FutureTrends Of Modern Stadium Development

Sports are an indispensable part of our modern life. Over the last decade the rapid economic development and the inherent social reform have greatly re-shaped the modern stadium architecture, highlighted by the motivation from new technology, and the new role of stadia in urban redevelopment process. What can be confirmed is that the stadium design is becoming more multi-disciplinary than ever, integrating architecture, urban planning and design, engineering, urban economics, urban ecology, artificial intelligence, sustainable technology, etc. To design a modern stadium in such a complicated scenario, therefore, remains a real challenge. Beijing 2008 Olympic Games will trigger a new wave of stadium development in China; a comprehensive understanding of new trends in stadium development will be helpful for our practice. One way to obtain useful knowledge could be done by case studies of the latest built, state-of-the-art new stadia in the world.The present study, by reviewing the history of modern stadium development and the latest thoughts and design proposals from all over the world, proposes a hypothesis that the application of new technology, adaptive reuse, and urban regeneration are three main trends of modern stadium development. Then, the author verified the hypothesis by a carefully-planned case study of the 2006 FIFA German world cup stadia scattered in 12 German cities. In the case study the author discusses how the three trends were embodied in planning, design, construction, and running process of these newest built stadia, and an in-depth observation was done upon the social and urban context of the trends, as well as the strategies and measures implementing these trends. Based on this, the study gives a discussion and prediction about how these trends will influence the stadium development practice in a China context.