Our regional business director, Oleksii Zhukovin, was present last in week in the Kazakh city of Koshetau. A ceremony was held to place a time capsule in the foundation of the new 10,000-seater multi-purpose stadium.
The Stadium Consultancy is assisting Astra and Integra Construction KZ as stadium specialist consultant in the design of the venue, ensuring alignment with international stadium design and operational standards. The stadium will be suitable for both football matches and indoor events, while it will also serve as the home of local football team FC Okzhetpes.
The ceremony marked a historic milestone in the development of the stadium, as a time capsule was placed in the foundation of the stadium in presence of the Akim of the Akmola Region Marat Akhmetzhanov, the Akim of Kokshetau and President of the Regional Football Federation Anuar Kumpekeyev, and the acting General Secretary of the Kazakhstan Football Federation Alexander Keplin, in addition to the residents of Kokshetau. Oleksii Zhukovin had the honour to deliver a speech during the ceremony:
Dear Marat Muratovich, dear Anuar Kumpekeyev, dear Shakhmurat Mutalip, honoured guests, colleagues!
It is a great honour and a genuine pleasure to stand here today, at this truly historic moment — the day when the first stone of the new Kokshetau football stadium is laid.
First of all, on behalf of the entire team at The Stadium Consultancy, I would like to express our deep gratitude for the invitation to be part of this project. We have been working in the stadium industry for over twenty years and have delivered more than 150 projects around the world — from the Emirates Stadium in London to the Baku Olympic Stadium, from the arenas of Qatar to those of Saudi Arabia. Yet every new project tells its own story. And this story — the story of Kokshetau — holds a very special place for us.
When we first began working with the teams at Integra Construction KZ and Astra, we immediately sensed something greater than a construction contract. There was ambition here, determination, and a genuine belief that Kazakhstan deserves world-class sports infrastructure. Our work began with the development of the Employer’s Requirements — the document that defines the standards, expectations and functional parameters of the future stadium. This is the foundation of any successful project. It is the document from which the dialogue between client, architect, contractor and consultant truly begins.
And that dialogue continues. Today we are actively working to bring the project into full compliance with UEFA Category 4 standards. This is not a bureaucratic formality — it means that this stadium will one day be able to host official international matches. It means the quality of the stands, floodlighting, media infrastructure, changing rooms, press zones and VIP areas — everything that makes a stadium a true home for football and for fans.
Kazakhstani building norms and UEFA standards represent two different worlds, and our work on every project is to bring them closer together. Our role as consultants is not to impose a Western template, but to work alongside local specialists to find solutions that meet both international requirements and the realities of Kazakhstani construction. This is a living, creative process. And I am genuinely glad that we have strong partners in Integra and Astra — partners who are open to this dialogue and approach every challenge with professionalism.
I would like to say a few particular words of thanks. We understand that an infrastructure project of this scale is only possible with the support and personal commitment of regional leadership. Dear Marat Muratovich, dear Anuar Kairgeldinovich — your personal presence here today speaks volumes. When leaders of your stature attend the laying of a foundation in person, it sends a clear signal to the entire project team: we are moving in the right direction. This is support that carries real weight. Thank you, sincerely.
Today, a time capsule bearing a message to future generations is being placed at the foundation of this stadium. I think this is a profoundly fitting symbol. Because a stadium is not simply concrete and steel. It is a place where people will gather for decades to come. Where children not yet born will cheer for their team. Where Kazakhstan’s future champions will take their first steps towards greatness.
Those of us who work professionally in stadium development often say that a stadium outlives the people who build it. And that places a particular responsibility on us — to do things right from the very beginning.
This is precisely why partnership matters so much. Not competition, not a conflict of interests — but partnership. Between client and consultant, between international standards and local norms, between ambition and capacity. It is in that partnership that truly great venues are born.
At The Stadium Consultancy, we are proud to be part of this team. And we are firmly committed to seeing this work through to the end — so that one day, all of us can come here, take our seats in the stand, look out at a stadium full of people and say: we built this well.
History begins today. And I am glad we are writing it together.