“The viewer will come with pleasure”: Putin and Lukashenko visited the SKA Arena and received hockey jerseys as a gift

“Everything is provided, generously and luxuriously for the audience”

The opening of new sports facilities in the KHL has recently become a pleasant trend. In 2019, Dynamo found its new home. In 2022, Avangard finally returned to Omsk, having previously been forced to live in Balashikha. Last September, the team of the same name from Novosibirsk moved to the Siberia Arena.

And in the near future, the SKA Arena will open its doors, which boasts the largest capacity in the world for hockey competitions - 21.5 thousand people. Already on February 11, in the debut match, the hosts will host regular season outsider Sochi.

Just two weeks before the important event, the facility was visited by Vladimir Putin and Alexander Lukashenko. The presidents of Russia and Belarus arrived at the complex in the late afternoon and carefully examined it, accompanied by the head coach of the army team Roman Rotenberg, the general director of the club Dmitry Konstantinov and the city governor Alexander Beglov. The mentor willingly talked about the arena and answered questions from the guests of honor.

After walking through the floors and appreciating the incredible scale of the new building for this type, they went to the locker room, where the hockey players were already preparing for practice. Putin asked the athletes if they liked it here, and they nodded in agreement.

“Palace, natural palace! Everything is provided, generously and luxuriously for the audience. We went up and looked - it was an absolute holiday. I think the viewer will come here with pleasure. People will be eager to come here. It’s like coming to a holiday - from the very top you can clearly see and hear everything. Everything is very beautiful, just like in the movies! Great,” Putin said.

SKA has prepared gifts especially for the heads of state - game jerseys with the inscription: “Leningrad” in honor of the 80th anniversary of the lifting of the siege, in which the St. Petersburgers will compete with “Lokomotiv” on January 29. Moreover, Lukashenko was presented with the jersey by the Belarusian team defender Stepan Falkovsky.

He, accepting the gift from the hands of his compatriot, turned to him.

“Roman Rotenberg said that Belarusians take hockey well when they play in Russian clubs. “And I want to say that you have grown over the year,” the president noted.

“Have you grown yet?” - Putin asked, hinting at the young man’s tall stature.

Everyone laughed together. Lukashenko, as a big hockey fan, continued, making it clear that he was really closely following Falkovsky’s performances.

“I became faster. He had a hard time, I watched him. He already plays more in front than behind, but manages to defend,” Lukashenko emphasized.

And Alexander Nikishin, presenting a gift to the head of Russia, took the opportunity to turn to him with a request.

“Vladimir Vladimirovich, there is a big question,” the defender said.

To this, Putin jokingly replied: “How much”?

But it turned out that it was not about material wealth at all, but about a rather serious problem. The fact is that this year the Park Pobedy metro station closest to the arena will be closed for reconstruction, and it will become more difficult for fans to get to the palace.

In response, Governor Beglov promised to find a way out of the situation by organizing additional transport for people from other subway stations.

And Rotenberg addressed the president of the country with words of gratitude.

“Dear Vladimir Vladimirovich, allow me on behalf of SKA, the FHR, the national team, the entire huge hockey family, as well as the multi-million army of fans to convey words of gratitude to you personally, as well as to everyone who participated in the construction of the world’s largest hockey arena. Thank you very much,” said the coach.

In his opinion, if such facilities are built in difficult times, then no one will ever defeat Russia and Belarus. And a little later, in his Telegram channel, he expressed confidence that the visit of the heads of state would give SKA “additional energy and positive emotions.”

The presidents went directly from the locker room onto the ice to watch the hockey players training. True, they did not enter the court themselves, although they repeatedly demonstrated their skills in various friendly matches. After watching the session for a few minutes, Putin and Lukashenko ended their visit.

Holding the KHL All-Star Game and moving SKA

It is not surprising that the heads of state paid special attention to the SKA Arena, because it became the most spacious of the closed buildings. Moreover, they plan to host not only hockey, but also other events, including concerts, which can be attended by up to 23 thousand people.

Moreover, the palace was erected in just three years. Construction began in 2020 and was completed in 2023. On November 3, it received permission from the State Construction Supervision Authority of St. Petersburg to put it into operation. And already in December, the first public event took place here - the KHL All-Star Game.

KHL players who arrived in the Northern capital were delighted with the facility, and especially its scale. The spectators also eagerly bought up tickets. Over two days, a total of 40,066 people gathered in the stands, which became a new achievement for the KHL All-Star Games.

At the same time, until the last moment it remained unclear when SKA would move to its new home. For example, Rotenberg expressed a desire to end the season at Ledovoy, where the St. Petersburgers have been performing since the early 2000s.

“In my understanding, we are holding the playoffs at the Ice Palace. Because everything here is native, this is our advantage of home ice. To win, you need to have your own platform. It is necessary to stop by from the beginning of the season, hold training camps and tournaments. Here, in Ledovoye, every millimeter of ice is unique,” ​​he explained.

However, in mid-January it became known that the team would make its debut in the new building on February 11 in a meeting with Sochi. The remaining home matches of the regular season will also be held here - with Lada, Salavat Yulaev, Torpedo and Severstal. And on the 26th, ticket sales started.

In turn, hockey players do not hide their desire to play on it as quickly as possible.

“We need to get used to it there as quickly as possible and make it home. I would like to take trophies there this year. I’m sure good memories will come back when we get ready to move,” said striker Vasily Glotov.