FISERV FORUM
Location: Milwaukee, Wisconsin, US
Capacity: 17,341
Tenants: Milwaukee Bucks (NBA), Marquette Golden
Eagles (NCAA)
Opened: August 2018
Built to replace the BMO Bradley Centre – one of the oldest
active NBA venues in the country – the Fiserv Forum arena
is widely viewed as a new standard in technological and
sustainable sports facility design. It is characterized by
a structural sweeping roof that folds over its northern
edge like a bronze-colored breaking wave. It sweeps over
a contemporary cool blue glass façade, which creates the
curvature of the roof and frames one of the most
memorable entrances in sport.
With a seating capacity of 17,341 for basketball games
and 18,000 for concerts, the arena features a digital
viewing canvas that includes 850 televisions and a foursided
scoreboard that is the largest center-hung
Pic: schemev@stock-adobe.com 20 BEST BUILDS
UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA / STATE FARM STADIUM
Location: Glendale, Arizona, US
Capacity: 63,400 (expandable to 72,200)
Tenants: Arizona Cardinals (NFL), Fiesta Bowl (NCAA)
Opened: August 2006, renovated 2017
State Farm Stadium is something of a catalyst for 21st century stadia design, having been the first facility in
North America to feature both a retractable roof and retractable field. Two large, translucent fiberglass roof
panels that weight 550 tons each can fully enclose the bowl within 15 minutes to create a favorable airconditioned
videoboard with equal-sized, four-sided dimensions
in the NBA.
It is also the world’s first bird-friendly arena having
accrued Bird Collision Deterrence credit as part of its
application for LEED Silver certification. According to
scientists, approximately one billion birds die annually
after colliding with glass in the United States, which
accounts for 5% to 10% of the country’s total bird
population. At Fiserv Forum, reflective glass and lighting
strategies have been reimagined to minimize collisions
and prevent disorienting nocturnal spring and fall
migrations, explains Milwaukee Bucks President Peter
Feigin. “We were able to integrate many of Bird City
Wisconsin’s suggestions in the early design phase of the
project,” he says. BEIJING NATIONAL STADIUM
Location: Beijing, China
Capacity: 80,000 (expandable to 91,000)
Tenants: China National soccer team,
China National basketball team,
2008 Olympic Games
Opened: June 2008
Beijing National Stadium – more commonly known
as the Bird’s Nest – is a dynamic icon of the 2008
Olympic Games and an exemplar in technological
stadium design. The US$386m project took five
years to complete and was constructed using
42,000 tons of steel, making it the largest steel
structure in the world.
The stadium is comprised of two separate
structures – an 80,000-permanent seat central
concrete bowl, and a curvilinear outer shell
of folded steel. Its circular shape is intended
to represent heaven, and while the exterior steel
pattern appears random, it abides by a complex
set of engineering rules for which advanced
geometry was defined.
The steel was specially designed to meet the
strength and flexibility requirements of the project
with new grades being developed that could
withstand a magnitude eight earthquake and an
extreme thermal expansion range of 86°F (30°C) in
the summer and -4°F (-20°C) in winter. The result
is a timeless interlaced brace of mutually
supporting steel that is an innovation in complex
geometry design.
interior during the hot Arizona summer.
An all-natural grass playing surface is maintained by rolling it outside on a series of wheels, gears and
rails so that it can grow naturally in direct sunlight. The system moves the field, which is 232ft x 403ft (71m
x 123m) and weighs 8165 tons, outside in just over an hour. This unique and innovative design was the result
of a collaboration between stadia specialists Populous and New York-based architect Peter Eisenman.
The overall aesthetic of the venue is designed to replicate a native barrel cactus – although many fans
attest that it bears a closer resemblance to a landing spaceship in lieu of its shiny metallic panels and
recessed glass bands. As a testament to its legacy and success, the US$455m venue has been awarded the
hosting rights of the Super Bowl XVII in 2023 for the third time.
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