Sydney Football Stadium design unveiled
The design of the new Sydney Football Stadium has been unveiled, with the rebuilt venue to include 45,000 seats, cost $729 million, and open in 2022.
Allianz Stadium recently hosted its final event, with demolition of the 30-year-old venue expected to commence in January, although some parts of the venue have already started to be dismantled such as the LED signage.
Cox Architects have delivered the winning design, with three architectural firms in the running.
NSW Sports Minister Stuart Ayres says the design will create "a colosseum of sound and colour" that will "set the standard for rectangular stadiums in Australia".
The new stadium will feature three levels of seating on each side with two levels at the ends. The steep incline will ensure all seats are close to and on top of the action with not a bad seat in the house.
One of the primary features will be the spectacular roof which will light up in the colours of the home team while the drip line will extend beyond the first row, meaning all seats will be covered, however some fans may still get wet depending on the wind direction. The wrap-around design means light and crowd noise will be kept within the stadium, reducing spill to the surrounding areas.
The width of the seats will also be larger while the row depths will be longer to accommodate the fact the average person is getting bigger.
The stadium will also feature state-of-the-art member facilities, stand-up bars, open concourses and more bathrooms to cut down on queues. Upper terraces on the outside of the stadium will include landscaping to blend it in with the surrounds.
"Just like Western Sydney Stadium, we've used the natural environment as inspiration in the design, with a striking bronze façade in place that reflects Sydney's unique sandstone geology, and a lightweight cloud-like roof structure," Mr Ayres said.
The new design doesn’t appear to have a feature to hide the top level for lower-drawing games by the use of LED curtains or similar, as per one of the earlier designs, while it’s also unclear if there is the provision for safe-standing areas at the active-supporter end.
While both the SFS and the SCG don’t have public transport and fans are required to walk 1.5km from Central Station, both venues at Moore Park will be serviced by the new Sydney Light Rail in the future.
The rebuild has been controversial with the NSW government originally announcing they would demolish and rebuild both the Sydney Football Stadium and the Olympic Stadium at Homebush. Instead, ANZ Stadium will now be redeveloped although the exact timing is yet to be confirmed as the current timeline means Sydney will be without a major rectangular stadium for at least one year.
It is unknown at this stage if the Allianz Stadium name will be retained for the new stadium. The existing 10-year naming rights deal with Allianz commenced in 2012.
What do you think of the new design? Have your say on our Facebook page >
