June 2025 News : Starting signal for the construction of ESAF 2025 Glarnerland+

NUSSLI and the Swiss Wrestling and Alpine Festival ESAF have been a successful combination for 64 years. Since the 1961 ESAF in Zug, the world's leading event and construction services provider has been responsible for the planning and construction of the spectacular festival arena. NUSSLI brings all its expertise to bear in the implementation of complex infrastructures for major events. This is also the case for the upcoming "Eidgenössisches" in Glarnerland, which is expected to attract around 350,000 visitors.

Glarnerland Arena for 56,500 wrestling fans

This year's festival site is located at the Mollis airfield, which will still be in operation until the end of July while the construction work is being carried out. The safety requirements are correspondingly high, as are precise timing, a high degree of flexibility and close coordination between all the teams involved. The ESAF also places the highest demands on those involved in other respects, after all it is the largest recurring sporting event in Switzerland.

"The festival site is located on around 55 hectares of land. The Glarnerland Arena covers 850 meters, has a diameter of 250 meters and is 17.5 meters high. It offers 56,500 spectators with covered seating and standing room the best view of the action in the "sawdust", explains project manager Danilo Della Ca. "The construction of the six grandstands requires a total of around 3,000 tons of grandstand material, consisting of substructure, roof elements and seats. Thanks to the temporary construction method, all of the elements can be reused; some of them were already in use three years ago at the ESAF in Pratteln in Baselland."

What will happen in the next 9 weeks

Yesterday, the starting signal was given with the delivery and the start of the construction of the substructure of the first grandstand. In total, a ten-strong core team from NUSSLI will build the arena, supported by 90 to 100 people, and even up to 130 people at peak times. "A total of 300,000 individual parts will arrive at the construction site over the next nine weeks. The construction is like a jigsaw puzzle and is a logistical masterpiece," Danilo Della Ca continues.

Next week, starting on June 30, the construction of the hexagon-shaped grandstand structure will follow, which places high demands on precision and requires focused teamwork. The first crane days are scheduled for July 7: The first roof elements are assembled, which involves an impressive display of heavy machinery and coordinated processes. From August 8, the finishing touches will begin in the form of the seating installations: they will ensure comfort and visibility for all festival visitors. The completion and ceremonial handover will then be heralded from mid-August and the arena will be ready for the "Eidgenössische" around two weeks before the start.