Amazing Stadiums around the world
Score! 13 of the World’s Coolest & Craziest Stadiums
They host some of the world’s most exciting events and are often among the most massive structures in any given city – so why are stadiums themselves usually bland and boring? These 13 stadium designs shake things up with unexpected architectural details, surprising shapes and breathtaking surroundings from cliffs overlooking the city to helipads hovering hundreds of feet above the ground.
Munich Olympic Park
(images via: wikimedia commons)
From above, it looks alien, a massive metallic shell-like structure gleaming in the sunlight. The stadium at Germany’s Munich Olympic Park is made from stainless steel and acrylic and is the only stadium in the world to have hosted the Olympics, the World Cup Final and the European soccer championships final.
Osaka Stadium, Japan
(image via: mellowmonk + fudoki)
Sure, there are some baseball fans that are so obsessed with the sport that living in a stadium would be a dream come true. But what about an entire neighborhood? Built in 1950 for Japan’s Nankai Hawks baseball team, Osaka Stadium was an entirely ordinary sports venue for nearly forty years – until the team moved to a new stadium. The abandoned Osaka Stadium was used to hold model housing for several years before it was demolished in 1998.
The Float at Marina Bay, Singapore
(images via: wikipedia)
The world’s largest floating stage can hold the weight of 9,000 people, 200 tons of stage props and three 300-ton military vehicles. And that’s just the platform itself; the adjacent stands hold 30,000 spectators. ‘The Float at Marina Bay’ is on the waters of the Marina Reservoir in Singapore and is used not just for sports but also concerts, exhibitions, art performances and the National Day Parade.
Cocodrilos Sports Park, Venezuela
(images via: soccerway.com)
At the Cocodrilos Sports Park in Caracas, Venezuela, you could be forgiven for getting distracted from the soccer match by the eye-catching architecture of the stadium itself. Situated next to a mountainside, the stadium is walled in with concrete plates that give it a highly unusual look.
Braga, Portugal
(image via: sport.co.uk)
Even more beautiful is Portugal’s Braga stadium, carved into a granite quarry overlooking the city of Braga. At one end of the stadium is the dramatic rocky wall of the quarry and at the other end is an open vista of the city below. Braga is one of Europe’s most expensive stadiums, its price tag of €83.1 million coming mostly from the costly rock-moving process required to build it.
Volcano-Like Stadum: Estadio Chivas, Mexico
(image via: inhabitat)
Like a ring of smoke from an erupting volcano, the white membrane of the Estadio Chivas stadium in Guadalajara, Mexico rises from a sloped opening in the ground. That’s no mistake – architects Jean Marie Massaud and Daniel Pouzet looked to the surrounding landscape for inspiration. Parking is hidden under the hill and when it’s not in use, the stadium itself is used as public recreation space.
Gospin Dolac, Croatia
(images via: wikimedia commons)
When it comes to sports stadiums, does it get any more picturesque than this? Gospic Dolac is home to the NK Imotski football club in Croatia and the 4,000 spectators that its bleachers hold get stunning views of nearby medieval ruins, the hillside and the Blue Lake.
Janguito Malucelli, Brazil
(images via: jmalucellifutebol.com.br)
At Brazil’s first eco-friendly stadium, you won’t be sitting on hard metal bleachers, but rather seats embedded in the grassy hillside. All of the wood used in the stadium was reclaimed to prevent deforestation, and not a drop of concrete was used in the stadium’s construction.
Beijing National Stadium, China
(images via: wikipedia)
It was the iconic image of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing – a stunning design that originated from the study of Chinese ceramics, and one that was unlike any other stadium in the world. The Beijing National Stadium, or Bird’s Nest as it’s commonly known, has a distinctive asymmetrical design made with crisscrossed steel beams.
Sapporo Dome, Japan
(images via: wikipedia)
Sapporo, Japan gets so much snow every year that engineers faced a dilemma in designing a stadium for the city: how could they ensure that the grass playing field would get enough sunlight without using a retractable roof, which may not hold up to 20 feet of frozen precipitation? Their solution was 8,300-ton field that slides in and out of the flying saucer-like stadium, allowing it access to fresh air and sunlight on nice days. This moving field also enables the stadium to switch between baseball and soccer.
Solar Stadium, Taiwan
(image via: inhabitat)
Like the scales of a reptile, 8,844 solar panels cover the new stadium in Taiwan. It’s a fitting facade for a dragon-shaped arena, which generates 100% of its own power and is located on a tract of undeveloped land that is also home to public green spaces and an ecological pond.
Sochi Olympic Stadium, Russia
(images via: dvice)
If all goes according to plan (and the economy doesn’t take yet another architectural victim), Russia will get an incredible new stadium for the 2014 Olympics. Sochi Olympic Stadium will feature a translucent, all-glass exterior inspired by both its coastal location and mountainous backdrop. Construction has not yet begun, but the stadium is due to be completed in 2012.
Burj Al Arab Hotel Helipad, Dubai
(image via: greenroofs.com)
When photos of a sky-high tennis match appeared online, many people assumed they were a hoax. It does look too bizarre to be true – not to mention unsafe – but the photos in question are in fact real. The Burj Al Arab skyscraper in Dubai converted its helipad to a tennis court and held a match between Roger Federer and Andre Agassi in preparation for the 2005 Dubai Championships.
12 World’s weirdest stadiums
A lot of stadiums around the world have spectacular designs, like the new World Cup 2010stadiums in South Africa. Stadiums give pride to the countries where they are located. Yet there are some stadiums where architects have failed and there are some very clever adaptations to the surrounding landscape and that makes them kinda weird.
Japan, Osaka stadium, former home ground of baseball team Nankai Hawks. The stadium situated in center of Osaka City, with capacity of 31379 seats. In 1988, The Hawks’ owner company sold the team to Daiei Group and moved to Fukuoka City. As 3 remaining teams in Metro Osaka got their own stadiums, Osaka stadium was abandoned for baseball and soon converted to sample housing showground. The stadium was demolished in 1998 and a shopping center was built in its place. While you can’t watch a baseball game at this location anymore, you can still pick up some Nike baseball gear.
Venezuela, Caracas “Cocodrilos Sports Park” is a multi-use stadium. It is currently used mostly for football matches and is the part time home stadium of Caracas FC. The stadium holds 3,000 people and lies next to a highway.
Portugal, Braga. One of the most expensive and weirdest stadiums in Portugal. The enormous rock moving process contributed heavily to the final $122 million cost, more than any other of the ten new stadiums built for European football championship in 2004. The stadium is often considered one of the most original and beautiful stadiums in the world. We find it strange.
Croatia Gospin dolac is a stadium in Imotski. It was built in 1989 and serves as home stadium for NK Imotski football club. The stadium has a capacity of 4,000 spectators. Beautiful strange stadium.
Brazil Eco-Stadium “Janguito Malucelli” became famous for being the first “green stage” of Brazil, his main stand was built with chairs placed on top of a hill, without the use of concrete. Therefore, the stage is also called Eco-Stadium.
The Faroe Islands are an island group situated between the Norwegian Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, approximately halfway between Scotland and Iceland. Their national football team is playing with European national teams on pitch located next to the sea. There’s also a guy in a boat that collects the balls that fall into the sea during a match.
Singapore, Marina Bay. Made entirely of steel, the floating platform measures 390 feet long and 270 feet wide. It can bear up to 1,070 tonnes, equivalent to the total weight of 9,000 people, 200 tonnes of stage props and three 30-tonne military vehicles. The gallery at the stadium has a seating capacity of 30,000 people.
Bulgaria FC Chernomorets Balchik football club from the town of Balchik, currently playing the second division of Bulgarian football. The team plays its home games at the local “Balchik Stadium” with 6,000 of the ugliest seats we’ve ever seen.
Norway FC Aalesund old stadium was very strange with terrace on a hill. Club build a new stadium in 2005. It was also a home of the Norwegian Woman’s Premier League matches.
South Africa Mmabatho Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium in city Mafikeng It is currently used mostly for football matches. The stadium holds 59,000 people and was designed and built in 1981 by a Russian construction company.
Austria, Vienna the “Hohe Warte Stadium” is a multi-purpose stadium in. Primarily a football venue and the home of First Vienna football club, it has also occasionally played host to Austrian international rugby union matches and the Vienna Vikings American Football team.
Belgium FC Antwerp stadium was built in 1923 and was once one of the biggest and most luxurious soccer stadiums in Europe, now stands look totally different, each competing for the title “ugliest stand world wide”.
Ukraine, absolute winner , gravity is not a best friend of players on this team. We don’t have additional info about this pitch and is there any football matches going on on this field, but for sure it is fun for drivers on this road.
