Grand Stade Hassan II in Benslimane: what it means for property

Key facts

• The stadium sits on a site of about 100 hectares in El Mansouria, Benslimane province, 38 km north-east of Casablanca and 18 km east of Mohammedia (Le360, April 2025).
• Planned capacity is 115,000, above North Korea's 114,000-seat May Day Stadium, the current largest football stadium (Morocco World News, May 2025).
• Contracts awarded or tendered for the stadium reached MAD 13.6 billion, about 2.7 times the original budget of roughly MAD 5 billion (Le Desk, via AfricaSoccer, October 2026).
• Construction was about 40% complete in spring 2026, with completion still targeted for end-2027 (AfricaSoccer, October 2026).
• ONCF awarded a MAD 415.5 million contract in March 2026 for a stadium station on the Kenitra-Marrakech high-speed line, whose delivery is targeted for September 2029 (Médias24; Le360).
• Land in Benslimane province reached up to MAD 1,000 per m² after the stadium was sited there, with some plots up more than 150% (Médias24, February 2025).

What is the Grand Stade Hassan II?

It is the national stadium Morocco is building for the 2030 World Cup, planned at 115,000 seats. It will represent Casablanca as one of Morocco's six host stadiums in place of the ageing Stade Mohammed V, and is expected to become home to the national team and to Casablanca's Raja and Wydad clubs.

The design, by Populous with Oualalou + Choi, borrows from the moussem, a traditional festive gathering held under tents: a translucent aluminium lattice roof, 32 gateway stairways and gardens on platforms 28 m above the ground. The public facilities agency ANEP manages the project on behalf of SONARGES, the state sports-facilities company.

The site is planned as a sports complex with training pitches, a hotel, a conference centre, an athletics stadium, two shopping centres and parking for 10,463 vehicles (Morocco World News, May 2025).

How much does it cost, and when will it be finished?

Contracts awarded or put out to tender reached MAD 13.6 billion (about €1.26 billion at 10.8 dirhams per euro) by October 2026, according to a review of public contracts by Le Desk. That is about 2.7 times the original budget of roughly MAD 5 billion, and the final bill is not yet set.

• Earthworks by SGTM: MAD 356 million.
• Main construction, tendered in May 2025 on a 30-month schedule: MAD 3.2 billion.
• Contracts committed by May 2026: MAD 9.7 billion (Médias24).
• Three further lots tendered by ANEP in August 2026: MAD 3.05 billion, including MAD 2.68 billion of external works and MAD 277 million for seating (Le360). The seating tender later closed without an award (Le Desk).

Construction was about 40% complete in spring 2026, with up to 10,000 workers on site by June (Médias24). Completion is targeted for end-2027; earlier reports cited 2028. Budget Minister Fouzi Lekjaa said in October 2025 that stadium costs sit outside the state's general budget, routed through state operators.

Will the 2030 World Cup final be played there?

That has not been decided. Fouzi Lekjaa, who also heads the Moroccan football federation, told a political rally on 10 September 2026 that 'the city of Benslimane will host the World Cup final'. FIFA responded that the decision had 'not yet been made' and would be taken 'in due course' (Al Jazeera).

Spanish media report that FIFA will not choose before 2028, with Madrid's Bernabéu and Barcelona's Camp Nou as the alternatives. Either way, a final is one evening; it should not change what a nearby home is worth afterwards.

How will people reach the stadium?

By road first, and by rail only from late 2029-2030 if schedules hold. In April 2025 the site was reached by the R313 regional road between Mohammedia and Benslimane (Le360).

• Access roads: Autoroutes du Maroc tendered a MAD 605 million access road in four lots. Separately, a MAD 5.1 billion Casablanca-Settat convention for roads serving the stadium is funded mainly by two ministries and the region.
• Continental motorway: a new inland Rabat-Casablanca motorway (59-60 km, MAD 6.5 billion) is to run from Tamesna to Tit Mellil past Benslimane and the stadium, with completion reported for 2028 or 2029.
• High-speed station: Jet Contractors won the MAD 415.5 million (excluding VAT) contract for the stadium station, between Rabat and Casablanca on the Kenitra-Marrakech line, whose delivery is targeted for September 2029.
• Regional rail: Casablanca's RER is planned at three lines, 92 km and 18 stations, linking the city with Mohammedia, Benslimane and Nouaceur by 2030 (ONCF).

If the stadium opens at end-2027 and its station with the high-speed line, targeted for September 2029, early events will depend on roads, coaches and parking. Our high-speed rail guide tracks the line.

What could the stadium mean for property in Benslimane, Mohammedia and Bouznika?

Probably a modest, local effect, much of it already in land prices, with transport doing more than the stadium. That is our reading of the research and the early market signals.

Studies of new venues find small, short-range effects. In Berlin, land values rose about 3.5% at 1-2 km from new arenas and 7.5% within 1 km of the better-planned one, but not beside an arena where noise and parking shortages weighed on residents (Ahlfeldt and Maennig, 2010). In London, prices moved as soon as stadium plans were announced (Ahlfeldt and Kavetsos, 2014). See do World Cups raise house prices?

Around Benslimane, some of that anticipation appears to have happened already. Médias24 reported in February 2025 that land in the province had reached up to MAD 1,000 per m² (about €93), with some plots up more than 150%. There is no official price index for Benslimane; the nearest series, Casablanca, rose 0.9% in 2025.

New-build activity is visible too. Benslimane was among the leading provinces and prefectures for the state's direct housing aid in June 2026, a scheme limited to new homes sold for the first time.

Our view: the stronger long-term case lies along the coast and the rail corridor, not beside the stadium. Mohammedia, 18 km away, is on the planned RER; Bouznika, a coastal town in Benslimane province, sits between Casablanca and Rabat. Both stand to benefit if the RER, motorway and station arrive on time. We found no officially announced new town around the stadium, beyond the on-site complex, as of October 2026.

What should you check before buying near the stadium?

Title, zoning and project routes come before price on semi-rural land. This is general information; confirm the details with a notaire before you commit.

• Registered title: buy only with a Titre Foncier, checked at the land registry (ANCFCC). Untitled melkia land can hide co-owners and heirs; see Titre Foncier vs melkia.
• Agricultural zoning: under dahirs of 1973 and 1975, foreigners cannot buy agricultural land outside urban perimeters unless an attestation de vocation non agricole (AVNA) certifies a non-agricultural project; Moroccans, including MRE, can. See foreign ownership rules.
• Urban planning: ask the commune whether the plot sits within an approved development plan and can get a building permit, rather than relying on a promise of rezoning.
• Routes and public land: check the plot is clear of planned road and rail rights of way. Morocco World News places the stadium in the Beni Amer forest area, so confirm boundaries with any public land.
• Price evidence: ask for registered sale prices, not asking prices. Land at MAD 1,000 per m² already assumes the corridor works out.
• Off-plan guarantees: many projects are sold on the 2030 story; read our guide to buying off-plan in Morocco before paying a deposit.

Every property we list is checked at the land registry for a Titre Foncier and confirmed by a notaire before publication.

Sources

• Le360: Grand Stade Hassan II de Benslimane: ADM s'attaque au chantier de la desserte routière
• Morocco World News: Morocco Launches Construction of Hassan II Stadium with $320 Million Budget
• AfricaSoccer: Grand Stade Hassan II costs soar to 13.6bn dirhams ahead of 2030 World Cup (citing Le Desk)
• Le360 English: Morocco's 115,000-seat Hassan II stadium moves ahead with MAD 3.05 billion in new tenders
• C3 Globe: Grand Stade Hassan II, the world's largest soccer stadium in Morocco
• Al Jazeera: FIFA rebukes Morocco's claim it will host 2030 World Cup final
• Médias24: Pour 415,5 MDH, Jet Contractors décroche le contrat de la future gare du Grand Stade de Benslimane
• Médias24: Avec l'implantation du grand stade à Benslimane, les prix des terrains s'envolent
• Hespress FR: 400 MDH pour neuf nouvelles gares : l'ONCF accélère son programme ferroviaire
• Ahlfeldt, G.M. and Maennig, W.: Impact of sports arenas on land values: evidence from Berlin (Annals of Regional Science)