Eintracht targets 80,000 capacity as Bundesliga stadium investment accelerates
Eintracht Frankfurt are studying an expansion of Deutsche Bank Park to as many as 80,000 seats as they target greater matchday and event revenues, while Bundesliga rivals SV Elversberg have secured approval for a smaller redevelopment needed to meet top-flight stadium requirements.
Eintracht Frankfurt have commissioned a feasibility study into expanding Deutsche Bank Park from 60,100 seats to as many as 80,000, with the club assessing options that could substantially increase matchday and event capacity.Two models are under consideration: adding a third tier to the existing structure or dismantling and rebuilding the stadium stand by stand while remaining on the current site.Eintracht Frankfurt Fußball AG chief executive Axel Hellmann said: “We are currently examining whether we can add a third tier or if we need to build a new one.“Our task is to plan this now so that it’s finished in 10 or 12 years.”The feasibility study is expected to take around six months and will examine how the club can increase capacity while protecting the atmosphere that has become one of Deutsche Bank Park’s key assets.Eintracht have also established two other principles for the project: maintaining the current ticket-pricing structure and developing the stadium into what they want to become Europe’s leading concert venue.That wider event strategy gives the potential expansion a commercial significance beyond Bundesliga matchdays, with additional capacity creating scope for higher ticketing, hospitality and non-football event revenues.The project would also sit alongside further development of the surrounding Frankfurt sports precinct. Populous was appointed in July to lead design work on the nearby P9 Multi-Purpose Arena, which is planned as a 12,000 to 13,000-seat sports venue with capacity of more than 15,000 for concerts.Elsewhere in the Bundesliga, SV Elversberg have received final planning approval for the expansion of the Ursapharm-Arena an der Kaiserlinde.The club are currently playing top-flight matches under a special licence from the German Football League after earning promotion for the 2026-27 season.Elversberg plan to expand the north stand by more than 5,000 places, taking total stadium capacity to around 15,500 and enabling the venue to meet long-term Bundesliga requirements.District administrator Sören Meng said the final approval followed an extensive review by the relevant authorities, with the permit granted subject to several conditions.The two projects reflect different ends of the Bundesliga stadium market, with Eintracht pursuing additional commercial scale while Elversberg invest to meet the infrastructure demands created by rapid sporting growth.