“There was a careful matrix considered to understand
if the building was able to be adapted to current trends,
although it made more economic sense to build a new
state-of-the-art venue that has been designed for a 50-
year lifespan, hopefully more,” he says.
The decision to demolish the stadium was also
driven by a requirement to increase female toilet
facilities and accessibility for its disabled fanbase,
according to a statement released by NSW sport
minister, Stuart Ayres.
All for one
Since the early 1990s, Australia has excelled at
rationalizing its sporting venues as a way to cultivate
the growth of smaller clubs and streamline the
economic advantage of housing multiple codes and
tenants under one roof, explains Richardson.
“There are only a certain number of venues that you
can maintain, operate and develop. Sydney is following
a similar policy to Australian Football League (AFL),
where 18 teams play at only nine venues. At Sydney
Football Stadium, there is a rugby union, rugby league,
soccer and affiliate female teams that all call the ground
home,” he says.
Technology has made the transition between
gamedays seamless without impacting a team’s fanbase
or identity, explains Populous architect Al Baxter, who
was project lead of Bankwest Stadium. The venue in
western Sydney opened in April 2019 and was
Australia’s first stadium to be rebuilt into a rectangle.
“The stadium is designed to undergo a complete
visual transformation quickly and easily to reflect the
unique personality and brand of each of the five teams
that call the venue home. This is achieved with
coloured lighting solutions, IPTVs, media mesh and
digital LED ribbon boards,” Baxter says.
Technology has also changed the way engineers
design stadia, allowing for the evolution of more
complex and high-performing structures, explains
Peter Ayres, global structures leader at engineering
company, Aurecon.
“Engineers are now more engaged with the entire
process from design ideas, through procurement to
construction, using digital tools to augment creativity,
AUSTRALIA FOCUS
(Above) Cox Architects’ design
of a new venue to replace
Allianz Stadium in Sydney
www.stadia-magazine.com September 2019 35
/www.stadia-magazine.com