Café and business lounge to open at Olympic Legacy Park stadium

Steel City Stadium at Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park is to enhance its flexible workspace offering with the introduction of a business lounge and café.

Scarborough Group International (SGI), which owns the stadium and is Sheffield City Council’s development partner for the Park’s expansion, is investing in the stadium’s ground floor.

It aims to further establish the stadium as a gateway for innovative and high-tech businesses to co-locate alongside the Park’s established community of academics, researchers, clinicians, athletes, entrepreneurs and students.

Building on existing managed workspace, and meeting and event facilities on the first and second floors, the new business lounge will introduce a wider-range of flexible coworking options, including hot desking, private booths and informal meeting areas.

It will provide start-ups and established companies with a place to work, connect and grow.

Meanwhile, the café will offer a relaxed setting for members, visitors and the wider community.

Since its opening in 2022, Steel City Stadium has become a base for more than 30 businesses, including MediLink UK, the country’s largest health technology trade association, and UK NEQAS, a leader in laboratory medicine quality assessment.

Ian Sanderson, estates and development consultant at SGI, said: “Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park is evolving into one of the UK’s most exciting locations for businesses working in sport, health and wellbeing.

“Steel City Stadium is at the heart of that transformation, not just as a sporting venue, but as a business destination.

“By activating the ground floor with a high-quality business lounge and café, we’re creating a space that brings people together – whether for work or to simply connect.

“We look forward to welcoming businesses, visitors and the wider South Yorkshire community when we open our doors this spring.”

To further support businesses based at the stadium, Sheffield Technology Parks (STP) is providing business support and community engagement services, helping start-ups and scale-ups access mentorship, funding advice and networking opportunities.

Tom Wolfenden, CEO at STP, said: “Innovation doesn’t happen in isolation – it’s often sparked by a chance conversation, a shared challenge, or a fresh perspective from a peer.

“That’s why we’re so excited about the new business lounge and cafe at Steel City Stadium.

“It’s more than just desks, coffee and Wi-Fi – it’s a place where entrepreneurs, researchers and creatives can come together, connect and collaborate.”

Deb Hetherington, director of innovation ecosystems at SGI, added: “High-growth, innovation-led businesses thrive in environments where they can access not just workspace, but the right support, connections and opportunities.

“By expanding the offer at Steel City Stadium, we’re strengthening Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park’s role as a launchpad for ambitious companies looking to scale faster by working alongside leading researchers, entrepreneurs and industry experts.”

The business lounge and café are set to open in early summer 2025.