A glimpse of the LDLC Arena in its Olympic configuration.
Where will men's ice hockey games be played in 2030? The organizing committee for the French Alps 2030 Games has a few weeks to decide. find a fallback solution following the failure of the Nice projectThe Lyon option quickly emerged, for obvious geographical reasons, but also because the LDLC Arena will already host the Ice Hockey World Championship in 2028. Alexandre Aulas, president of ThrillStage (the company that operates the LDLC Arena), and Xavier Pierrot, deputy managing director of the venue, explain their arguments to Francs Jeux.
When did you start thinking about the Winter Olympics?
Xavier Pierrot: When the Games were awarded, on July 24, 2024, from that moment on, we said to ourselves why not.
Alexandre Aulas: We sensed there might be organizational difficulties on the Nice side, given the project and the time constraints. We quickly positioned ourselves as a player who could intervene if any problems arose. We respected the established timelines and the stakes involved in the Nice area. We always maintained that if a problem were to arise, we would respond and try to find a solution.
What kind of discussions do you have with the COJOP?
XP: Officially, we've been in discussions for about ten days. But we've been in touch for months, since they're neighbors, just a few steps below our offices (the Paris 2024 Organizing Committee is located in Décines-Charpieu). We've always said we didn't understand the choice of the Allianz Riviera. We were told it was a political decision, and we respected the elected officials of both regions and the commitments made from the outset. You haven't heard us in the media, but we made it clear that we didn't understand how, for Games that aim to be highly sustainable and economically responsible, hockey could be played in a stadium. We've always maintained that we were a very relevant, and above all, effective, Plan B.
AA: We had to mobilize to respond to this application, which was quite complex to prepare. We are very pleased to have managed to mobilize in such a short time to respond in what I believe is a very high-quality manner, demonstrating our strong commitment.
It has been announced that there will be approximately 8.300 seats at the LDLC Arena for the 2028 Ice Hockey World Championship. Is that correct?
XP: It's not finalized yet. They're still working on the rink sizes; there are differences between North America and the rest of the world. Depending on the size, the capacity can vary. We've also been working recently on expansions, with the possibility of adding seats, either permanent or temporary. We're trying to optimize the capacity so that, in net capacity, it's a few hundred more than you mentioned. In gross capacity, according to the bid, we're at over 11.000 seats. For the Olympics, we know the size of the rink; it's four meters narrower, which allows us to increase the number of seats.
AA: The gross capacity is the number of available seats, and depending on the organizer's organizational choices, they may remove certain seats, such as press box seats.
XP: That's not within our control, so we can't give a net capacity figure. It depends on the organizer, whether they add cameras or anything else that reduces the number of available spaces. For 2028, we're hoping for a net capacity of between 9,000 and 10.000 rather than around 8,500.
Isn't that a bit of a lightweight measure, considering the huge revenue stakes for the COJOP (Organizing Committee for the Olympic and Paralympic Games) surrounding ice hockey?
AA: No, I don't think so. The schedule of expenses that was given to us comes from the Organizing Committee for the Olympic and Paralympic Games (COJOP); we didn't impose this minimum capacity of 10.000 gross seats. We're currently working with a solution that provides 11.126 gross seats. We see that hockey ticket sales are one of the most important, if not the most important, of the Olympics, but it's only one component. Having a full, beautiful arena that showcases international hockey is a solution that has great value for everyone.
XP: If you compare the budget allocated for the Allianz Riviera to the ticket revenue, I think the cost of setting up the temporary ice rink exceeded the revenue generated. We incur four times fewer expenses by coming to the LDLC Arena than by going to the Allianz Riviera, which will inevitably optimize the net profit from ticket sales when you factor in the costs.
Paris is offering more seats at the Accor Arena. Aren't you worried about being affected?
AA: I don't know the exact details of their offer, but what I do know is that we're talking about the 2030 Alpine Olympics. They have to stay in the regions that submitted bids. For me, Paris doesn't make sense. It's not for nothing that the Organizing Committee for the Olympic and Paralympic Games (COJOP) set up two floors below; it was consistent with the location of the other venues. Our solution offers a large capacity, consistency, and we can produce great visuals – we see that with basketball or even wrestling when WWE came. We also bring something that's perhaps a bit overlooked, but shouldn't be: the environmental impact. We're probably the most environmentally responsible venue in Europe. If, in the future, we want to have the most sustainable Games, both financially and environmentally, we're an obvious solution.
XP: We use geothermal energy, we have photovoltaic panels (which produce 41% of the site's total energy consumption), rainwater harvesting (1,2 million liters collected in 2024-2025), and we respect biodiversity (with integrated nesting areas)... All of this was implemented from the design and construction stages. We hope that this will also be reflected in the overall assessment. We shouldn't just look at the financial results.
How much would it cost COJOP to use the services of LDLC Arena?
AA: We have made our offer to the COJOP, but at this stage we are not allowed to communicate details for obvious competitive matters.
There wouldn't be a problem with Asvel, who are used to using the hall?
AA: There is a total willingness from all stakeholders in the region to get involved: political parties, the city, the metropolitan area, the region… There is also motivation from economic players, including ASVEL. ASVEL plays most of its Betclic Elite games at the Astroballe arena, and we know we can count on their support. The entire region wants the Games here. What's being asked of us at this stage is a three-month commitment. This can be refined. I was with Gaëtan Müller (the club's managing director) just last Friday, and to my knowledge, there are no issues.
Are other meetings planned with the COJOP in the coming days?
AA: They visited the site with a technical and operational team on Wednesday, May 6th. Today, we're waiting for feedback and to answer questions from the Organizing Committee for the 2024 Olympic Games (COJOP), which will follow this initial review of our bid. We're going to demonstrate to everyone that the LDLC Arena is the most understated, the most sensible choice in every respect, and one that will also allow the Games to truly take place.
XP: To date, technical visits have been conducted by people who know the venue very well. Some of them even helped design it back when they worked at Olympique Lyonnais. There's a positive atmosphere. People from the Paris 2024 Organizing Committee (COJOP) also come to the venue from time to time to enjoy themselves and experience the excitement. We hope there will be overall coherence. Everyone came back from Milan saying that the venues were really far apart. These days, you can get from Lyon to Briançon in three hours. There's no logic in going to Paris. The names of the two regions speak for themselves: Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur and Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes. Île-de-France isn't the Alps. There's a lot of talk about decentralization, we've just had very successful Olympic Games in Paris, and two regions have applied on behalf of France to host the 2030 Winter Games. We hope this coherence will be maintained throughout.
