2026 Mediterranean Games between Brindisi, Lecce and Taranto: the first tenders for 120 million euros are launched

Two years after the Mediterranean Games, the 20th edition of which - 4,500 athletes from various sports disciplines are expected - will be held in 2026 in Taranto as the main venue, plus other competitions between Brindisi, Lecce and the municipalities of Taranto, Barese and Brindisi, the tenders for the most important works will start next week. Between Monday and Tuesday, the start is scheduled for the Iacovone stadium and the multi-purpose PalaRicciardi. Both are facilities to be renovated in Taranto. This will be followed, in the same week, by the tender to build the swimming stadium, also in Taranto, with two 50-metre Olympic pools. The three tenders, which set in motion works worth 120 million euro, were unblocked after the Court of Auditors registered the decree of Ministers Raffaele Fitto, Andrea Abodi and Giancarlo Giorgetti on 30 August concerning the financing of 106.931 million euro for the second masterplan of works for the Mediterranean Games. In detail, the Iacovone stadium commits 59.750 million euro, the swimming stadium 41 million and the PalaRicciardi 23.800 million. The works were financed between the first and second masterplan and drew from the total budget of 275 million that the government made available for the Games: 150 in 2022 and 125 in 2023 with the Budget Law. The second masterplan financed the design extensions of the three facilities and allocated 31.750 million to the Iacovone, 11.800 to the multi-purpose Ricciardi and 4.100 to the swimming stadium. The first masterplan of 167 million obtained the interministerial decree and the approval of the Court of Auditors already in the past months;

The projects for the Iacovone and the PalaRicciardi were prepared, on the commissioner's mandate, by the public company Sport e Salute, which will now also handle the tender, while that for the swimming stadium was prepared by a design studio in Prato, which won an international ideas competition, while another public company, Invitalia, will handle the tender. The three projects were approved at the respective service conferences and verified. For the Iacovone, a 3-million-euro phase will start first, concerning the demolition of the unfit lower ring (estimated three months for execution), and then, in early January 2025, the most complex part. With the renovation, the Iacovone will have a capacity of 21 thousand spectators, the roof and a series of other facilities. The timetable set by the commissioner envisages that, once the tenders have been launched, the companies will make their offers. They should be given 30 days. In the evaluation of the bids, the economically most advantageous one will be taken into account. Being integrated tenders, the winning companies will then have to draw up the executive projects;

The fourth tender, regarding major works, which will be on the launching pad - Invitalia should take care of it - will concern the nautical centre for sailing, canoeing and rowing competitions in Taranto's Mar Piccolo. In this regard, there is a project that Asset Puglia has prepared for the municipality of Taranto that is currently being verified. The amount, financed by the first masterplan, is EUR 14.635 million. For this work, in the coming week the commissioner will assign the task of designing the sea works, which are currently missing. This concerns the race course, which will have nine corridors, together with the floating structure that will hold the boats in place at the start, the control tower for the alignment in the start area and the one for the photo finish at the finish, and the jetties to allow the racers to take their boats out to sea and then bring them back to dry land. Another major intervention concerns the renovation of the Lecce stadium for 36.300 million, 25 million of which for the roof alone. The first project step is being verified, the second, which concerns the roofing, has yet to be finalised. It remains to be clarified whether the municipality of Lecce will launch the tenders or the commissioner will delegate public companies as in Taranto to speed up the time;

Summarising the numbers, Commissioner Ferrarese states that the 275 million allocated concerns 21 municipalities to carry out 40 works. Mostly renovations and extensions. "In Taranto, there are investments of about 160 million because Taranto is the capital of the Games," he comments. "In the province of Taranto, it comes to 205 million, while the other 70 are in the other provinces. However, the imminent start of the tenders does not solve all the problems. There are at least two: the time available and the financing of organisational expenses that will require 35-40 million. With regard to the timeframe, the works must be built in 18 months to allow for testing before the start of the Games, and in this regard Ferrarese says: 'We have to pull out all the stops and be optimistic. Our goal is to get everything done in such a short time to try to be ready for the Mediterranean Games. I ask for great cooperation to achieve the goal,' he says. For the organisation, finally, the government could make more funds available. Among the various expenses to be covered, there is also the chartering of two large cruise ships to be moored in Taranto to host the athletes and their delegations.