Euro giants who beat Arsenal unveil plans for state-of-the-art new stadium with huge ‘wall' to intimidate opponents
The new modern ground design is shaped to create a 'fan wall' to improve atmosphere and intimidate opponents.
3
3
The stadium concept, designed by architecture company Populous, will raise the capacity to just under 42,000.
The stadium - which would replace the club's current Toumba Stadium but keep its name - would sit on a 'podium' which will make it a landmark among its surroundings in the Greek city of Thessaloniki.
This podium will also be used to house multi-level plazas to provide public spaces on non-matchdays.
Populous' concept announcement says: "At the heart of the precinct lies the PAOK Plaza — a civic square hosting the club museum, official store, cafes and bars, and serving as the symbolic 'front door' to the stadium."
The design is also specifically geared towards amplifying the already infamous atmosphere of Greek football.
Populous' announcement continued: "The seating arrangement is engineered to create a continuous 'fan wall', bringing spectators closer to the action with minimal tiers, enhancing both intimacy and acoustic resonance."
English fans might be most familiar with PAOK for their Europa League giant killing of Arsenal in 1997.
PAOK beat Arsene Wenger's Gunners 2-1 over two legs, including a 1-1 draw at Highbury in which an 87th minute equaliser from Zisis Vryzas sent the Greeks through.
JOIN SUN VEGAS: GET £50 BONUS
They went on to be knocked out in the next round by Atletico Madrid in a chaotic tie that finish 6-9 on aggregate, including a second leg that ended 4-4 in Greece.
On home soil, PAOK are established title challengers, last winning the Super League in the 2023/24 season.
Viktor Gyokeres prepares for LOAN as Arsenal saga rumbles on | Transfers Exposed
3
Now they will hope their new look stadium concept will mark them as a premier destination for players looking to prove themselves in Greek football.
There is no timeline yet for when the club will be able to bring this concept to life, but the visuals provide a glimpse into a potential near future for the Greek giants.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Independent
23 minutes ago
- The Independent
Is Portugal vs Ireland on TV? Kick-off time, channel and how to watch
Ireland continue their summer trip around Europe with a meeting with an emerging Portugal in Lisbon. A win over Georgia last week represented a solid start for a young Ireland side shorn of their British and Irish Lions stars and several coaches, with interim boss Paul O'Connell now seeking a second success. Ireland have used Portugal as a training base regularly under the leadership of Andy Farrell but this a first Test between the two nations. Having so enlivened the 2023 Rugby World Cup, Os Lobos will be looking to impress again in a relatively rare opportunity to take on a top side. Here's everything you need to know. When is Portugal vs Ireland? Portugal vs Ireland is due to kick off at 7pm BST on Saturday 12 July at the Estadio Nacional in Lisbon. How can I watch it? Viewers in the United Kingdom can stream the match live on RugbyPass TV, while the action will be shown live on Virgin Media in Ireland. Team news Portugal's side contains plenty of familiar faces from their 2023 World Cup campaign, with centre Tomas Appleton leading an Os Lobos squad that is largely French-based. Flanker Nicolas Martins spent last season with Montpellier though is now bound for Colomiers, while hooker Luka Begic is a talent in the front row. Ireland hand out three debuts in their starting side: wing Shayne Bolton and flanker Alex Kendellen were originally named in an XV that centre Hugh Gavin has joined after Jamie Osborne's call up as injury cover with the British and Irish Lions. Jack Crowley takes over from Sam Prendergast at fly half. Line-ups Portugal XV: 1 David Costa, 2 Luka Begic, 3 Diogo Hasse Ferreira; 4 Antonio Rebelo de Andrade, 5 Pedro Ferreira; 6 David Wallis, 7 Nicolas Martins, 8 Diego Pinheiro Ruiz; 9 Hugo Camacho, 10 Hugo Aubry; 11 Manuel Cardoso Pinto, 12 Tomas Appleton (capt.), 13 Vincent Pinto, 14 Simao Bento; 15 Nuno Sousa Guedes. Replacements: 16 Abel da Cunha, 17 Santiago Lopes, 18 Martim Souto, 19 Guilherme Costa, 20 Francisco Almeida, 21 Vasco Baptista; 22 Antonio Campos, 23 Gabriel Aviragnet. Ireland XV: 1 Jack Boyle, 2 Gus McCarthy, 3 Tom Clarkson; 4 Tom Ahern, 5 Darragh Murray; 6 Ryan Baird, 7 Alex Kendellen, 8 Cian Prendergast; 9 Craig Casey (capt.), 10 Jack Crowley; 11 Shayne Bolton, 12 Stuart McCloskey, 13 Hugh Gavin, 14 Tommy O'Brien; 15 Jimmy O'Brien.
The Guardian
23 minutes ago
- The Guardian
Beever-Jones relishing chance to put herself in the picture with Lionesses
Aggie Beever-Jones doesn't have much tournament experience. The England striker missed out on the 2020 under-17 Euros owing to Covid cancellations and featured at only the under-19s Euros in 2022, where she scored twice in the group stage against Norway, before arriving at Euro 2025. By the time a player breaks into the senior side they usually have several tournaments under their belt but Covid means Beever-Jones is a part of the generation of young players coming through that lost out. 'I was unfortunate in that sense when I was growing up,' she says. 'I've never really experienced tournament football and being away from family. It was a crazy time in the world; I think everyone was a bit unsure what was going on. We were lucky enough that football was able to carry on. 'That's why I think it makes it a bit more special this time round. It is my first proper tournament and at the highest level. It's exactly where I want to be. I feel comfortable enough to push for my place as well as getting pushed every day to become a better person and player. So I'm really, really enjoying it. Hopefully we can make our mark and keep going.' The 21-year-old made her senior tournament debut on Wednesday night, coming on in place of Alessia Russo in the 84th minute of England's 4-0 defeat of the Netherlands, and hopes to play a part on Sunday against Wales. The Chelsea forward's former manager Emma Hayes spoke of the impact Beever-Jones could have on the international stage at the end of her tenure at the club, saying: 'Aggie Beever-Jones. Don't forget that name. She's going to be a legend not just for Chelsea but for England.' Beever-Jones says she feels 'extremely lucky' to have achieved her goal of getting to these Euros and reflects on Hayes' assessment by saying: 'For Emma to say those words about me, that probably is one of the best compliments I've ever had, and from such an incredible person. I'm just looking to help where I can and enjoy it. I've always said I play my best football when I'm enjoying it.' Making sure you enjoy it off the pitch matters too at a tournament. Taking photos is one of Beever-Jones's means of distraction. 'There's a few of us,' she says. 'I know Alex [Greenwood] bought a camera recently. It's just nice to find some hobbies outside of football sometimes. The prints are in my journal – got a few Polaroids stuck in there … it's finding the beauty in the little things and just being able to explore a beautiful city and enjoy it.' Stepping out of the team bubble to hang out with family and friends also helps. 'It's refreshing to come out of that bubble sometimes and take a step back to spend time with your family and not talk about football,' says Beever-Jones. 'My sister's not a football-head at all so I just talk to her about everything but football. She's a midwife; I talk a lot to her about her work. She has her boyfriend here who's equally one of my best friends and it's just nice to have that relationship. And equally with my mum and dad as well, just spending time and having a general family catchup. It's a great balance of: you come here, you switch on, we have the bubble, and, equally, you can go out and have a coffee and enjoy time with your family and switch off from football.' Beever-Jones waits for the chance to make her mark on this tournament and announce herself on the world stage like Alessia Russo and Ella Toone did as England's super subs in 2022. 'That would be the dream,' she says. 'For me, it's about trusting Sarina [Wiegman] and trusting the process. We have a squad full of incredible players. I just have to take my opportunity when it comes. I was grateful to come on the other day and show a little bit of what I can do. Hopefully I get some more opportunities to do that.' Was it disheartening not to feature in the opening defeat by France, with Michelle Agyemang the player who came on? 'Me and Sarina had a conversation and ultimately I have to respect her decision,' she says. 'She did say it was a tough game and she looked elsewhere to bring other people on and I just have to respect that. I know my strengths and I have done it for two years coming off the bench for Chelsea and hopefully making an impact. 'Sarina is well aware of that and I respected that decision. She knows I'll be ready no matter what, whenever the time comes. I'm just delighted we were able to turn it around the other night. It doesn't mean anything if we don't go and beat Wales.'
The Independent
29 minutes ago
- The Independent
‘I have still got so much to give': Callum Wilson on leaving Newcastle and new opportunities
Callum Wilson has been watching a lot of football. It wasn't all preparation for a month of punditry. He feels he has watched too much in the last few months; the last two years, really. And not from the DAZN studio or a gantry but the dugout. During his time analysing the Club World Cup, he became a footballer without a club, his stay at Newcastle ending when his contract expired. Yet it will not prompt a free transfer to any of the sport's broadcasters. Not yet, anyway. 'I am 33. I have still got so much to give in the game,' he said. 'I feel mentally and physically still able to more than contribute in however many games in a season.' It was why he left Newcastle. Theirs was a successful season: a first trophy since 1969, a fifth placed finish to return to the Champions League. Yet his was a frustrating campaign on a personal level: a tally of 18 Premier League appearances does not tell the whole story when 16 were in cameos, many of them brief, and the goalscorer's only goal came in the FA Cup. Wilson suffered from the success of a man he regards as one of the finest in his position in the global game. If he was an underused understudy, it is because the first choice was first class. 'It is just difficult, you are playing at a club when you have got arguably one of the best strikers in world football at the moment, in the form of Alex Isak,' he said. 'To break in is difficult. I am never one who shies away from a fight, I would happily be there to push and take my opportunity when it arose, but it just didn't seem to arise in the back end of the season. I was fit from January, I made two starts and numerous substitute appearances but they were all five or 10 minutes here or there. Alex deserves the right [to play]. He had has a fantastic two seasons at the club, all credit to Alex, but I don't see myself permanently cemented as a No 2 striker.' And it was that sense that drove him to leave St James' Park after 'an amazing' five seasons. 'I don't want the last few years of my career to fizzle out and sit around on the bench and just collect money but not actually contribute to these wins, to these Champions League games, to these cup finals,' he explained. 'You want to be part of it, you want to be scoring and assisting in these games and deciding these matches. Being the character I am, being as motivated as I am and ambitious in terms of trying to get into the hundred club and things like that, it was the right decision to leave Newcastle.' The hundred club Wilson cites is the Premier League striking elite, the men with a century of goals in the division. He has been stuck on 88 for more than a year. Yet a forward who prides himself on his numbers can threaten to be in a different sort of hundred club. He averaged a goal every 109 minutes in the Premier League in 2023-24, one every 104 the previous season. It is a return many another forward could only envy. But, Wilson reflected: 'You have to be on the pitch to get these opportunities. When you are sitting on the bench, you are watching the team create so many chances but you are not on the pitch to take them, you are itching to get on.' Now he is itching for another chance. 'You want to play at the highest level so that is my ambition,' he added. 'I am not saying wherever I go, I have to be first-choice striker but the rotation is going to be fair. I feel like I can break in and dislodge people within different leagues in my position.' And there was an Isak-shaped roadblock to his ambitions at Newcastle, a player with 44 league goals in the last two seasons. Newcastle don't want to sell Isak. Wilson could not bank on him moving on. 'If I was to pride myself on staying because Alex might leave and he doesn't leave, it bites me on the backside,' he said. But there were conversations about his future with Eddie Howe, his former Bournemouth manager. Theirs has been a productive, long-term alliance. Now Wilson is looking for another patron. He is determined to be in the best possible shape. 'I am going to put myself now into a fitness camp for a short period of time and during that time I will be making a decision on my future,' he said. And meanwhile, Newcastle face the question of how to replace him. Wilson's punditry career has given him a glimpse of one of their summer striking targets. Instead, Joao Pedro scored a Club World Cup semi-final double for Chelsea. 'He looks like a fantastic signing,' Wilson said. 'Newcastle were trying to sign him as well which unfortunately didn't happen for them.' A new addition to the punditry team has tried to be an empathetic assessor of his peers. 'When a striker misses an opportunity, it is not for the want of trying,' he said. 'Was it the wrong technique or what happened five seconds before? I was trying to analyse it from that point of things rather than criticising.' Indeed, he said, he has never needed the pundits to find fault in his game when it has gone wrong. 'I am probably my biggest critic and I analyse myself more than anyone else would so when I play well, I don't really feel I need to seek validation of people telling me I play good,' he added. But he hopes to play, and play well. Even as he explores his future, he is hoping to postpone part of it. Punditry, he says, was about 'experiencing something new, something different, something I have thought would I be interested in post career'. But that career, he believes, has plenty of games and goals left in it.
