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Sport Architecture. Technological evolution models

and paradigms
La arquitectura del deporte. Modelos y paradigmas de la
evolución tecnológica

Davide Allegri
Politecnico di Milano. [email protected]
Emilio Faroldi Received 2024-04-03
Politecnico di Milano. [email protected] Accepted 2024-10-11

To cite this article: Allegri, Davide, and Emilio Faroldi. “Sport Architecture. Technological evolution models and paradigms.” VLC arquitectura 11,
no. 2 (October 2024): 219-235. ISSN: 2341-3050. https://doi.org/10.4995/vlc.2024.21978

Abstract: The paper focuses on technological evolution applied to sports architecture, considered as urban
infrastructures. A field of research – that has not been given its due importance both by architectural
historiography and by technological culture – despite the fact that sports architecture has always represented
privileged places of formal, technical and engineering experimentation. Some design experiences in the field
of sports venues – from the twentieth century to the contemporary age – have instead represented significant
steps of technological development. In particular, the latest generation of sports infrastructures, represent the
architectural typology where it is possible to find, concentrated, paradigms such as those of resilience, flexibility,
sustainability technologies for adaptive skins and many others innovative parameters.

Keywords: sport; architecture; technology; urban identity; facade.

Resumen: El trabajo se centra en la evolución tecnológica aplicada a la arquitectura deportiva, considerada

como infraestructuras urbanas. Un campo de investigación –al que no se le ha dado la importancia debida
tanto por la historiografía arquitectónica como por la cultura tecnológica– a pesar de que la arquitectura
deportiva siempre ha representado lugares privilegiados de experimentación formal, técnica e ingenieril.
Algunas experiencias de diseño en el ámbito de los recintos deportivos –desde el siglo XX hasta la época
contemporánea– han representado, en cambio, pasos significativos de desarrollo tecnológico. En particular,
las infraestructuras deportivas de última generación, representan la tipología arquitectónica donde es posible
encontrar, concentrados, paradigmas como los de resiliencia, flexibilidad, tecnologías de sostenibilidad para
pieles adaptables y muchos otros parámetros innovadores.
Palabras clave: deporte; arquitectura; tecnología; identidad urbana; fachada.
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INTRODUCTION OBJECTIVES

Architectural and historiographical culture has The aim of the article is twofold: to report through a
traditionally neglected sport architecture: “A more schematic historical-evolutionary overview, the im-
pronounced neglect characterises the treatment of portance of sports architecture in the technological
sporting spaces and stadia in architectural history.” 1 evolution of large building infrastructures and in the
It can be considered a paradox if we just think about urban development of the cities. These references
the general importance that sport has always had have been, since ancient times, references in terms
in contemporary society and as sports architecture of material and construction culture and from the
has always been a privileged places for technical, symbolic, cultural and social point of view. Recently,
technological and construction experimentations. 2 the latest generation sports infrastructures consti-
These places refer to the Genius Loci present in tute a unique case in contemporary cities for their
the memorial structure of communities which, as symbolic and media value and, again, as symbols
such, identify evocative elements of anthropological of the excellence of technological development in
experience, representations of material and iden- architecture.
tity culture which represent a symbolic mark on
the context. It is therefore important to note that
sports facilities have always possessed the distinc- SPORT ARCHITECTURE. SYNTHETIC
tive character that Norberg-Schulz identifies in the HISTORICAL EVOLUTION
existential space that is formed in the fundamental
relationships between human beings, environment If we analyze the timeline of generational deve-
and landscape. The concept of sports infrastructure lopment is analysed from a specific technical/
expresses qualities inherent to its being an interac- technological point of view,7 we can further
tive hub in a given territory, of which it becomes the highlight some moments where sports architecture
driving force and dynamic expression. In this sense, manifests itself as an emblem of experimentation
sports infrastructure must be considered in its ma- and innovation (Figure 1). In a very schematic and
terial meaning as an element of connection between synthetic way:
urban functions, a dynamic system in continuous
change. 3 Unlike the terms “sports facility” or “instal- a. In antiquity (late republican and imperial) the
lation”, a sports “infrastructure”, as such, cannot be modern stadium type (or arena type) was actually
traced back to an exclusive typology of buildings, 4 canonized with the construction of the Flavian
fully expresses the role these architectures have amphitheater (better known as the Colosseum).
acquired in the evolutionary dynamics that struc- In it, the construction innovations are noteworthy
ture the contemporary city. 5 It is true that with a few and can already be found: use of large masses
very particular and qualified exceptions, since the of pozzolanic cement, a geometrically advanced
end of the nineteenth century, the stadium-building basin in its development in plan and section
landscape has been substantially dominated by the (attention to the visual comfort of the public in
engineering culture, which has brought and lim- the c-value of the steps);
ited its essence within the realm of pure structural b. A complex and rigorous system of functions
‘functionalism’, so much so that stadiums have long and access flows capable of guaranteeing
met Bernard Rudoksky’s concept of “architecture perfect management of the stadium machine;
without architects.” 6 an achieved harmony and unity between
architecture and construction technology
expressed on the external facades;
 Allegri, Davide, and Emilio Faroldi. “Sport Architecture. Technological evolution models and paradigms.” VLC arquitectura 11, no. 2 (October 2024): 219-235. ISSN: 2341-3050. https://doi.org/10.4995/vlc.2024.21978

stadium typology.
Figure 1. Evolutionary timeline of the
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c. and finally, the most surprising requirement, the THE MODERN ERA AND TECHNOLOGICAL
application of the modern concept of flexibility INNOVATIONS
of use, in particular in the explanation of the
construction techniques of the velarium (for the In the Modern Era (1st generation | 1863-1920) iron
coverage of the stands) and the setting up of the and cast iron were used in the United Kingdom for
naumachie in the center of the arena.8 the first stadiums in the world designed specifi-
cally for football and for the first time a “specialist”
In the Colosseum and in general in the megalithic designer established itself in this field: Archibald
arenas of imperial Rome, the basin (or cavea or Leicht was not an architect but a hydraulic engineer,
steps), in its mirrored yet essential and stripped- specializing in iron shipbuilding. He applies his hy-
down linearity, defines in every way an architecture draulic knowledge to access and construction the
in which venustas, firmitas and utilitas are closely flows to create increasingly spacious stands and
connected and thus creating the perfect synergy large roofs, structures with a spartan and skeletal
between structure, function and aesthetics. Stone, lightness, almost Gothic-like, not separated from a
wood, “mixed” concrete and natural fabrics are the decorative style that characterized the main stands,
recurring materials that the large dimensions of real urban buildings The large-scale application of
these artefacts force us to use according to ante- techniques, materials and construction systems
litteram principles of large-scale modularity and deriving from other industrial sectors - which is
stressing their mechanical characteristics to the defined as technology-transfer9 – will become a
highest levels. constant in the field of sports infrastructures.10 The
second generation (1920-1960/70) is characterized
First phase, Greco-Oriental “Stadium-Landscape” by the extended use of reinforced concrete for
inserted and integrated into the morphology of the the regime’s sports infrastructures and according
natural landscape, the theatre as a prodromal form to different declinations: a more voluminous one
of the amphitheater and the hippodrome as a typol- (e.g. like the Berlin stadium built for the Olympics
ogy later taken up by the Romans for the races. in 1936 as a symbol of the greatness and construc-
tion wisdom of the Nazi regime) and another more
Second phase, Roman-Occidental Stadium, which “architectural” one which is highlighted in the mas-
we call “Urban Stadium” (typologies based on am- terpieces of Pier Luigi Nervi between the Thirties
phitheatre/arena and/or the hippodrome) inserted and Sixties. The large roof spans and the need to
into the urban dense core of the ancient city. host an ever larger audience are ideal prerequisites
for Nervi who can apply all his construction wisdom
Third phase, Pre-Modern Era: from the noble courts and genius in the field of sports architecture, also
to the “urban sport” in the squares (15th-16th designing specific systems to improve and optimize
century), to the construction of “urban-sferisteri” the construction processes.11
specifically designed for the playing of ball games
(and for public control as well) and then, in Victorian During the III and IV Generation (1960/70-1992)
England period in the second half of the 19th centu- various sports facilities once again became
ry, to the codification (starting from the geometric privileged places of experimentation, innova-
matrix of the colleges) of the modern rules of foot- tion and technological transfer. The Olympic
ball and consequently of the “English model” of the Stadium in Munich (1972) undoubtedly repre-
stadiums that will then be replicated with different sents an emblematic case in the field of research
typologies throughout the world. on geodetic, light and reticular structures by
Buckminster Fuller and on Frei Otto’s mem-
branous tensile structures. “The 1972 Munich
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Figure 2. Technological evolutionary line of sports architecture.

stadium project is the first large-scale project whose ‘MERO system’ grid and were purposely designed
static analysis empirically carried out starting from and manufactured to withstand loads and ensure
physical models is supported by electronic comput- performance levels of diffuse lighting consistent
ing equipment. The term Form-Finding is coined with the sport function of the facility (Figure 2).
which will effectively become a design technique
which, combined with the synthesis skills [of some
THE CONTEMPORARY ERA AND THE LAST
designers] will give life to architectural creations
GENERATION OF SPORT ARCHITECTURE.
of high expressive and technical capacity.” 12 In the
AESTHETICS AND HYPER-TECHNOLOGY
Montreal Olympic Stadium (1976), a mobile roofing
system in a tensile structure with a Teflon membrane Since the mid-1990s, the theme of resilience
(textile fiber reinforced with glass fiber) with packing – expressed in functional and flexibility of use – is
in the center, system (based on the model of the an- a constant element in new constructions (indoor
cient Roman Velarium) adopted for the first time on stadiums and arenas) that adequately responds
such significant dimensions13 while the stadium of to management and economic needs (Figures
Spalato (1979, designed by Boris Magaš) is character- 3,4,5,6). Also in this case, sports architecture
ised by roofing in high-performance polycarbonate becomes the field of application of technical
(used here for the first time on a large scale). The solutions never before tested in the construction
polycarbonate sheets rest on a three-dimensional sector; consider these exceptional examples - of
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Figure 3. New Wembley Stadium (London, 2007). An important and significant recent example of the complete demolition of
an iconic building (the old Wembley inaugurated in 1923 on the occasion of the Universal Exhibition and symbol of the British
Empire) with reconstruction from scratch on the same site.

the technological transfer from the aeronautical sec- can be completely moved outside; the Sapporo
tor in the Saitama (1997) and Toyota (2001) stadiums Dome (Sapporo, 2002) with movable stands and
to move entire parts of the arena in the first case and field (the latter rotatable and removable) and, to
thus configure different functional layouts and, in the close this first New-Age phase of resilient sports
second, to move the large cover through a complex infrastructures, the Arizona Cardinals (Glendale.
system of moving air bearings. Other examples 2006), designed by the studio Peter Einsenmann
of this new generation are the Millenium Stadium Architecs, first example of a mega-stadium pitch
(Cardiff, 1998); the Gelredome Stadium (Arnhem, that “slides” out of the stadium.
1998), the first European example with a pitch that
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Figure 4. Olympic Stadium (Berlin, 1936 opening, 2006 redevelopment). Example of a regime stadium (II Generation) completely
renovated and updated with respect to the requirements for the major competitions of the new millennium (in this case, the
2006 Football World Cup). The approach combined the philological conservation of the old arena with the addition of a new
technologically advanced covering from a material (composite textile membranes) and structural point of view and with a
strong symbolic impact (lightness versus heaviness of the regime).

The evolution and complexity of the architectural space that surrounds us. The word infrastructure
reality and its management, economic and social evokes the dynamic concept of “integrating,” add-
processes has favoured the spread of a new gen- ing something to obtain a complete and functioning
eration of multifunctional structures designed to system. Adding the word “sport” means, from a
guarantee environmental quality, safety and mul- semantic and operational point of view, defining
tifunctionality. As consolidated paradigms of the a new approach aimed at achieving a global re-
current concept-constructive scenario, multiscalarity thinking of the role of sports facilities within
and multidisciplinarity are essential references for an society. It also means integrating and connecting
innovative design approach. Considering sports build- currently isolated spaces and places, defining new
ings and architectures as equivalent to infrastructures settlement systems, reordering scattered frag-
in the traditional sense means placing them within the ments of cities, creating new levels of experience.
complexity of the organization of the contemporary Trends in thought, research and development point
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Figure 5. Two stadiums in Paris are a few meters from each other of different generations. On the left the brutalist stadium
by Roger Taillibert (1972, Parc des Princes, IV Generation), on the right the rugby stadium (Jean Bouin, 1925, then almost
completely rebuilt in 2013, V Generation) with the technologically advanced facade in GRC panels which offers a new aesthetic
perception (more of a museum than a stadium) of the large building in relation to the urban context.

towards an integration of architecture and urban power, one’s culture and the level of technologi-
planning to achieve high-quality and environmentally cal innovation achieved. Since 2002, the ability to
sustainable design. identify the latest generation sports infrastructures
has been demonstrated : the new contemporary
Since the beginning of the 2000s, major sporting ones are characterized by innovative technologies
events have dictated the times and rhythm of con- and materials, a renewed sensitivity to ecological-
stant and exponential innovation in the field of sports environmental aspects; architectural morphologies
architecture: major events which, like the Universal that interact with the landscape or systems that
Expositions of the twentieth century or the recent infrastructure and innervate the city, providing it
Expos, constitute, for the host countries, the ideal with new services for the community; macro-scale
“windows” to show the world one’s political-economic design objects with technologically advanced and
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Figure 6. Paris La Défense Stadium (Paris, 2017). An example of an urban stadium integrated into a large urban park connecting
the La Défense business center, a few meters from the Grand Arche. The technological skin of the facade is used as an element
of fragmentation of the large volume and perceptive integration into the context.

luminescent skins that make these architectures the with easily interchangeable and recyclable modu-
new landmarks of the contemporary city with dream- lar systems. Materials that also lend themselves
like symbolism (Figures 7, 8). well to defining organic and “metabolic” forms di-
rectly influenced by the construction tradition and
Below is a quick overview of some of them: the 2002 experimental research of the Metabolism current
World Cup football championships in South Korea of the Seventies, reaching an extraordinary level
and Japan are characterized by the use of technologi- of refinement and technical-formal complexity in
cally advanced materials – in particular lightweight the definition of the technological nodes both in
composite membranes (textile and reinforcing fibers the facades and in roofing.14 The 2004 European
of various types) with high performance (Teflon, EFTE, Football Championships in Portugal are instead
PTFE, etc.) – which during this great sporting event characterized by the use, albeit in a contemporary
are used extensively for the first time and applied key, of traditional materials and construction
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Figure 7. Maladière Stadium (Neuchâtel, 2007). Urban stadium as a functional and hybrid hub in which public (fire station,
gymnasiums for public schools) and private (shopping centre in the basement) macro-functions are located. The facades are
discontinuous with the architecture of the historic centreof Neuchâtel but at the same time they align with it and act as a
diaphragm in the dialogue with the lake front.

techniques referring to the material culture of the The 2006 World Football Championships in Germany
place, such as for example stone coverings, coloured are instead a symbol of the eco-technological turn-
ceramics (the typical azulejos) or structures “poor” in ing point in terms of large sports facilities. If in the
cast-in-situ concrete, however skilfully integrated into Portuguese experience environmental compat-
the delicate morphology of the Portuguese territory. ibility is more clearly expressed in the relationship
There is a clear reference to a certain regionalist con- between materials-morphology-landscape, in the
structive and figurative tradition which Portuguese German one the emphasis is placed extensively for
architecture continuously draws on, also through the the first time (as a guiding paradigm for the organi-
prolific work of some contemporary masters. zation of the event and its communication) , on the
theme of environmentally sustainable management
of buildings, through the production of energy from
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Figure 8. Letzigrund Stadium (Zurich, 2997). Example of redevelopment of an existing historic stadium (1925) with the addition
of new stands and functions and a new roof with a construction system that has allowed the creation of a refined and rigorous
urban sign, integrated into the urban context. The construction details denote a high-quality approach.

renewable sources, the recovery of rainwater (which size, nevertheless present a high technological con-
will become a consolidated technological and design centration in terms of refined solutions, extensive
paradigm in large structures in general) and the reuse- use of energy production systems from renew-
recycling of materials. An objective certainly facilitated able sources and traditional materials with low
by the cultural and political-social sensitivity towards environmental impact such as wood. Furthermore,
the theme of energy and environmental sustainability the Swiss approach in particular is based on the
in Germany in those years. typological-functional model of the urban stadium
(or stadium-neighbourhood).
The infrastructural experience of the European
Championships in Switzerland and Austria in 2008 The 2010 World Championships in South Africa
is along the same lines, in continuity with a strong instead offer a different panorama, less coherent
“techno-ecological” approach: the facilities, smaller in from the point of view of programmatic objectives,
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Figure 9. Wankdorf Stadium (Stade de Suisse, Bern, 2005). An urban stadium that until recently was the largest roof-mounted
photovoltaic power plant in Europe, it houses public functions such as university spaces.

also reflecting a cultural and political context that were then difficult to manage and exploit in the
is certainly more difficult to manage. South African post-event phase. The situation was different for
stadiums thus oscillate between hyper-technological the World Championships in Russia 2018 and those
ambitions that characterize new stadiums and poorer in Qatar 2022 whose infrastructures are conceived
traditional solutions, which involve simply bringing as media icons, symbols of new geo-political and
existing stadiums up to standard from the point of economic balances and powers even before techno-
view of safety and capacity or, at most, a façade re- logical ones, not necessarily directly connected to a
styling capable of making the structures newsworthy. consolidated sporting context of reference. In some
ways they represent the risk that self-celebration
In some ways a similar discussion can be made for and hyper-technological exaltation lead, on the one
the 2014 World Championships in Brazil: both these hand, to the drift of a “DisneyWorld effect” (symbol of
events have in common a self-celebratory bigness15 an Augé-style-non-lieux and of an prêt-à-porter archi-
which led to the creation of mega-systems which tecture) and, on the other, to the “tabula-rasa effect”
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Figure 10. Tottenham Hotspurs Stadium (London, 2019). An out of scale urban stadium in existing residential neighbourhoods.
Also nicknamed “total-stadium” for the very high technological content used for its management, it denotes a rather “classic”
and undifferentiated facade that making it quite monumental.

which, in the case of the event in Qatar, led to the monumental immanence which was given. In ad-
creation in a semi-desert area, where in a few years dition to the aforementioned dimensional data
a sort of new “Stadium-City” was born, founded on (generally of the “out-of-scale” compared to the
the construction of seven new stadiums (plus one re- morphological conformation of the urban fabric) by
developed) around which as many “neighbourhoods” the absence of resilience of these artefacts, rigidly
for entertainment were born (linked however only to constrained in their own archetypal conformation
the duration of the event), connected by new road which makes them, in their historical meaning, ba-
system infrastructures (Figures 9, 10). sically monofunctional. Precisely these elements
underline their monumental meaning which once
Simultaneously to this explosion of the big sport- again contributes to the construction of the city as
events mentioned above, another interesting trend “a large artefact, a work of engineering and archi-
the field of sports architecture that concerns their tecture, more or less large, more or less complex,
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Figure 11. 974-Stadium (Doha, 2021), is the first example of a stadium that can be completely demountable. Built with recycled
containers for the Qatar World Cup, it is the symbol of a quite consolidated technological trend for large sporting events to build
infrastructures that are partly or completely adaptable, demountable, flexible and resilient (the latest Olympics in Paris are a
clear example of this approach).

which grows over time,”16 or, as Guido Nardi writes, infrastructural routes once abandoned become
“from a cultural point of view, the aspect that most elements of critical discontinuity in the urban
characterizes the construction of a sports facility is fabric. Also, for this reason there are many com-
the monumental role it plays both within the fabric pleted and on-going projects which outline a clear
of the city and within the collective imagination and trend in the design approach with respect to these
therefore of the social unconscious.”17 This aspect of sports “monuments”: their maintenance of the
historical stratification, almost “archaeological” in its structures and identity of the places and at the
vertical reading, which characterizes many sports same time a profound restyling in technological
architectures, constitutes a sort of “barometer” of terms -typological and morphological that can
the construction and changes of the city.18 They, like guarantee their use in accordance with the most
infrastructural routes, are constant permanences recent international regulations and performance
in the evolution of the city and in the same way as parameters.
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Figure 12. Lusail Stadium (Doha, 2022). Technologically advanced skin as a symbol and metaphor of the identity of the place
where the stadium is located.

Usually these operations focus on creating new throughout the day and seasons. To complete the
multifunctional spaces under the stands delimited by façade a retractable roof was provided, which
new facade and the introduction of new high-perfor- will allow the stadium to be used throughout the
mance roofs that provide lighting and environmental year and for different events. At night a LED light-
comfort for the public and, in some cases, on the ing system will project multimedia content on a
insertion of mobile elements (pitch, stands, roofing large scale.19 In addition to this, the stadium has
itself) to allow the holding of events of different na- been equipped with a “packable” mobile pitch
ture. Among the many here mentioned, the example to make the most of the arena for concerts and
of the Bernabeu stadium (Madrid, nearing comple- other events. Also in Spain, the Camp Nou stadium
tion) stand out. It constitutes a construction of a (2024, under construction), where a more evident
new fully closed mobile roof and the insertion of a perception of the original structure is maintained,
new skin characterized by curved blades in stain- and a more “traditional” covering is inserted on all
less steel that flow around the structure creating the stands. A new EFTE skin has been designed for
an asymmetric pattern at the same time sculptural the Johan Cruijff Arena (Amsterdam, 2024) which
and dynamic, which generates different plays of light allows the addition of new commercial spaces.
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Other less “invasive” interventions can be considered between parks, open spaces, public squares and
the one on the Berlin Olympic Stadium (2006) - with the stadiums themselves, which thus become
the restoration and philological consolidation of the nodes and service hubs only if considered within
existing structure (reinforced concrete and cladding this network of relationships - material and virtual
stone) and the insertion of a new light roof with a - that integrate our cities and our landscapes. 22
steel structure and composite textile skin – and the
one, similar in approach, on the Luzhniki Stadium
(Moscow, 2018). Specifically in the Italian context, Notes and References
the approach on existing stadiums usually involves 1
Benjamin Flowers, Sport and Architecture (London: Routledge, 2017), 3.
the maintenance of the main stand (almost always 2
The size of these artefacts, such as their large structural roof spans, has been a
subject to historical-architectural constraints) and challenge for designers and builders since ancient times.
the addition of three new stands with relative new
3
Antonio Cruz and Antonio Ortiz, “Arquitectura para el deporte: El estadio,” En
Blanco. Revista de Arquitectura 4, no.8 (March 2012): 16-23.
coverage. 20 4
For a study of the “stadium-type. “Lo studio delle ragioni formali degli stadi
moderni ci riconduce agli esempi di due popoli mediterranei, i Greci e i Ro-
mani, che in questo campo erano giunti alla creazione di architetture definitive
ed esemplari, durate utili per secoli, tipiche per la loro armonia mirabile tra
FUTURE PERSPECTIVES: BIG SPORTING necessità e forma”, Prefazione. See also the fundamental text by Giuseppe De
EVENTS AND INCREASINGLY Finetti: Stadi. Esempi Tendenze Progetti, (Milano: Ulrico Hoepli Editore, 1934).
TECHNOLOGICALLY ADVANCED 5
Carlos García Tolosana, “Módulo deportivo universitario. Campus de Somosa-
INFRASTRUCTURES guas. Universidad Complutense de Madrid,” Informes De La Construcción 48, no.
448 (1997): 36–46.
6
Bernard Rudowsky, Architecture without Architects. A Short Introduction to Non-
At the end of this general overview, we can there- Pedigree Architecture (New York: MoMA Press Release, 1964).
fore state that the field of sports architecture is in 7
“From the second half of the nineteenth century, it is possible to recognize
constant and continuous evolution, both from a the passage between traditional and modern games. From 1863 onwards (the
year of establishing the modern rules of football), the generational division is
technological (process and product) and functional as follows: Generation I (1863–1920): birth of modern soccer and mass sport
and social point of view. 21 Sport in its general sense sociology; Generation II (1920–1960/70): large arenas as a representation of
is becoming increasingly important in contemporary power; Generation III (1960/70–1989): low-tech tin and concrete architecture;
Generation IV (1992–2002): the post–Taylor Report New Deal for stadiums;
societies and its places are evolving very rapidly Generation V (2002–2016): Great Events and the establishment of the stadium
at the same time. The so-called Big Sports Events as a high-tech identity icon on a global scale; Generation VI (2018–2023–?):
take place every year, becoming extraordinary design and technology for sports and leisure theme parks.”
Davide Allegri, Contemporary project and technological innovation. Architecture, en-
opportunities for innovation at every level and, at gineering, design, in Emilio Faroldi, Sport Architecture. Design Construction Manage-
the same time, the need to renew and redevelop ment of Sport Infrastructure, (Siracusa: Lettera Ventidue, 2020), 25-45.
the existing architectural heritage or to build new
8
In fact, the Colosseum also stood out for the innovative use of the volume locat-
ed below the stage, a choice that forced the ancient builders to adopt complex
places for sport to achieve a more and more increas- waterproofing and water discharge systems. Even previously, in the Republican
ing sport-demand, will make sports architecture era, temporary arenas had been built with a sophisticated and complex con-
(and its design, construction and management) struction system of wooden elements, somehow anticipating the theme of flex-
ibility which is now a fundamental theme. See the structures just completed for
increasingly strategic. Suffice it to say that in recent the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.
years the focus is increasingly shifting from the 9
Ingrid Paoletti, Una finestra sul trasferimento. Tecnologie innovative per
hard infrastructure (the large stadium or arena) to l’architettura (Milano: Libreria CLUP, 2000). See on the concept of technology
the soft one, the latter understood as that set of transfer.
10
Tony Garnier’s design for the Stade de Colombes for the 1924 Paris Olympics,
activities and places for sport which are widespread, with reinforced concrete stands and iron roofing. See for example
widespread, spontaneous, directly connected and 11
Micaela Antonucci, Annalisa Trentis, Tomaso Trombetti, Pierluigi Nervi. Gli stadi
integrated with urban public space. This means that per il calcio (Bologna University Press, 2014). See also.
the physical place itself loses importance in favor of
12
Aldo Capasso, Architettura atopica e tensostrutture a membrana. Segno e segni del
nuovo archetipo costruttivo tra etica e forma (Napoli: CLEAN, 2019).
an increasingly expanded, permeable and fluid use 13
A system then adopted in several other cases in more recent times, in particu-
of spaces for sport, without a solution of continuity lar by the GMP Von Gerkan Murg and Partner studio.
 235

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arquitectura
volume 11
issue 2
Allegri, Davide, and Emilio Faroldi. “Sport Architecture. Technological evolution models and paradigms.” VLC arquitectura 11, no. 2 (October 2024): 219-235. ISSN: 2341-3050. https://doi.org/10.4995/vlc.2024.21978

14
Almost all the stadiums built for this event also have a reference - in the form, in 21
In a recent document produced as part of research on the prospects of the
the materials used, in the techniques - to the material culture and to the construc- “Stage of the Future”, a sort of decalogue of paradigms was formulated which
tive and popular translations of the places. outline the main development themes (in the original document all of them are
15
Rem Koolhaas, Junkspace, (Macerata: Quodlibet, 2006). About this concept see extensively described, here they are reported as only the precise list is known):
also. Stadium-Accessible, Stadium-Urban, Stadium-Smart Stadium-Sustainable, Sta-
16
Aldo Rossi, L’architettura della città (Milano: Il Saggiatore, 2018), 23. dium-Multifunctional, Stadium-Resilient, Stadium-Technological, Stadium-Safe,
Stadium-U.E.F.A., Stadium-Cultural.
17
Guido Nardi, La tecnica nell’architettura per lo sport: note intorno all’auspicata fine di
un culto monumentale, in Impianti Sportivi Parchi Giardini (Milano: Electa, 1990), 53.
22
The complexity and specificity of the sports infrastructure sector requires excel-
lent training programs capable of preparing sector professionals for the design,
18
Emilio Faroldi, Lo sport: indicatore culturale di rigenerazione fisica e sociale. Architet-
construction and management of sports venues. The International Master in Sport
ture, paesaggi, lineamenti (Mendrisio: Espazium, 2023).
Design and Management, held since 2017 at the Polytechnic of Milan, directed and
19
Lucia Brandoli, New facade for Real Madrid’s Estadio Santiago Bernabéu nearly com- coordinated by Emilio Faroldi and Davide Allegri in collaboration and synergy
plete (Milano: Editorialedomus, Domusweb, 18 settembre 2023). with the Graduate School of Management (Gsom-POLIMI), is placed in this per-
20
The cases of the Bergamo and Udine stadiums. See for example. spective.

BIBLIOGRAPHY
Allegri, Davide, Alessandra Annibale, Emily Chiesa, Arnaud Lapertot, Gabriele Masera, and Giulia Prelli. “Technology to Build
Architecture: Application of Adaptive Facade on a New Multifunctional Arena”, in Innovations in Smart Cities Applications
(Volume 7), edited by Mohamed Ben Ahmed, Anouar Abdelhakim Boudhir, Rani El Meouche and İsmail Rakıp Karaș.
Springer, 2024.
Allegri, Davide, and Silvia Battaglia. “Sports Architecture: High-Tech Urban Infrastructure between Identity, Enhancement,
and Redevelopment.” In High-Tech Heritage. (Im)Permanence of Innovative Architecture, edited by Matthias Brenner, Silke
Langenberg, Kirsten Angermann, and Hans-Rudolf Meier. Birkhäuser, 2024, https://doi.org/10.1515/9783035627862-015
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Design Construction Management of Sport Infrastructure. Edited by Emilio Faroldi, Lettera Ventidue, 2020. https://hdl.
handle.net/11311/1149020
Antonucci, Micaela, Annalisa Trentis, and Tomaso Trombetti. Pierluigi Nervi. Gli stadi per il calcio. Bologna University Press,
2014.
Capasso, Aldo. Architettura atopica e tensostrutture a membrana. Segno e segni del nuovo archetipo costruttivo tra etica e forma.
CLEAN, 2019.
Cruz, Antonio, and Antonio Ortiz. “Arquitectura Para El Deporte: El Estadio.” EN BLANCO. Revista De Arquitectura 8, no. 4
(March 2012): 16-23. https://doi.org/10.4995/eb.2012.6896.
De Finetti, Giuseppe. Stadi. Esempi Tendenze Progetti. Ulrico Hoepli, 1934.
Flowers, Benjamin. Sport and Architecture. Routledge, 2017.
García Tolosana, C. “Módulo deportivo universitario. Campus de Somosaguas. Universidad Complutense de Madrid.” Informes
De La Construcción 48, no. 448 (April 1997): 36–46. https://doi.org/10.3989/ic.1997.v48.i448.964
Paoletti, Ingrid. Una finestra sul trasferimento. Tecnologie innovative per l’architettura. Libreria CLUP, 2000.
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1964.

Images source

1-10. Davide Allegri. 11,12. Tommaso Gnani.