Real Deportivo De La Coruña Unveils New Populous-Designed Training Facility
Spanish club Real Club Deportivo de La Coruña has presented plans for its new Dépor Training Center, designed by leading sports design practice, Populous.
The designs were unveiled at an event attended by club president Carlos Escotet; CEO Massimo Benassi; Jorge Betancor, architect and managing director of Populous España; Iván Sánchez, head of infrastructure at Dépor; and first-team players Yeremay Hernández and Elena Vázquez.
With an investment of approximately €40m, and a development timeline of two to three years, the new Dépor Training Center will house the men’s, women’s and academy teams, and is conceived as ‘the home of everything Deportivo’.
A home for sporting and personal growth
The state-of-the-art complex will be designed to meet the immediate and long-term needs of all club teams, while also serving as a hub for the development of young players.
As Deportivo CEO, Benassi, explained: “The youth academy is the backbone of the club. It’s not just a sporting commitment but a long-term social, educational and economic investment. It’s the driving force behind our sustainability and our identity.”
President Juan Carlos Escotet, added: “This will be a place where talent takes root, where the dreams of boys and girls begin to grow, where every drop of sweat in training becomes the seed of tomorrow’s success.”
World-Class Facilities
Following the recent acquisition of adjoining land, the redeveloped training complex will cover a larger footprint and include:
– Eight full-size pitches replicating the dimensions of the club’s ABANCA-RIAZOR stadium
– Three additional warm-up pitches.
– A 7,650 m² main building for the first team and Fabril (B-Team), integrating club offices to foster closer interaction between players and management.
– Cutting-edge recovery and wellness spaces, including a swimming pool, rest areas, and facilities for sports medicine, physiotherapy, psychology, and nutrition.
A Collaboration for the Future
Jorge Betancor, architect and managing director of Populous España, commented: “We are proud to collaborate with Deportivo on this project, which will play a key role in the club’s return to the top tier of Spanish football.
“The Dépor Training Center has been designed to meet the demands of the next generation of footballers, while providing the best possible working environment for coaches, staff, and visitors alike.
“It reflects the local expertise of our Populous España team and the global experience we bring from designing hundreds of high-performance centres around the world.”
Images: Populous/Deportivo
