Architecture + Sports = Innovation?

Architecturally speaking, sports venues have traditionally been thought to have little to no architectural value.  And for many garish and uninspired stadiums, this is true. For years, stadiums and arenas were built simply as places to “play the game” and watch with seats, a field, and little in between.  However, in recent years, this stigma has been changing.  In fact, sports venues have become an opportunity for designers to be architecturally daring and innovative.  The Dallas Cowboys’ recently completed stadium and Beijing’s National Stadium (nicknamed the bird’s nest), used for the 2008 Olympics, are perfect examples of this emerging sense of innovation.

Beijing National Stadium

The state of Wisconsin is fortunate to be on the forefront of this trend: Milwaukee’s Miller Park features North America’s only fan-shaped retractable roof and Lambeau Field, after its 2003 renovation, managed to successfully blend the historic with the new.

Miller Park

Yet, perhaps the greatest question may be whether this new sense of stadium innovation will uphold the test of time.  The many infamous multi-use stadiums built in the United States during the 1960s and 1970s were considered innovative for their time.  However, beginning in the 1980s and 1990s, most of these were replaced, criticized for their odd seating, cookie-cutter designs, and lack of character.  Backlash has even already begun against the design of the new “retro-classic” design present in stadiums like Miller Park and the brand-spanking new Yankee Stadium, despite the  innovative engineering they may possess. Critics claim these designs are knock-off recreations, similar to something Disney World would build, and lack a true architectectural heritage.

Whatever the critics say, I just pray stadium and arena designers keep it fresh.  I’m not a sports fan, so if I go to a sporting event, I’m watching the retractable roof, not the game.