A government body has taken over China Evergrande Group's soccer stadium with a view to selling it, a person with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters, as the debt-laden property developer scrambles to meet liabilities. Evergrande, which has been struggling to meet repayments on over US$300 billion of debt, is also considering selling money-losing Guangzhou Football Club, said a source involved with the project. Construction on the 12 billion yuan (US$1.86 billion) Guangzhou Evergrande Football Stadium began in April last year for completion by the end of 2022, when it was set to be the world's largest soccer venue by capacity. However, Evergrande has halted construction due to a lack of capital and has ceded control to authorities which plan to sell the stadium, or - in the absence of buyers - acquire it via state-owned Guangzhou City Construction Investment Group, the source said, who did not wish to be named. While Evergrande declined to comment, back in September it said work on the stadium was proceeding "as normal".
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