Quzhou Sports Park / MAD Architects

Architects: MAD Architects
Area: 58565 m²
Year: 2022
Photographs: CreatAR Images, Aogvision, Arch-Exist, Fangfang Tian
Landscape Architect: PWP Landscape Architecture
Structural Engineer: Schlaich Bergermann Partner
MEP Engineer: SC Consultants Limited
Lighting Consultant: Ning’s Field Lighting Design
Principal Partners in Charge: Yansong Ma, Qun Dang, Yosuke Hayano
Associate Partners in Charge: Huiying Liu, Changrui Fu, Kin Li
Design Team: Chen Xu, Cunhao Li, Guangchong Li, Gang Li, Yin Ma, Hui Li, Jin Tian, Kai Zhang, Yue Ma, Haimeng Zhou, Yuhan Xiao, Le Su, Wenzhao Kang, Lin Yu, Bo Zhang, Yufei Zhang, Qi Wang, Minzhe Song, Xi Cao, Hailun Liu, Xiaomei Zhang, Kangcheng Zheng, Thoufeeq Ahmed Alessandro Fisalli, Melanie Weitz, Yuki Ishigami, Luis Torres, Pittayapa Suriyapee, Neeraj Mahajan, Connor Hymes, Iting Lien, Kyung Eun Na
Client: Quzhou West District Development Committee, Quzhou Baoye Sports Construction and Operation Co., Ltd
Facade Consultant: RFR Asia
Signage Design: Nippon Design Center, Inc.
City: Quzhou
Country: China

Quzhou Stadium, the centerpiece of Quzhou Sports Park designed by MAD Architects in Zhejiang Province, reimagines sports architecture by blending seamlessly into its natural surroundings. Covering 700,000 square meters in the historic city of Quzhou, the 30,000-seat stadium’s flowing form mirrors nearby mountain ridges, integrating with the landscape as a work of land art. The lightweight canopy, supported by nine drop points, appears to float over the terrain, with undulating green seating echoing the surrounding topography. Sustainable features include rainwater management, underground facilities with natural light, and locally-sourced materials, reducing the environmental impact. This first phase of Quzhou Sports Park will eventually expand to include additional facilities, forming the largest earth-sheltered complex in the world and offering a striking contrast to the dense urban fabric of the region.

MAD Architects, under the leadership of Ma Yansong, has completed Quzhou Stadium, the focal point of a nearly 700,000-square-meter complex named Quzhou Sports Park, located in Zhejiang Province. Situated in the historic city of Quzhou, 400 kilometers southwest of Shanghai and surrounded by dense forests to the east and west, the stadium’s fluid exterior design mirrors the nearby mountain ridges visible from the site. Its landscape draws inspiration from the fantastical terrains envisioned by visionary science fiction authors.

Quzhou Stadium, despite its substantial 30,000-seat capacity, was intentionally designed to blend seamlessly with the surrounding landscape rather than stand out as a distinct object. In contrast to the fortress-like stadiums commonly found in urban areas worldwide, MAD Architects aimed to integrate advanced technology within the structure to create a design that remains open to the surrounding public space from nearly every angle.

MAD Architects envisions the stadium grounds as both a dynamic park space adjacent to the city’s urban center, suitable for athletic and leisurely activities, and as an opportunity to foster a spiritual connection between people and nature. Ma Yansong sees Quzhou Stadium as a departure from conventional sports architecture, conceiving it as a piece of land art that integrates with its natural surroundings and invites people to gather and celebrate the spirit of sports. Reflecting this vision, the sloping facade carries the undulations of the surrounding topography, encouraging visitors to explore and interpret where the landscape ends and the building begins. Even when closed, the structure invites interaction, allowing visitors to climb and engage with it as an active part of the environment.

Quzhou Stadium’s overhanging structure, resembling a halo gently suspended above the landscape, stands as a striking new landmark for the city. Visitors access the stadium through one of eight entrances beneath the canopy, each featuring intricate double-curved surfaces that ripple overhead like ocean waves. The canopy is supported by just nine drop points, with a maximum span of 95 meters between them, enabling the structure to appear as if it is “floating” above the terrain while framing views of the city from various vantage points.

The stadium is supported by 60 sets of concrete column walls, constructed from exposed wood-grained fair-faced concrete sheet walls, which add warmth and texture to the material while softening the distinction between interior and exterior spaces. Internally, the canopy is made of self-supporting steel, wrapped in a translucent light-emitting membrane material that accommodates the complex geometry necessary for the long-spanning design.

The canopy, though built from a monumental steel frame, achieves a lightweight appearance due to the light-transmitting synthetic polymer PTFE membrane wrapped around its lower half. This membrane, featuring micro-perforations, enhances the stadium’s acoustic performance. The upper surface of the canopy utilizes a more solid PTFE membrane to shield the seating bowl from rain. Inside, the sinuous geometry continues, accommodating up to 30,000 spectators in a crater-like interior that offers selective views of the surrounding city and mountain landscape. The seating arrangement mirrors the undulating terrain and is rendered in varying shades of green, creating a visual contrast with the white canopy above.

The stadium not only provides an intimate setting for spectators but also incorporates numerous sustainable design features. Most of Quzhou Stadium’s facilities, apart from the seating and arena, are positioned below ground level. Large openings in the landscape are designed to allow natural light to illuminate the parking garage and entry levels. The entire structure is engineered to absorb, store, and infiltrate rainwater, a system that protects the building from excessive rain damage while significantly reducing temperature fluctuations and overall energy consumption.

MAD approached the stadium as a piece of land art by selecting regionally-specific plants that require minimal maintenance, supporting water conservation efforts. The outdoor signage is crafted from stone and metal and integrated into the ground plane to harmonize with the natural surroundings. Furthermore, all concrete materials used across the site were locally sourced, reducing the carbon footprint associated with material transportation during the construction process.

Quzhou Stadium marks the first phase of the Quzhou Sports Park complex, a large-scale project publicly announced in 2018. The full development will include a 10,000-seat gymnasium, a 2,000-seat natatorium, a science and technology museum, hotel accommodations, a youth center, and retail spaces. The architectural approach for the buildings within the park diverges from the traditional emphasis on structural strength in athletic facilities, opting instead to express a subtle and refined aesthetic. Once completed, Quzhou Sports Park will be the largest earth-sheltered complex in the world, offering a significant contrast to the dense urban fabric of the surrounding region.