Exploring Some of the World's Most Beautiful Stadiums from Across the World

Stadiums have a special place in our culture. There is a good chance that at some point you, alongside, friends or family, made an exciting trip to a stadium-related event. The arenas serve as places for mythic sports games, electric music venues, and “cultural revivals.”

Both the Olympics and the World Cup, events that bring the whole world together, are centered around the stadium. But have you ever just sat back and appreciated these impressive structures?

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Stadiums are complex structures that come equipped with state of the art facilities and technology, while others have more historical quarks rather than cool features; nevertheless, both serve the same purpose and get the job done. Does that beg the question are there some stadiums better than others? The overwhelming majority of you might say yes. 

So, your next question might be, what makes a great stadium great? We decided to take a list at some of our highest ranked stadiums, beloved equally by architects and fans to see what actually makes a stadium great and perhaps set up plans to catch a game in the near future.  

Bursa Büyükşehir Stadyumu (Timsah Arena)

Taking the number 10 spot on the Stadium DB list, the Bursa Büyükşehir Stadyumu is massive as it is stunning. With a capacity of 43,331, the Bursa located stadium cost 40 million dollars with it officially being completed in 2018. 

The stadium has a massive floor space of 190,000 square meters which also includes 50,000 square meters purely reserved for commercial and office use. What makes this stadium unique is that its design is supposed to look like a resting crocodile.

The Maracanã

Rio De Janeiro is one of the most beautiful cities in the world so it is no coincidence that the city would churn out one of the world's most important and equally beautiful stadiums. The Maracanã was the center stage for global sporting events like the 2014 World Cup and the 2016 Rio Olympics.  

Since its inception and throughout history, the stadium has remained as Brazil's largest stadium hosting more than 150,000 people on 26 separate occasions. Even after its current reduction in capacity to 78,838, it still is the biggest stadium in the country. 

Pancho Arena

Stepping inside the Pancho Arena in Magyar City, Hungry you will quickly realize that this is not your typical sporting arena. Created by the legendary Hungarian architect Imre Makovetz, the design language of this arena is supposed to make spectators feel as if they are in a museum or holy place. The incredible wooden interior and dramatic curved lines definitely create this feeling. 

Rostov Arena

Next stop, the Rostov Arena in Russia. Costing a whopping 19.84 billion RUB or approximately 314 million dollars the process needed to create this stadium was long and complicated plagued by its high costs and economic turmoil within the country earlier in the decade. Though there were some design changes made to the stadium as a means to cut costs, the stadium eventually would open its doors in 2018. 

One of the biggest takeaways from this stadium is its facade. It is covered with perforated aluminum featuring built-in LED illumination that brings the building to life at night. Even more so, there is a beautiful screen built into the western elevation of the stadium where a majority of visitors can approach the stadium. 

Marina Bay Floating Stadium 

Located in Singapore, the Floating Stadium is officially recognized as the largest floating stadium in the world. Built-in 2007, its innovative design anchors the arena to the shore with the use of three link-ways. The stadium can carry the weight of around 30,000 fans. 

Mol Aréna Sóstó 

Our next pick can be found in Székesfehérvár, Hungary. This stadium cost about 68 million USD. The stadium itself is part of the evolution of the widely popular Sóstói stadium, meaning Mol Aréna Sóstó was simply created and built upon the already existing stadium. It was a challenging feat as developers had to find an appropriate way to merge the old with the new.

Even more so, the stadium needed to be built so that it could easily transition to a wildlife reserve, with the largest green area and wildlife sanctuary beginning just behind the east stand. The stadium would go on to open, meeting all its set goals in November 2018. 

Mordovia Arena

And, we are back to Russia. Taking multiple redesigns and about eight years to construct, the Mordovia Arena would be shaped by FIFA’s awarding of the World Cup even if the stadium was already in construction before then back in 2010. Unlike most of the Stadium’s on the list, the final product came out much cheaper than expected, retaining a lot of its amazing features. 

The stadium has this unique solar symbolism that is represented in its intense orange-to-red facade. The stadium features top tier leisure and recreational facilities. The arena itself has a capacity of 44,149. 

Bird's Nest Stadium 

You have probably come across the stadium at some point as it is one of the most revered stadiums in the world for its alluring and almost avant-garde design. The Chinese 90,000-seat stadium cost an impressive $450 million. Built-in 2008 the Bird's Nest stadium was a collaborative project among Chinese and Swiss architects who decided to expose the steel structures and make it look like a bird's nest. 

Louis Armstrong Stadium 

The 14,069-seat Louis Armstrong Stadium is an innovative masterpiece, so much so that the arena won the Prix Versailles Special Prize Interior this past year. One of the biggest takeaways from the stadium is its innovative design that encourages natural air floor while keeping the rain off the court.

The Louis Armstrong Stadium is actually the world's first naturally ventilated tennis stadium with a retractable roof.

Volgograd Arena

Back to Russia again. This stadium has a unique back story. Before the Volgograd Arena was constructed, developers demolished the old existing stadium. The excavation revealed a number of WWII bombs. After they were removed, the stadium was constructed in three years after multiple redesigns. The stadium has a capacity of 45,568 and costs 270 million dollars. 

Zaozhuang Sports and Cultural Park Stadium

Almost costing half a billion dollars, this stadium will catch your eye not because of the price tag but because of its unique design. The stadium has been winning awards since its inception with its alluring features. It has one of the most complex tensile cable roofs ever created. The stadium is a little smaller than the other stadiums on the list with a capacity of 30,000. 

Samara Arena 

Looking at the stadium from above, the Samara Arena looks like a gorgeous metallic sun. Samara’s long-standing tradition for aviation and the cosmic industry served as inspiration. Some people call it the spheroid stadium or Cosmos Arena. People have even described the arena as a massive UFO. Yet, the stunning stadium has a 44,918 capacity, a wide array of features, amenities, and operational possibilities.

Suzhou Olympic Sports Centre Stadium

This stadium was built on a large piece of farmland. It has a gross floor area well over 421,000 m2. It is also conjoined with a shopping center, houses a 269-capacity guest hotel, casino and other amenities for both sports-event visitors and everyday users. The layout of the stadium is rather traditional with a modern twist, a massive roof cable structure that weighs 500 tons. 

Optus Stadium

Optus Stadium in Perth Australia recently earned the prestigious title of the world's most beautiful sporting facility, gaining the highly coveted Prix Versailles for Sports award. Completed in 2017, the facility cost $1.6 billion and has the large capacity of 60,000 seats. Yet, its modern design and innovation construction has attracted two million sports fans over 43 events just in 2018 alone.       

The design itself has been described as both warm and almost organic with its outer shell covered with glass and anodized aluminum. Stepping inside the stadium you might find 18 premium-seating areas, 84 private boxes, 1,500 toilets and 777 seats for the disabled.

DVTK Stadion

The new state of the art stadium is in the largest town called Miskolc in Northern Hungary. It is made for 14,680 spectators filled with offices and VIP rooms, including 18 skyboxes, changing rooms, and event halls. The stadium even has a tram that runs through it.

What stadiums are your favorite? Leave a comment below.