Sunderland Soccer Club Indoor Training Building

Rubb Buildings Ltd was a key player in the team tasked with completing a new indoor soccer training facility for Sunderland Association Football Club.

English Premier Club Sunderland’s stars of the future began using the Rubb training hub at the Academy of Light, Cleadon following the official opening on December 7, 2012. SME Rubb pitched in with Tolent Construction Ltd and architects Red Box Design Group to make SAFC’s long awaited training facility plans a reality. The facility measures 64m (210 ft) long with sidewalls of 7.75m, a central internal clearance of 10m high, and has a clearspan of 82.4M (270 ft).

The structure stands 12.5m high at its apex and comprises a galvanized steel frame, a white PVC clad roof and a Fullflow syphonic drainage system. The translucent roof allows natural daylight to illuminate the interior which includes a full size indoor 3G soccer pitch. The sidewalls and gables are constructed with stone filled gabion cages up to 3.8m high with the upper part clad with Larch timber.

It is fantastic. It is currently being used by the Academy youngsters and has been described as the best indoor soccer training facility at club level in the country. Rubb Buildings provided a solution that is bespoke to our requirements. The company’s flexibility facilitated changes in the overall facility footprint and height in accordance with planning conditions to ensure the available space was maximised. The team stepped outside their comfort zone in terms of the overall finish of the building, which shows the diversity of the product and service that Rubb provides.

SAFC Facilities Manager Peter Weymes