Neom Stadium reportedly "shelved indefinitely"

Plans for Neom Stadium in Saudi Arabia, which was being built to host World Cup games in 2034, have been abandoned, according to reporting by news agency Reuters.

Reuters revealed yesterday that Saudi Arabia was "quietly shelving" the stadium.

"According to two sources, plans to build the Neom Stadium have now been shelved indefinitely," reported the agency.

One of 15 stadiums announced as the venues for the 2034 World Cup, the 46,000-seat Neom Stadium was billed as the "most unique stadium in the world" in the World Cup bid.

Set to be raised 350 metres above the ground, it was planned as part of The Line mega city, which was the centrepiece of the wider Neom development.

The news is the latest setback for the Neom project, with the planned 170-kilometre-long The Line city, itself, seemingly abandoned.

Saudi Arabia was planning to build and renovate 15 stadiums in four cities – Riyadh, Jeddah, Al Khobar and Abha – along with Neom, ahead of the tournament in eight years' time.

Neom Stadium was one of 11 new stadiums, with four existing stadiums set to be renovated or expanded.

It is unclear whether another stadium will be built to replace Neom Stadium, or if the tournament will be held in 14 stadiums. At the recently completed World Cup in the USA, Mexico and Canada, games were hosted in 16 stadiums.

The World Cup 2034 Hosting Higher Authority said that "substantial delivery" of the World Cup venues was underway when questioned by Reuters.

Several other planned World Cup stadiums in the country are progressing, including the Aramco Stadium by Populous, which is planned to open early next year.

Progress on Neom, which is located in the northwest of Saudi Arabia, has slowed in recent years, with its CEO Nadhmi al-Nasr departing in 2024 after a series of delays and controversies.

Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund asked consultants to conduct a feasibility review on The Line in 2025, which seemingly spelt the end to the vast spending on the project. It was later revealed that Neom was planning widespread redundancies.

Plans to host another major sports event at Neom were also cancelled, with the Trojena ski resort no longer hosting the 2029 Asian Winter Games.

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