Replacing the roof without renovating the interior: the inconsistency of the Olympic Stadium

I spent all day yesterday making phone calls, sending emails, and replying to text messages. What I had been told the day before didn't make any sense.

Unfortunately, what I had been told the day before was true.

According to several reliable sources, the current provincial government has decided NOT to renovate the interior of the Olympic Stadium in the coming months, even though the arena is already closed and under construction for the replacement of its roof.

So after investing $870 million in the roof, sound, lighting, and acoustics… the seats, suites, locker rooms, and bleachers will remain unchanged when the Stadium reopens in 2028. In other words: we'll have a “renovated” Stadium… with an interior that's decades old.

According to my information, the provincial government is refusing to allocate the approximately $200 million needed right now to transform the stadium into a true international sports and cultural arena. That amount is reportedly budgeted for 2030 or 2032. The Olympic Park has reportedly been trying for several months to convince the government to bring the work forward so that the Stadium can reopen in 2028 with a new roof… but also with an interior worthy of modern North American stadiums.

Let's be serious: Taylor Swift, Beyoncé, and the NFL aren't going to show up at the current Olympic Stadium. Especially since all the seats on Level 100 would have been completely removed. How could anyone think such a stadium could attract the cream of the crop, both in sports and culture?

Yet it is precisely these events that generate hundreds of millions of dollars in economic spinoffs (in foreign currency, which creates collective wealth), tourism, and international visibility. It is for these events that we agreed to spend nearly a billion on a new roof.

I'm told that an analysis could be conducted soon to assess how much money Quebec would lose by refusing to modernize the stadium's interior. Could this study be used to put pressure on the current government?

Perhaps. Keep in mind that Christine Fréchette has been replacing François Legault as CAQ Premier for the past few weeks.

However, it's important to understand that with elections coming up in October—and polls predicting an extremely close race—freeing up hundreds of millions of dollars to renovate seats, boxes, concourses, restrooms, bleachers, and locker rooms could be poorly received by the public.

But reopening such a dilapidated stadium as well!

The Olympic Stadium was inaugurated 50 years ago and has not undergone any major renovations in decades. If no additional interior renovations are carried out, we will still have one of the least modern stadiums in North America by October 2028.

A few years ago, Olympic Park replaced the stadium's synthetic turf at a cost of $1 million… and only one minor game has been played on that new surface (which is currently for sale for $250,000). Why are there so many inconsistencies when it comes to the Olympic Stadium?

Where does CF Montréal fit into all this?

According to my information, MLS is becoming increasingly demanding regarding its teams' infrastructure, and additional renovations costing $400 to $500 million may eventually be necessary for the Olympic Stadium to meet MLS requirements. That's more than the $200 million the government has budgeted for 2030 or 2032.

With a winter schedule set to take effect in 2027 and a non-winterized Stade Saputo, CF Montréal clearly needs a modern Olympic Stadium to ensure its survival in Montréal. Without interior renovations completed by 2028, it's hard not to fear for the club's future.

For several years now, CF Montréal has had to start its seasons on the road because it lacks a winterized stadium capable of being used in February or March. If the club is scheduled to host a playoff game in the second half of November 2026, there's a good chance it will be forced to do so somewhere other than Montréal.

Add to that next year's condensed schedule, which will require CF Montréal to play seven matches before the end of April or the first week of May, and you'll fully understand why MLS and CF Montréal are counting heavily on a fully renovated Olympic Stadium moving forward. We might even consider setting up our headquarters there if everything goes perfectly.

It's incredible to think that 22 years after losing the Expos because of the government and the dilapidated Olympic Stadium, history could eventually repeat itself with CF Montréal. It seems like we're doomed in Quebec; like we never learn.

A glimmer of hope

I'm really not ready to talk about a move when it comes to CF Montréal, even though the future of the Whitecaps in Vancouver is cause for concern.

1. The new Premier served on the board of directors of the Olympic Stadium and has always prioritized the development of East Montreal.

2. The City of Montreal has often been the entity that has put the brakes on Joey Saputo's and CF Montréal's projects. I've been told over the past few months that Joey Saputo has often wanted to invest between $70 million and $100 million to renovate Stade Saputo (a stadium he owns, but located on land he doesn't own). The City of Montreal never cooperated. This helps explain Joey Saputo's “anti-Montreal” comments on OMNI Television.

3. Under the Martinez-Ferrada administration, things are going infinitely better. In fact, I have good reason to believe that the City of Montreal recently gave the green light for the eventual installation of a dome at the Nutrilait Centre. It remains to be seen whether it will be built in time for next winter or if we'll have to wait a bit.

4. The fact that the public is now aware of the inconsistency of renovating the roof but not the interior of the Olympic Stadium at the same time could serve to put some healthy pressure on the current government to bring a bit of logic back to this mega-project.

5.
The Alouettes are also reportedly concerned about the Olympic Stadium renovations, and Pierre-Karl Péladeau is said to be hoping to move some of his team's activities to the Olympic Stadium as well. The idea of reopening the Stadium in its current condition clearly does not sit well with PKP
, a respected businessman in Quebec.

Enough with your half-baked solutions

Several people have had the following knee-jerk reaction for the past few minutes: we need to tear down the Stadium!

However, that's no longer the issue today. Once you've decided to invest nearly a billion dollars to replace the stadium's roof, you can't think about tearing it down.

Once you've started renovating the roof, you MUST consider renovating the interior. You can't do one without the other. You either renovate everything… or you don't renovate anything at all! You don't do things halfway. And you do them at the same time, while construction is underway.

No, we didn't collectively spend money to redo the Olympic Stadium's roof just to hold flu vaccination clinics there. Let's be serious!