MADRID: the windfall behind 'Europe's largest wave pool'

A 350 million euro investment in Madrid, Spain, plans a giant wave pool and leisure complex, but the initiative faces criticism over its water and energy sustainability, and for prioritizing private business over the public good.

## The tale of the perfect wave in Madrid

Near the **Atlético de Madrid stadium**, an urban development project is taking shape that raises more than a few eyebrows. The idea is to create a large leisure and sports complex, with an investment of around **350 million euros**. The land, ceded by the city council to the club for **75 years**, covers some **270,000 m²**. However, the plan has run into legal obstacles. The **Superior Court of Justice of Madrid** halted part of the city council's plans in **2025**, citing the lack of justification for the changes of use, which transformed the public purpose of the plot into private, for-profit activities. The absence of a strategic environmental assessment was also noted. The ruling, however, is under appeal.

One of the project's highlights is the ambition to build a colossal wave pool, designed for surfing. With a surface area of **50,000 m²**, the initiative is driven by **Gemswell Ventures SL**, a newly founded company with share capital of just **3,000 euros**. Although those in charge present it as an initiative by surf enthusiasts, the investment figure, which exceeds **60 million euros**, suggests far greater financial backing, coming from speculative capital.

## Behind the wave: money and big names

The financing of this giant pool is not a one-actor affair. **Gemswell Ventures SL** has teamed up with the Swiss investment fund **Stoneweg Capital**, specialized in real estate assets, and with **Teras Capital**. The financial circle is completed by the participation of **Atlético de Madrid**, **Banco Santander** and **BBVA**. Most striking is that part of the investment, **15.7 million euros**, will come from the European **NextGenerationEU** funds. These public funds, channeled through **Buenavista NextGen Urbano** under the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan of the Community of Madrid, would go toward a private business.

The vision being sold is that of a complete urban leisure experience: **23,000 m²** of water surface, **32,000 m³** of volume, able to receive **500,000 people** a year and generate constant waves. **Gemswell Surf Madrid** talks of combining sport, entertainment, gastronomy and wellness. An attractive narrative, but one that clashes with the reality of its impact.

## The hidden cost of water and energy

The main environmental sticking point is the **waste of water** in a context of climate change and water stress. The pool would use drinking water from the **Canal de Isabel II**, suffering heavy losses through evaporation. The Dalton formula, which measures evaporation in bodies of water, indicates that in a **23,000 m²** wave pool in Madrid, annual evaporation losses could reach **38,769 m³**. This would require constant refilling, estimated at an average of **106,000 liters per day**, which in summer could exceed **240,000 liters**. A critical consumption of drinking water in a drought-prone region, comparable to other questioned uses such as golf courses or snow cannons, and which has already led to the rejection of similar projects in towns like **Mongat**, **Cunit** or **Donostia**.

**Energy consumption** is another worrying front. Maintaining waves that can reach up to two meters, and heating the pool for use **365 days a year** in a continental climate like Madrid's, where winter temperatures range from **1-11ºC** and can drop to **-4ºC**, will demand a huge amount of energy. Profitability, even with rates of up to **60 euros per hour** by analogy with European experiences, seems to depend on revenue sources beyond surfing.

## The real business is on the shore

The wave pool, in fact, appears to be the spearhead for a broader business complex. **3,000 m²** are planned for restaurants, specialty shops, a surf school and event spaces. This model recalls the strategy of turning **Madrid** into a "theme park" for mass tourism, a trend that has already drawn criticism for excessive touristification and saturation of the city, which receives more than **11.2 million tourists a year**.

This project joins a list of urban interventions that, according to critics, strip the city of its public character in favor of private interests. The expansion of **Barajas** airport, the privatization of public parks or the proliferation of tourist apartments are cited examples. The direct consequence of these processes is increased inequality and gentrification, driving up housing costs and exacerbating congestion problems. The residents of **San Blas-Canillejas**, where the project is located, see no benefits and their associations oppose it, proposing alternatives such as public pools, reforestation or grassroots sports facilities.

The idea of a "right to the city," as formulated by **David Harvey**, where human well-being takes precedence over capital accumulation, seems ignored in this case. The lack of public consultation and democratic control is evident. The argument of the few thousand licensed surfers in Madrid does not justify the transfer of public land for a project of this kind. In short, "Europe's largest wave pool" is presented as a **speculative windfall** riding the wave of Madrid's urban development. Organizations such as **Ecologistas en Acción** are demanding the halt of what they consider "urban vandalism" with unassumable environmental costs.