SK Rapid Vienna has concluded another important milestone in the new stadium project. Following intensive and fruitful discussions we're delighted to announce The Allianz Group Austria as our new partner. The new stadium, which will be erected on the Gerhard-Hanappi Stadium's current site will be known as 'Allianz Stadium'.The key aspect of our new marketing partnership is the naming rights for Rapid's new home which is due for completion in 2016. "We're thrilled that in the Allianz Group Austria we have found a long term and renowned partner. The values that we share, a commitment to long term visions with standards befitting an international stage connect us", explained delighted General Manager Werner Kuhn. "The Allianz Stadium will be the cutting edge stadium in Austria with an intricate viewer concept and impressive architecture - with improvements for those in the stands."For Allianz its a symbol full of connotationsAllianz has been involved in supporting sport at the highest levels both on a national and international level. Through their involvement in sport, Allianz has provided thousands of people worldwide with experiences that will remain with them throughout their lives. Allianz has already given its name to five sporting arenas around the world - The Allianz Stadium in Vienna will be the sixth."Giving your name to a sports stadium has a significant emotional aspect: We're thrilled to have this unique opportunity to connect our brand to the next generation Rapid stadium", said Allianz's Sales Director Christoph Marek. "This partnership is our contribution towards supporting one of the most traditions-rich football clubs in Austria, which makes us proud!"The Allianz Group Austria is part of the global Allianz SE concern, who employ approx. 150,000 people in 70 countries, providing services for more than 83 million customers. Domestically, Allianz's insurance services make it a market leader, with approximately 3,600 employees and more than 1.1 million customers they have been active in the Austrian market for over 150 years. The stadium partnership and related activities will not only increase awareness of the Allianz brand, it will also serve the dual function of further connecting an already heavily engaged Allianz to the sporting world.The next stage - presentation of further details on 10th June 2014On the 10th June the details of the partnership with The Allianz Group Austria will be presented in the Vienna City Hall via a meeting of club members. The presentations will include visuals of the new stadium from contractor STRABAG. We ask for your understanding as no further details of the partnership will be given before these appointments on the Tuesday following Pentecost!Whilst the partnership with The Allianz Group Austria represents a huge step towards securing a new stadium there are still some hurdles to be negotiated. There is further correspondence required with representatives of the City, the district and various other authorities. "The target was, and remains, in the coming weeks to finalize outstanding bureaucratic procedures over which we exert some influence", explained Rapid President Michael Krammer.Rapid may play fixtures in the coming season in an alternative venue, and should that be the case the fixture against Celtic FC (details available here) would be a farewell match in the Hanappi Stadium. "We are aware that by that point we still wont have formal planning permission", said Michael Krammer, "but as this is a new build project we should be able to complete the procedures fairly quickly", explained the Rapid President in an optimistic tone. Therefore work beginning to deconstruct the Hanappi Stadium could begin as early as July, with matches involving the reserves or the youth teams will be played parallel to the building works. However, the staging of league or European fixtures would be costly, requiring six-figure investment (e.g. the ground will no longer comply with Austrian Football Association licensing requirements in terms of floodlights).
06.06.2014