Archinect - News

Zaha Hadid Architects' first all-wood soccer stadium plan gets approved in the UK

2024-12-09T17:37:00-05:00

The BBC is reporting that a proposal from Zaha Hadid Architects (ZHA) for what will be the first all-wood soccer stadium design in the world is finally moving forward after planning approvals were granted in Nailsworth, UK.

We covered its initial announcement back in 2016, when it was marketed as the 'centerpiece' for the town's £100 million ($127.5 million USD) Eco Park development. The plan calls for 5,000 seats plus other key inclusions making it "the lowest embodied carbon of any stadium in the world."

HOK's design for the first all-electric soccer stadium, Etihad Park in Queens, also recently broke ground in New York City.

HOK begins construction of all-electric Etihad Park soccer stadium in Queens

2024-12-06T12:17:00-05:00

The first purpose-built home of the New York City FC MLS franchise has broken ground in Willets Point, Queens. The $3 billion project is being led by HOK, which was one of the top 300 performing firms globally last year thanks to its lucrative sports portfolio.

It yields a 25,000-seat stadium (also MLS’s first all-electric design) with a 35,000-square-foot public space that can be operated on non-match days. The plan also includes a 2,500-unit affordable housing component, a 250-room hotel, and 650-seat public school. HOK has said previously they expect the stadium's construction to be completed in time for the 2027 season.

Populous' new Riyadh soccer stadium symbolizes a germinating seed emerging from the earth

2024-11-19T14:19:00-05:00

A new stadium design from Populous for what will become one of the world’s largest sporting venues, the future King Salman Stadium in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, has been unveiled ahead of the country’s turn as host of the 2034 FIFA World Cup.

Fans will have to wait until 2029 to see the full vision for the stadium and master plan realized. When it does come to fruition, the stadium design, which is to be located in one of the city’s northern precincts, will be approximately square feet and have a capacity for 92,000 people. An adjacent area with separate athletics facilities will join alongside it in the master plan, pollinating the spaces next to King Abdulaziz Park as though germinating seeds meant to represent the growth of sports within the country.

Image courtesy of Populous

Amenities inside the stadium include a Royal Box, hospitality skyboxes and lounges, 300 'VVIP' seats, and 2,200 VIP seats, plus an array of internal screens, indoor gardens, and a rooftop walking path that offers...

Designs of world's largest soccer stadium with distinct tented roof in Morocco unveiled

2024-08-20T19:02:00-04:00

Visualizations of the Oualalou + Choi and Populous-designed Grand Stade Hassan II in Morocco have been released. The 115,000-seat stadium is projected to be the largest soccer ground in the world.

Image: Populous

In March, it was announced that the pair of firms was named the winner of an international competition to deliver the project in time for the 2030 FIFA World Cup. The stadium’s budget is reportedly $500 million. The stadium will inhabit a 100-hectare site in the town of El Mansouria, which is about 24 miles north of Casablanca.

Image: Populous

The structure’s design draws inspiration from a traditional Moroccan social gathering known as a moussem. This is evident through the stadium structure being situated beneath a grand tented roof. The roof is made from an aluminium lattice.

Image: Populous

Both the roof and the stadium bowl are supported by a ring of 32 stairways, which establish large gateways that host lush gardens positioned on raised platforms. Each platform stands r...

Populous to design AS Roma's new stadium for 2027

2024-08-05T12:16:00-04:00

The next big draw soccer venue from Populous has been announced for the AS Roma franchise. The design that replaces the 71-year-old Stadio Olimpico will include an upgraded Curva Sud (or curved ultra fan seating area) element considered to be the largest in any professional European football facility among its 60,000 seats and be completed in time for the club’s 100th anniversary in 2027. Plans are for the stadium to take up an elevated site in the northeastern Pietralata neighborhood.

Populous Vice President Ryan Friedkin joined the city's mayor, Roberto Gualtieri, in sharing his excitement for the project, saying it would "also be a landmark for all the citizens of Rome."

Image courtesy Populous

Also in Serie A, the firm is designing the new home for Inter Milan ahead of its move from San Siro Stadium to Rozzano. Populous entered the top 10 grossing firms globally last year to lead the industry's embrace of the sports facilities market with some $390.4 million in reported revenue...

Saudi Arabia floats 2034 World Cup stadium 1,000+ feet up on The Line

2024-08-02T12:40:00-04:00

Saudi Arabia’s turn as host of the 2034 World Cup would include NEOM as one of its 15 host cities, according to an official bid submitted to FIFA.

Renderings describing a new 46,000-seat stadium elevated 350 meters (1,150 feet) above the ground and embedded within the superstructure of the planned The Line megacity were made public this week along with 11 other newly built constructions as part of the country’s bid marketing booklet. The 125-page document includes other details of a massive infrastructure plan and 73-strong network of proposed sports training facilities.

Image: NEOM

An architect for The Line stadium has not been named. A section drawing from the bid book (page 108) indicates that it will take up the superstructure's top levels high up in the air and be surrounded by different 'compounds' that round out the building program. Fans seated in its interior bowl will be bifurcated by hexagonal partitions while a mirrored ceiling beset with LED displays that extends from th...

Real Madrid stadium renovation wrapped up

2024-06-03T14:23:00-04:00

Renovations on the home of Real Madrid, the legendary Santiago Bernabéu Stadium, have been completed by German architects von Gerkan, Marg and Partners, the firm announced recently via its social media channels.

Construction photo by Miguel de Guzmán/Imagen Subliminal

The five-year, $1.91 billion project added a retractable new roof and underground greenhouse to the original design while increasing capacity by 3,000 seats (from approximately 80,000) and adding 240 new VIP suites to the upper levels. Pop star Taylor Swift unofficially inaugurated the new stadium with back-to-back concerts last week.

Construction photo by Miguel de Guzmán/Imagen Subliminal

"Our design gives form to the ideas of 'movement' and 'dynamism.' The stadium’s massing may appear at first glance to be autonomously determined — but in reality, it dances within tightly defined parameters. It wraps the stadium’s form, which has evolved over time through numer...

New HOK-designed NYCFC soccer stadium wins planning approval as part of Willets Point redevelopment

2024-04-15T15:37:00-04:00

HOK has won approvals for its proposed new stadium design at Willets Point, Queens, for the New York City Football Club (NYCFC) MLS franchise.

The go-ahead was granted by City Councilors last week as the future anchor to the larger mixed-use Willets Point Phase II Redevelopment Plan development that includes a new public school and 2,500-unit affordable housing component, along with 150,000 square feet of public spaces adjacent to Citi Field at a site formerly known as the 'Valley of Ashes.'

Rendering courtesy HOK

At a cost of $780 million, HOK will deliver a two-tiered, 25,000-seat design (the city’s first purpose-built soccer stadium) built using local materials and featuring green design strategies like PV panels and stormwater retention. According to the architects, this will allow for its operation to be all-electric and net-zero, with annual emissions reductions equal to 12% within a year of the project's inauguration.

Rendering courtesy HOK

Construction of the Willets Point Re...

Proposal to bring New York City its first dedicated professional soccer stadium is approaching approval

2024-03-23T08:00:00-04:00

New York City’s first dedicated soccer stadium is becoming closer to a reality. As reported by Gothamist, the City Council is expected to approve the final phase of an ambitious project to revitalize the long-neglected Willets Point neighborhood in Queens through a mixed-use redevelopment.

In addition to the stadium, the scheme promises to deliver 2,500 units of affordable housing, including 133 homes for homeless New Yorkers, a 250-room hotel, a public school, retail, space, and public space. Designed by HOK, the $780 million, 25,000-seat stadium will host the MLS’ New York City Football Club. It is also expected to be the first-ever fully electric soccer stadium in the MLS.

Rendering courtesy of New York City Football Club

Phase I of the project, which includes 1,100 residential units, has been approved, with construction commencing in December of last year. Approval of Phase II, which includes the stadium and more housing units, is expected to follow through the support of city ...

China will build replacement for Gensler soccer stadium design in Guangzhou following Evergrande debt scramble

2024-03-19T11:51:00-04:00

Chinese state-owned construction contractor will build China’s largest soccer park in Guangzhou on the site where struggling Chinese property developer China Evergrande Group was supposed to build its soccer stadium. China Construction Fourth Engineering Division won the engineering procurement construction contract to build the Guangzhou Football Park with a CNY2.4 billion (USD328 million) bid, the unit of China State Construction Engineering announced on its official WeChat account yesterday.

The site was originally meant for a 100,000-seat stadium designed by Gensler. Evergrande, the developer now embroiled in a Lehman Brothers-like freefall, had already begun construction before the project was halted and eventually taken over by the government in 2021. The new design from the Guangdong Architectural Design and Research Institute has a reduced capacity of 73.000, making it still the largest soccer-only stadium in China.

Previously on Archinect: One of China's largest property developers is roiled in a Lehman-esque debt spiral

The estimated cost of the original design it replaces was $1.7 billion. Gensler, meanwhile, has begun preliminary work assessing the potential for a new stadium on the site of a disused Westfield shopping center in its hometown of San Francisco.

Populous unveils cliffside Saudi stadium design formed of modular cubes

2024-01-22T11:44:00-05:00

Populous has unveiled plans for a major stadium in Saudi Arabia to be constructed on top of a 650-foot-tall cliff. The Prince Mohammed Bin Salman Stadium seeks to “draw visitors from across the globe and revolutionize the traditional stadium experience with its immersive design and unique technological features,” according to the team.

Image credit: Populous

Located in Qiddiya City, 40 minutes from the capital Riyadh, the venue is designed to host the country’s largest sports, entertainment, and cultural events and is expected to attract 7.6 million annual visits. The stadium will be the world’s first venue with a combined retractable roof, pitch, and LED wall, offering what the team calls “unparalleled versatility” in “allowing the space to transform into different ‘event modes’ in a matter of hours.”

When activated, the LED wall will display live event broadcasts, high-definition films, and laser shows. When not in use, the wall gives way to views of the city from the venue’s cliff...

Inter Milan unveils San Siro stadium replacement proposal from Populous

2023-12-22T11:41:00-05:00

Inter Milan’s plans for its first new home away from San Siro are getting a little bit clearer after the Serie A club released a few preliminary renderings for a Populous-designed stadium in Rozzano.

The announcement was made this week and follows the city’s decision not to grant approvals to a 2021 proposal from the firm called "The Cathedral" that would have been built as a shared facility with AC Milan and surrounded by a new entertainment district at the site of the nearly 100-year-old stadium.

In the aftermath, both clubs are now pursuing separate venues. The new Inter stadium will have capacity for 70,000 fans with a year-round ‘sports town’ fan area situated outside among the landscaped open park spaces of the site, which offers an easy connection to the city center. A fan survey has now been introduced as the club and Populous continue along the design process. No official construction timelines have been proposed yet.

Rendering courtesy Inter Milan

Speaking on Instagram, the...

2023's best in sports architecture and stadiums

2023-12-22T08:00:00-05:00

Throughout 2023, nearly every month featured exciting news related to forthcoming big-scale stadium projects and athletic developments. Many of these weren't limited to stadiums alone but were merely components of greater mixed-use districts that also include room for housing, office spaces, parks and green spaces, as well as retail. Schemes centered more around lifestyle, living, and entertainment seem to be a growing trend in this arena.

There were some common names, such as Populous and HOK, who were very busy this year. Other notable firms were active, as well, with projects including both renovations and completely new structures for various sports.

As part of Archinect's 2023 Year in Review, take a look at some of the best sports architecture and stadium projects in our news this year.

Image courtesy Indy Eleven and Keystone Group

Populous unveils $1 billion Eleven Park stadium design for Indianapolis

In February, Populous unveiled designs for a $1 billion, 20,000-seat multip...

HOK's $780 Million NYCFC Stadium plan pushes professional sports toward an all-electric future

2023-11-22T11:54:00-05:00

The proposed new stadium venue for the New York City Football Club (NYCFC) by HOK will be all-electric in addition to incorporating a number of sustainability strategies included in a press announcement that was made last week by the team.

The 25,000-seat stadium forms the center of a larger mixed-use redevelopment set for an area of the Willets Points neighborhood of Queens that is also being targeted for a proposed $8 billion new casino development and would be the MLS franchise's first dedicated facility after ten years in operation.

HOK intends to install a solar PV array on the stadium's roof and says they plan for a net-zero construction to match the franchise's 2040 commitment, achieving annual reductions of at least 12% after year one of the project's operation.

Image courtesy HOK

Other considerations include enacting a stormwater retention system and a zero-waste strategy. The stadium's green credentials are likely to inform the rest of the plan, which calls for a 250-room...

Generator Studio designs America's first-ever dedicated sports facility for women in Kansas City

2023-10-24T19:40:00-04:00

Generator Studio (who is currently hiring a Sr. Project Designer and Interior Designer) is nearing completion of its new milestone CPKC Stadium project in Kansas City, Missouri. Once complete, it will become the first sports facility in the United States to be solely dedicated to female competitors and serve as the home of the Kansas City Current NWSL professional soccer franchise.

The 11,500-seat stadium is being delivered on a site adjacent to the Missouri River inside the 17-acre Berkley Riverfront Park at a cost of $117 million. The firm will look to expand on its previous Kansas City area designs for the Centene Community Ice Center and the Current’s mass timber Training Facility in the process, adding a historic caveat to a portfolio of other sports sector commissions that includes the MLS Seattle Sounders FC Center, Kraken Community Iceplex, and $25 million Amalie Arena Phase Two Renovation in Tampa.

Image courtesy CPKC

The CPKC Stadium project involved Thornton Tomasetti fo...

Populous' combined AC/Inter Milan 'Cathedral' proposal is likely out for San Siro

2023-08-10T11:15:00-04:00

This officially ends Inter and AC Milan's plans to tear down large swathes of the historic stadium and build a new 'Cathedral' home in the surrounding grounds, though the clubs had been planning for this rejection for some time. Inter and AC Milan are therefore pursuing other stadium options elsewhere, which will most likely see them separate after sharing a veritable footballing cauldron since 1947.

The Populous-designed plan was cast into doubt by the Regional Commission for the Cultural Heritage of Lombardy last week, ending an intriguing saga that saw opposition from locals concerned about the environmental impact of demolition and its commentary on the influence of foreign investment in European football. Their proposed stadium (dubbed “The Cathedral”) would have created a massive entertainment district at San Siro with considerations for the architectural heritage of Milan, including the iconic Duomo and Galleria Vittorio Emanuele.

Previously on Archinect: Populous tapped to lead design of new combined Inter & AC Milan stadium

Both teams have reached deals for separate stadiums in the city’s suburbs, with Populous still on board for the new Inter design and Manica behind AC's new San Donato home base, according to reporting last week in the Architects’ Journal.

'Catalysts of inclusion': Populous' stadium expert Silvia Prandelli details innovations in inclusive design

2023-05-12T13:45:00-04:00

With several high-profile projects, including the planned Etihad Stadium expansion and the $1 billion Eleven Park in Indianapolis, on its horizon, Populous senior principal Silvia Prandelli sat down with The Athletic recently to detail the firm’s approach to stadium design in an era that is more welcoming to numerous groups — women, families, wheelchair users, and more — left out by traditional approaches to the typology.

Prandelli was the architect for both the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium and the 2012 London Olympic Stadium projects. She spoke about several concepts the firm is applying to their designs while navigating a host of regulations from national governments and European professional soccer’s governing body UEFA. The solutions mentioned include increased pram storage and gender-neutral bathrooms together among other interventions considered foreign to the sport sector before the last decade.

Populous' TQL Stadium in Cincinnati, which won the top prize at last year's World Fo...

HOK reveals Willets Point Revitalization Plan and NYCFC stadium design

2023-05-11T18:25:00-04:00

HOK’s plans for a new mixed-used development and soccer stadium in Willets Points, Queens, have been released following the project’s announcement last month.

The 25,000-seat new home of New York City FC will come with 2,500 units of “100% affordable” housing plus a public school, hotel, retail component, and over 40,000 square feet of open public space. Plans call for a “future-foward” stadium design that will become a model for sustainability. The overall project also ties in with Mayor Eric Adams' comments about his administration’s intentions to create a “City of Yes.”

Image courtesy HOK

“The design of NYCFC’s new stadium celebrates diversity, community, and the love of the sport, creating a hospitality-driven experience unique to its location in Queens, the world’s borough,” HOK principal and senior project designer Rashed Singaby said in a statement. “Our design team has created a sustainable, technology-driven experience and integrated the stadium into the context of a future ...

New York City Football Club selects HOK to design $780 million new soccer stadium in Queens

2023-04-21T14:12:00-04:00

The first dedicated soccer stadium for New York City FC will be designed by HOK, the team announced this week as it previewed its plans for a new mixed-use district in Willets Point, Queens.

The ten-year-old MLS franchise has been playing its home matches at Yankee Stadium since 2015 and will soon move into its new privately-financed 25,000-seat home that forms the centerpiece of a development that will include 2,500 units of affordable housing, a hotel, and a 650-seat public school.

"The stadium will embody New York’s dynamism and cultural diversity and become a vibrant example of urban placemaking," said HOK principal Rashed Singaby. "Our design will embrace the multi-faceted identity of Queens, Flushing Meadows, and the site’s industrial heritage, offering fans an unprecedented, hospitality-driven game-day experience while integrating into the local community as an everyday asset."

Conceptual rendering for Willets Point. Credit: S9 Architecture

Turner Construction will join the fi...

Populous attached to proposed Etihad Stadium expansion for Manchester City FC

2023-04-18T18:16:00-04:00

Manchester City Football Club has just released renderings for a proposed expansion of their 24-year-old Etihad Stadium led by Populous.

The submission to the Manchester City Council calls for a “best-in-class” fan experience and year-round live entertainment venue to be integrated into the stadium complex. The scheme was proposed following the results of a monthlong consultation process with fans and members of the local community and will help expand seating capacity during performances to over 60,000.

A 3,000-capacity covered exterior City Square fan zone is also included in the design, along with plans for a 400-room hotel, team store, and museum.

Image courtesy Manchester City FC

A new tier will be added above the stadium’s North Stand section to provide space for the new accommodations. The plan also calls for the inclusion of startup spaces in the development, supported by City Football Group and Etihad Campus. Manchester City is promising investments in excess of £300 millio...

Populous unveils $1 billion Eleven Park stadium design for Indianapolis

2023-02-20T12:45:00-05:00

Populous has revealed designs for its new 20,000-seat multipurpose soccer stadium in Indianapolis.

Their design for the city’s Indy Eleven professional soccer franchise will anchor a larger mixed-use development located at the southwesternmost corner of downtown that includes apartments, a hotel feature, office spaces, and retail all wrapped in a color-changing LED facade that’s supposedly reflective of the “forward-looking nature of the development.”

Populous’ Phil Kolbo shared, “A world-class stadium is designed as a true destination, a reflection of its community and a catalyst for growth in the area. This is our mission with the new stadium for Indy Eleven.”

Image courtesy Indy Eleven and Keystone Group

“Eleven Park will not only change the skyline of Indianapolis, but will add over a thousand jobs, have a huge economic impact, create quality of life benefits and attract talent and opportunities to our city and state,” added Ersal Ozdemir, the Chairman and Founder of Keystone Gr...

Qatar puts number of 2022 World Cup migrant worker deaths 'between 400 and 500'

2022-11-29T17:30:00-05:00

The Qatari official responsible for delivery of the 2022 World Cup has said the number of migrant workers who have died on World Cup-related projects is “between 400 and 500”. Hassan al-Thawadi, the secretary general of the Supreme Committee for delivery and legacy, made the admission in an interview but said a precise figure for the number of fatalities was still “being discussed”.

Following al-Thawadi’s vague estimate of worker deaths in a live TV interview, the Qatari Supreme Committee tried to minimize the numbers by issuing a statement that the figures referred to "national statistics covering the period of 2014–2020 for all work-related fatalities (414) nationwide in Qatar, covering all sectors and nationalities," as reported by Amnesty International today.

Populous and HASTINGS complete North America's largest purpose-built soccer venue in Nashville

2022-10-27T12:53:00-04:00

A day after Nashville’s NFL franchise unveiled its plans for a new 60,000-seat stadium, Populous and HASTINGS have officially announced the completion of what is now the largest purpose-built soccer stadium in North America for Tennessee’s "other" football team, Nashville SC.

Located inside the Nashville Fairgrounds complex, the 30,000-seat GEODIS Park is meant to evoke the "look and feel" of the Music City’s industrial past as it enhances the local civic space with a multipurpose facility that can accommodate a host of different public events, concerts, and other community activities.

Image: Tom Harris courtesy Nashville SC

"GEODIS Park is a world-class stadium that speaks specifically to human scale," Bruce Miller, Populous’ Senior Principal and Managing Director for the Americas, said in a statement. "The Nashville identity is seamlessly and authentically woven into the design and the fabric of this stadium through our collaboration with HAST...

2022 World Cup: Amnesty International urges FIFA to reserve at least $440M to remedy abuses of migrant workers in Qatar

2022-05-24T18:48:00-04:00

Human rights group Amnesty International has urged FIFA to earmark at least $440 million to compensate migrant workers who it says have suffered labor abuses in the preparations for the men's 2022 World Cup in Qatar. Amnesty International says the issues, which include unsafe working conditions and excessive hours, are "widespread" in the country.

The organization has reported on the exploitation of the (mostly South Asian) migrant workers on 2022 World Cup job sites in Qatar for some time and is now calling for a symbolic sum to be dolled out to workers and their families as reparations for the decade of deadly abuses and foul labor practices behind the slate of venues that includes designs from Zaha Hadid Architects and Foster + Partners.

Previously on Archinect: "7,000 construction workers will die in Qatar before a ball is kicked in the 2022 World Cup," new ITUC report finds

“FIFA should reserve an amount not less than the US$440 million prize money offered to teams participating in the World Cup, to be invested in funds to support remediation,” the organization’s letter suggested.

FIFA’s President, Gianni Infantino, has maintained the body played an active role in improving conditions for workers, claiming that its efforts had restored “dignity and pride” amongst the two million laborers some have labeled as “slaves.”

...

As Milan's San Siro stadium goes, so goes the city

2022-05-23T14:56:00-04:00

AC Milan’s Serie A championship title over the weekend brought out the missives on placemaking and memory concerning the club’s future in the 96-year-old stadium adored by the Milanese as their seconda casa.

The facilities, last upgraded in 1990 and renovated throughout the 2000s by the local firm Ragazzi and Partners, are set to be replaced by a new “cathedral” designed by American sport heavyweight Populous for the year 2027. Many feel it is the last victim of a changed European Soccer landscape dominated by Russian oligarchs and other monied interests from abroad after the late-1990s to early-2000s.

Previously on Archinect: Populous tapped to lead design of new combined Inter & AC Milan stadium

Alternatives, including its reuse as a massive Covid memorial, have been proposed by the faithful, who also claim a demolition effort of such size would be harmful to the environment. A final approval is still on the horizon for later this year. The architects of the new stadium say their...

Populous tapped to lead design of new combined Inter & AC Milan stadium

2021-12-23T17:12:00-05:00

Bookending another banner year in which it overhauled a living legend and inaugurated a Field of Dreams, Populous has been announced as the designer for the football clubs Internazionale Milano and AC Milan's combined new digs to be located in the city’s San Siro neighborhood.

Nicknamed “The Cathedral,” the new facility will replace the existing Stadio Giuseppe Meazza that has stood on the site since its completion in 1926.

Image courtesy Populous

The stadium will be the centerpiece of a pedestrian-friendly recreation district that features 110,000 square meters of green space in addition to a new underground parking facility. Populous says a finalized design will be unveiled at the conclusion of an accelerated second phase at the end of next year, and that it will stand as a celebration of some of the city’s most iconic architecture, including the famed Duomo and Galleria Vittorio Emanuele.

Image courtesy Populous

“Our design envisages the stadium as the most sustainable in Europe an...

Chinese government takes control of incomplete, $1.7 billion Evergrande Guangzhou Football Stadium

2021-12-06T19:11:00-05:00

Chinese authorities have taken over the Gensler-designed, under-construction Evergrande Guangzhou Football Stadium, commissioned by indebted property developer Evergrande, which was due to become the world’s largest football stadium by capacity, according to Reuters.

The Chinese government will either sell or take over the stadium via the state-owned Guangzhou City Construction Investment Group. As reported by Reuters, construction on the stadium has been halted for at least three months, in which Evergrande has been struggling to meet repayments on over $300 billion of debt.

Previously on Archinect: One of China's largest property developers is roiled in a Lehman-esque debt spiral

The Gensler-designed, 100,000-capacity soccer stadium was planned to be the home ground for professional club Guangzhou Evergrande. Work on the arena began in April 2020, with an estimated cost of $1.7 billion. It was set for completion by the end of 2022.

Allianz Arena will not display rainbow colors in support of LGBTQ activists following a controversial UEFA ruling

2021-06-22T21:01:00-04:00

UEFA has rejected a call from activists to convert the Allianz Arena in Munich into a rainbow-covered light scheme in unison with protests ahead of Germany’s final European Championship group game with Hungary that it is slated to host on Wednesday.

The city council’s proposal was rejected by Europe’s governing soccer body after a ruling cited the effort’s political motivations as the reasoning behind the denial.

Activists are looking to shed light on the recent passage of a bill they say is meant to target LGBTQ education in Hungary’s public school system. The Herzog and de Meuron-designed stadium would have joined other Bundesliga pitches across the country in a show of solidarity that will now be expressed by fans inside the stadium, at Town Hall, and on the city’s nearby Olympiaturm as support for the protest grows.

Aerial photo of Allianz Arena. Image courtesy Wikimedia Commons user Chumwa.

“We in Munich certainly won’t let ourselves be discouraged from sending a clear signal to...

Bahadır Kul Architects captures the essence of Georgian culture with Batumi Stadium

2021-05-12T16:30:00-04:00

With a portfolio consisting of over twenty stunning stadium designs, Istanbul-based practice Bahadır Kul Architects has added to its collection with Batumi Stadium.

The soccer stadium, located in the Georgian city of Batumi, was completed in July 2020 and is the home of local soccer club FC Dinamo Batumi. For its design, Bahadır Kul Architects took inspiration from traditional Georgian dances and, at large, the dynamism, enthusiasm, and free spirited nature of Georgian culture. These qualities are evident in the stadium’s façade, which is clad with 76 overlapping panels, each slanted and different heights. This undulating form evokes movement and creates a rhythmic effect.

The number of façade panels is equal to the number of roof segments, which creates a uniform and consistent bowl. Covered with PVC, the stadium is neutral and almost cloud-like during the day. However, at night the structure is dynamically illuminated by the lighting of the surrounding city. The cladding will als...

OMA and LOLA unveil plans for new soccer stadium in Rotterdam

2020-06-19T15:19:00-04:00

OMA and LOLA Landscape Architects have unveiled new renderings for a new 63,000-seat soccer stadium in Rotterdam.

The proposed Feijenoord Stadium will be home to the Feyenoord Football Club and is billed as "future-proof infrastructure for football and daily activities in the surrounding communities" by the project team.

The stadium, according to the architects, features three-tier seating areas that help increase the arena's overall seating capacity while also "placing spectators as close to the field as possible for an intimate match experience."

Designed with a "bowl-shaped steel structure" supporting these seating areas, the stadium represents a key node in a new master plan for the Feyenoord City district, which has also been developed by OMA and LOLA.

The architects write, "On match days, crowds will gather at the concourse before entering the stadium, while the concourse design will also distribute several slow traffic routes along the water and into the surrounding neighb...