ROTTERDAM, 19 November 2025 – Rotterdam has set out its ambitions for a new Excelsior stadium in Kralingen, with space for sport, housing, health facilities and greenery. The plan aims to create a lively, mixed-use district around the club’s home ground, giving more room to residents, students, cyclists and pedestrians.
New Excelsior stadium to combine sport, housing and green space
A new and larger football stadium for Excelsior, combined with facilities for elite and community sport, recreation, health and housing, forms the core of an ambition document approved by the municipal executive. The plan envisages a greener setting where walking and cycling routes are prioritised and public space is arranged as a welcoming entrance to the city’s east side.
The current Woudestein ground in Kralingen-Oost is considered due for renewal and expansion in order to remain future-proof. The idea is to develop a mix of sport facilities, housing, economic functions and social services, such as a health centre. Under the working title Nieuw Excelsior Stadion (Nieuw Excelsior Stadion, NEST), the area is intended to become a warm, local base for residents of surrounding neighbourhoods. The ambitions have been drawn up jointly by the municipality, Stichting Betaald Voetbal Excelsior, the Excelsior Realisatie Combinatie (Cordeel, Focus on Impact and Stebru), social organisations and residents’ groups.
A future-proof home for Excelsior
According to general director Daan Bovenberg, Excelsior is increasingly running up against the limits of the existing stadium, both in football terms and in the commercial development needed to support the club’s ambitions. In his view, the club needs to rely less on results on the pitch and more on a broader and more diverse flow of income from its facilities. The stadium development is therefore seen as a way of building a more stable foundation for the entire organisation.
Rather than only expanding capacity, the project looks at how the site can be used throughout the week. By combining stands, training and match facilities with workspaces, social functions and services such as health care, the club and its partners want the stadium to serve as a local anchor point. The intention is that the building will be in use during the day and evening, not only on match days.
Green public space and better connections
Alderman Chantal Zeegers (Climate, Building and Housing) describes the ambitions as a shift from a single-purpose venue to a multifunctional sports complex, with room for recreation, living, working and health facilities. She expects the area around the stadium to become a lively district where activity takes place up to sixteen hours a day, seven days a week. An important element is new housing close to Erasmus University, including student homes, responding to the high demand for student accommodation in Rotterdam.
The plan also mentions a green stadium square at the junction on Abraham van Rijckevorselweg, between the public transport stop and the Excelsior site. Around the new stadium, walking and cycling routes are to be improved and made safer, so that visitors and residents can reach the area more comfortably. Existing nearby amenities, including Arboretum Trompenburg, speeltuin Kralingen, childcare and the local scouting group, are expected to retain their place alongside the new development.
Part of Rotterdam’s east flank development
The ambition document for the new Excelsior stadium has been submitted to the city council. In the coming period, the municipality and Excelsior will continue to work out the plans in more detail, including further research into how traffic will be handled in the new situation. The outcome of these studies will determine how the stadium and its surroundings can be fitted into the wider mobility network.
The Excelsior project is part of the broader “Oostflank” vision for the city, covering the area between Prins Alexander and Zuidplein. Rotterdam plans to build around 30,000 homes here in the coming years to meet growing demand for housing. The housing programme is linked to a new urban bridge between IJsselmonde and Kralingen and to faster public transport between Zuidplein and Kralingse Zoom, with the new stadium area forming one of the recognisable locations along this axis.
How to get to Excelsior Stadion
Excelsior’s ground is located in Kralingen-Oost, close to Erasmus University and the Abraham van Rijckevorselweg, on the eastern approach to the city. The stadium can be reached by bicycle from surrounding neighbourhoods, by public transport via tram and bus stops along the main road, and by car using nearby arterial routes with local parking options in the area. On match days and for future events in the expanded complex, many visitors are expected to arrive by bike or public transport, making use of the improved walking and cycling connections around the stadium.
