Helsinki to gain second multipurpose arena

After years without an active arena, Finland’s capital is set to become home to two large indoor venues.

It is hoped that Helsinki’s former Hartwall Arena (cap. 15,500) will be able to reopen in late spring after being mothballed for almost three years due to sanctions relating to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Currently owned by Arena Events Oy (AEO), a company co-founded by oligarchs Gennady Timchenko and Roman Rotenberg, the venue is in the process of being sold to investment firm Trevian, pending approval from both the Finnish authorities and the EU.

“We have found a solution that suited us as buyers, that suited the Russian sellers, and a solution that was also potentially acceptable to the authorities,” Trevian CEO Reima Södervall said last month.

Elsewhere, Finnish project management contractor SRV has been selected as partner to develop Garden Helsinki.

The scheme will include a 19,000-cap multipurpose arena and connected hotel, offices, car park and residential buildings in the neighbourhood of Töölö. It will be located close to the Helsinki indoor skating rink, Bolt Arena and Helsinki Olympic Stadium.

“We will bring our diverse experience in similar arena projects in Tampere and Turku”

The company, which previously built Tampere’s Nokia Arena (cap. 15,000), has signed an agreement with Projekti GH Oy, which is overseeing the €800 million project. Described as including “the world’s most modern arena”, construction work is due to start in spring 2026.

SRV is also behind a new 9,800-capacity multi-purpose arena scheduled to be built in the town of Hyvinkää – less than 30 miles from Helsinki – by the end of 2026, as well as a separate complex in the southwestern city of Turku.

“We are delighted to work with Project GH Oy and the City of Helsinki to develop a new event hub in Töölö,” says SRV president and CEO Saku Sipola. “We will bring our diverse experience in similar arena projects in Tampere and Turku. Nokia Arena, developed jointly by the City of Tampere and SRV, includes offices, hotel and apartments and has generated a sense of vitality and substantial economic activity in the city.

“It has also been shown to support the City of Tampere’s strategy and image as an international event city. We believe that Garden Helsinki will provide Helsinki with a similarly significant appeal, stimulation and competitiveness as a city of sports, culture and major events.”

Garden Helsinki was originally due to be completed in stages from 2020 to 2023, but was delayed by the pandemic.

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