STADIAWORLD | SPORTS VENUES 2019/20

10    |   SPORTS VENUES 2019/20 www.stadiaworld.com INTRO Experts’ opinions on stadium architecture What are trends and upcoming issues in modern stadium architecture? Four experts share their opinions and give detailed insights. What are current trends in the sports venue architecture? How have they changed in the last years? What is the role of smart technologies when designing new stadiums and arenas? Dipl.-Ing. Matthias Schöner Associate Partner,AS+P Albert Speer + Partner GmbH There is an increasing trend for convertible stadiums.The technical possibilities that are now available are enormous.This trend is also caused by the fact that supporters have created a totally different relationship with the stadium in gen- eral.They don’t want an ordinary stadium, which they can find in any other city. What rather matters is to experience a special atmosphere and identity in and around the stadium – on the inside and the outside. Then again, the operator wants to manage a stadium in which he has a free choice of any surface for marketing purposes. That is both a challenge and objective. This ideal has to be realized attractively and appropriately in the future. However, when it comes to the stadium interior, I think that less is more because the focus has to stay on the game. Maybe we are at risk of losing the focus on the game by having to many advertising and CI elements.Thus, it is important to find the right mix – a task long overdue. Currently, they don’t play the role that they should play. Smart technolo- gies are always on the wish list but economically they’re not always con- sistently feasable or financiable at our end. However, you can see how far other countries have already progressed with this: Just take a look at the US with regards to WLAN. Generally,American stadiums offer WLAN on 365 days in a year —not just for individual groups of visitors but all persons involved. Particularly, when venues are sold out. In many venues fans can order sausages, beer or coke to be delivered to their seats. Another aspect is interaction: Fans want to see a scene again in repeat during a game or event or check data and statistics on their smartphone. The data is streamed via their own smartphone or downloaded onto their device.There is still a lot to be desired at our end. Such solutions have to be implemented because the market demands it. Obviously, these devel- opments will be simplified and more stable in the future but that also calls for a significant economic effort by the operator. Markus Sass Consultant, Companeer GmbH Current layouts are increasingly showing a “disruptive“ design of the stands.The stands are not built in a circle around the pitch but have gaps or bounce aloft. Some of the best examples are the new Stadio della Roma and the Inglewood Stadium in LA.Another exciting trend is transparent full scale stadium canopies made from EFTE foil. The ensuing benefits for audience comfort, perceived out- door ambience, safety and multifunctionality are obvious.At the same time the huge expense for a closable roof with moving parts can be saved. I also really like this new roof variant in architectural terms especially with the U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis and the new Raiders Stadium in Las Vegas. There is also a lot of progress inside the stadium. Hospitality offerings with new buildings like the Spurs Stadium or the grandstand of Anfield Road are increasingly diverse.The new offerings seem to fall into a category of “VIP light“ somewhere between “fine dining“ in the luxury box and the good old stadium sausage on the windy stadium concourse. We at Companeer rely more and more frequently on computer-aided pe- destrian flow and traffic simulations to optimize operational processes of stadiums and arenas or to verify the fire-protection safety of expansion projects. These tools are very helpful and powerful and will without doubt be increasingly used for new building projects in future. Dipl.-Ing.Architect Hubert Nienhoff Partner/Management, gmp von Gerkan, Marg and Partners Architects For stadiums there is a growing trend towards designing them not as football arenas alone but also include other uses. Major events spring to mind such as concerts but also conference facilities by using the boxes and catering are- as, sometimes supplemented by hotels and various sports activities. There are some very interesting new material developments for example in the area of plastics. But they are only very slowly advancing into built projects. For us the question is how to use materials practically and sustainably. Obviously, we have together with our partner sbp – schlaich bergermann und partner refined a trend in recent years – the trend towards the roofing of large stadiums with light cable structures and membrane roof constructions. In the past we assumed that conventional roofing of a stadium with classic steel constructions was the most economical solution. Nowadays it becomes apparent because of structure planning development that light cable structures are economically viable for large spans due to the lower tonnage. Smart technologies enable a new quality of the media coverage of football events, from the players’ entrance to goal celebrations to the final whistle. In the stadium of the Russian first division club FK Krasnodar, for instance, we have installed the world’s first 360-degree screen of its kind. Its wave- like curved contour results from the geometry of the stadium, in which the oval basic shape overlaps the grandstands facing the rectangular playing field. The area for the 4,700 square metre, high-resolution video screen behind the upper tier is covered all around with LED modules. Kirsty Mitchell Senior Associate and Project Manager, HOK There has been a significant shift in the diversity and quality of seating, food and beverage and hospitality options at venues. Today’s sports fans aren’t satisfied with a simple match ticket. They want an enhanced, immersive and curated experience. This has resulted in the introduction of numerous hospitality of- ferings impacting every ticket holder – from entry-level to the most VIP fan, and encompassing everything from gourmet food and beverage offerings, elite lounges and clubs with access to players and coaches.Another noticeable trend is that designers are finding unique ways to break down the typology’s building mass.Today’s venue owners are open to solutions that deconstruct or enhance the façade, allowing the building to be engaged with and interpreted on a pe- destrian scale, where fans interact with the building. We use various software programmes to evaluate environments and the built form. One such example is an assessment of the site’s climatic con- ditions, which then informs the sustainability opportunities and strategies. We also have our own SCRUM modeler, which helps inform our decisions pertaining to the bowl design. Augmented Reality enables our clients to experience their proposed spac- es in a way that feels real in the design process.They can walk around and explore different spaces within a stadium or arena through the conceptual and design development stages.This allows us to evaluate the design and user experience proactively and realistically, and it gives the clients even more confidence in our recommendations and their choices. Picture: Timmo Schreiber