The world’s “longest construction project” where building work began 144 years ago is all set to near completion. The Sagrada Familia in Barcelona is set to be finished in 2026, according to reports.
La Sagrada Família, Barcelona‘s most famous landmark designed by Antoni Gaudí, has been under construction since 1882 and remains unfinished. A 2019 report from Catalan News claimed the construction cost of the project was around €374 million (£314 million) at that time.
The annual construction cost of the project is estimated to be €25 million (£21 million). This means, approximately £419 million have been spent so for on the project.
The completion is now anticipated for 2026 (though the exact date is still uncertain), marking 144 years since work began and coinciding with the centenary of Gaudí’s death.
The Junta Constructora de la Sagrada Familia said: “The beginning of the final stage of construction kicked off with the completion of the towers of the Evangelists (November 2023) and work is currently underway on the Chapel of the Assumption and the tower of Jesus Christ.
“The Chapel of the Assumption is expected to be finished in 2025 and the tower of Jesus Christ in 2026.”
Catalan architect Antoni Gaudí’s renowned yet unfinished basilica was estimated to be only 15 percent complete when he passed away in 1926.
The new projected completion date aligns with the centenary of his death.
Initially, construction was funded solely by donations from repentant sinners. However, with 4,707,367 visitors in 2023 paying €25–40 (£20–£32) to tour the basilica and attend mass, tourism now largely covers the construction costs.
In 2023, the Sagrada Família reported an income of €126.9 million (£108.8m), with 52 percent allocated to construction and 26 percent to managing the basilica.
Though the new completion date is estimated to be just two years away, work on the stairway to the main entrance is expected to extend until 2034.
The final element to complete the project is the construction of the Tower of Jesus, one of the cathedral’s 18 towers.
Upon its completion in 2026, it will reach a height of 172 meters, making La Sagrada Família the tallest church in the world and signaling the project’s conclusion.
Current architectural plans are reconstructions of Gaudí’s originals, as his workshop was set on fire by arsonists in 1936 during the Spanish Civil War, destroying plaster models and drawings for the Sagrada.
When finished, the 172.5-meter Tower of Jesus Christ will make the Sagrada Família the tallest structure in Barcelona.
In October of the previous year, the final four Evangelist sculptures were added amidst the scaffolding: Matthew as an angel, John as an eagle, and Mark and Luke depicted as a lion and an ox, respectively.