquartered WT Partnership is serving as the project’s cost consultant.

The stadium will be located within the Qiddiya Sports Park cluster and is expected to be completed by 2030.

In December 2020, Saudi Arabia was selected to host the 2034 Asian Games. The 22nd edition of the event will be held in Riyadh from 29 November to 14 December 2034.

Saudi Arabia is also set to host the Asian Winter Games in 2029. In October 2022, the Trojena development at Neom, in the northwest of the country, was selected to host the ninth edition of the event.

Qiddiya projects

QIC is ramping up its construction efforts at the development. In October last year, MEED exclusively reported that QIC had started construction work on Prince Mohammed Bin Salman Stadium in Qiddiya City.

A joint venture of FCC Construction and Nesma & Partners won the contract, which covers the construction of a multipurpose stadium on top of the 200-metre-high Tuwaiq cliff in the sports and entertainment district of Qiddiya City.

QIC has also achieved key construction milestones on several schemes that are in the execution phase at the development.

In an update on its website, QIC said that the overall construction works on the Six Flags Qiddiya City project have reached 89% completion, while the Aquarabia theme park is at 84% and the golf courses are at 77%.

The construction of the development’s first bridge, which spans about 1 kilometre, has been completed.

The Qiddiya entertainment city project is one of Saudi Arabia’s five official gigaprojects, covering 360 square kilometres.

Contractors have also submitted bids for the contract to build the performing arts centre at Qiddiya Entertainment City.

The centre will have over 3,000 seats across three theatres. It will also include a cantilevered amphitheatre overlooking Qiddiya City’s lower plateau, with a 500-seat venue suspended from above.

The project is a key part of Riyadh’s strategy to boost leisure tourism in the kingdom. According to GlobalData, leisure tourism in Saudi Arabia has experienced significant growth in recent years.

Domestic leisure tourism trips increased to 33.76 million in 2023 from 16.74 million in 2018. International tourist arrivals for recreational purposes increased by 600% from 2018 to 2023.