Football stadium in Guanzhou

People's Republic of China

A business group, owner of a Chinese SuperLeague football team, has developed during the year 2019 a process of selection of a design team for a new stadium in the city of Guangzhou, with capacity for 80,000 people and complying with FIFA and AFC standards. To this end, IDOM was invited along with other selected teams to submit proposals that would resolve a hybrid programme of Stadium and Shopping Centre, giving great importance to the external aspect of the building envelope.

The inspiration for IDOM’s proposal has its origin in several significant aspects: the Chinese topography, with water plains and successive layers of mountainous profiles; the Chinese geometric traditions of representing the Earth (Rectangle) and the Sky (Circle), and how they are organically added above and below the Stadium’s grandstand module; and the dynamism of traditional Chinese dances, which inspire a dynamic façade envelope, with various options of textures and shapes, and which incorporates a dynamic lighting system. The concept integrates the perimeter shopping centre, generating a hybrid building that optimises the construction and eliminates redundant spaces, creating a spatial link between the city and the stadium.

The stadium in turn establishes a unique football atmosphere, meeting the highest FIFA standards. A careful treatment of the pedestrian entrances allows the flow of both users (Shopping Centre and Stadium), and the fit in the plot favours a unique experience of pedestrian and vehicular approach to the Stadium. A lightweight roof system helps to create the interior atmosphere of the stadium, and creates the protection of a landscaped skywalk above: a real perimeter street with unparalleled views of the City, and providing shopping and leisure opportunities.

Architecture : Design : Sports & Events