At the beginning of August, another hurdle was cleared for making the capital a true city of sport, when ownership of the Foro Italico passed from the government to the Coni sporting services group. The firm plans to redevelop the area around the Olympic stadium the Foro Italico into a sporting and cultural park, providing entertainment not just for football and tennis fans but for all of Rome. The 500,000 sq m area includes the Farnesina and Marmi stadia, Romes school of horseriding, the citys tennis centre and a complex of covered swimming pools. Over the next three years, Coni plans to renovate and redevelop the Olympic stadium, the tennis complex and Moretti gym, while providing an extra 80 shops as well as health and fitness clubs, restaurants and conference halls. Drawing inspiration from similar projects in Monaco and Sydney, Coni is investing 100 million into the scheme, which has a projected return of 15 million per year. The revamped Foro Italico will provide employment for 700 staff, serving a predicted six million visitors per annum.