The number of registered visitors to Dubai's Expo 2020 has passed 10 million. Expo 2020, which was, as the name suggests, originally scheduled for 2020 but had to be moved due to the pandemic, is the largest major global event to be held since the start of the COVID-19 outbreak. In addition to physical visits, the Expo's digital platform had seen 37 million visits by 27 December 2021. The Expo

ASM Global has revealed HOK -designed plans to increase the capacity at its Manchester Arena venue to 24,000, which would make it the largest arena in Europe. As well as the proposed increase to capacity, the plans include the creation of an additional concourse level to house VIP boxes and lounges, as well as food and drink outlets. A new "worker bee façade" – in honour of Manchester's symbol, the

HOK and ERRE have designed a €220m (US$243m, £188m) arena for Valencia that will be used for music, arts, culture and sporting events. Designed for the client Licampa 1617, the facility will house a 1,200sq m (12,900sq ft) multipurpose room, a 1,300-capacity underground and multistorey car park and the headquarters for the men and women’s Valencia Basket Club. The arena will seat up to 15,600 people or accommodate up to

The HOK and Snow Kreilich Architects designs for the planned St Louis MLS team stadium will not only fit in with the surrounding area, but will help to drive regeneration with mixed-use elements too. The development, initial plans for which were revealed earlier this year, will sit on a site of approximately 30ac (12ha) in the Downtown West area of St Louis. Updated plans show that it will incorporate the

Arquitectonica and HOK have developed plans for a 26,000-seat stadium and mixed-use complex for David Beckham's Major League Soccer (MLS) franchise Inter Miami CF. Covering 131ac (53ha), the Miami Freedom Park and Soccer Village development will, naturally, be centred around the stadium itself. Designs show a bowl-style stadium with seating right around its interior. Tiered stands along the length of the pitch make way for a large single-tier stand at

HOK and Snow Kreilich Architects have unveiled their design for MLS4TheLou – the Major League Soccer (MLS) stadium proposed for St Louis, Missouri. The stadium will serve as the home of the as-yet-unnamed St Louis MLS soccer club. The new facility will feature a translucent ETFE canopy which will provide cover for fans and allow for well-lit spaces below. Light will pass through directly onto the field, helping game-day visibility

Architectural design and planning firm Hellmuth, Obata & Kassabaum (HOK) and software company SAP have released their joint report on the future of esports design. According to their white paper, esports – the fastest growing industry in the entertainment sector – will soon require specially designed facilities to accommodate the unique needs of spectators and competitors. "As technology helps break down cultural barriers," reads the report, "esports are redefining fan

Australian architecture group Architectus and interior design practice Wilson Associates (WA) have completed the expansive Skye Niseko resort in Hokkaido, Japan. Situated opposite the Mt. Fuji-lookalike Mt. Yotei, the 105-key hotel boasts a variety of wellness amenities, including three onsen spas, a float tank (said to be the first in Hokkaido), and a gym. Highlights of the spa menu include a number of bodywork services, massage treatments, facials, and stress

The State Farm Arena in downtown Atlanta has fully reopened, following a US$192.5m (€169m, £152m) renovation project which has transformed the 20-year-old indoor venue. Completed in phases, the redevelopment has been driven by Tony Ressler, owner of the Atlanta Hawks NBA franchise, which is the arena's primary tenant. Ressler acquired the Hawks in 2015 and made upgrading the venue, formerly called Philips Arena, a priority focus in his plans to

Gateshead Council is moving forward with plans to expand the iconic Gateshead Quays, a leisure and entertainment-focused development in Tyne and Wear, UK. The £200m (US$255m, €225m) expansion, which is being spearheaded by Ask Real Estate and PATRIZIA UK, will see the riverside locale gain a number of hotels, bars, and restaurants, as well as a 12,500-seat arena and 10,000 sq m conference centre. Set to be designed by HOK

Construction is almost complete on the Atlanta Hawks’ highly anticipated State Farm arena. The US$192.5m (€166.7m, £145.6m) renovation – said to be the second largest in the National Basketball Association’s (NBA) history – will see the sports centre gain the league’s first-ever courtside bar. Other innovative amenities intended to enhance fans’ in-game experiences include a four-chair barbershop – strategically built to overlook the basketball court – Top Golf Swing suites,

LICAMPA 1617, an enterprise led by Spanish billionaire entrepreneur Juan Roig, has revealed plans to develop a multi-use indoor sports arena in Valencia, Spain. The company is looking to create the region's premier destination for sports, music, arts, and cultural events and has appointed sports architects HOK to design the arena. The main tenant of the arena will be Valencia Basket, a professional basketball team – sponsored by Roig –

The innovative roof of the Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia, US has been completed and is now fully operational. The roof is made up of eight moveable pentagonal shapes – labelled as “petals” by architects HOK – that join at the centre to provide full precipitation coverage. The eight petals are made from ethylene tetrafluoroethylene (ETFE) and move together along 16 individual tracks. The mechanism gives the effect of the

As 2017 draws to an end, CLAD looks back at some of the most significant leisure buildings, both big and small, that have opened this year – from sports stadiums to museums, hotels, theatres and health clubs. No such list can be truly comprehensive of course, so please let us know your own favourite leisure buildings of the year in the comments section below, or on our Facebook and Twitter

Four international design firms are combining to create a new stadium for US baseball team The Oakland Athletics, better known as the A’s. Snøhetta – whose large-scale leisure buildings include the Norwegian National Opera in Oslo and the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art expansion in California – will collaborate with stadium specialists HOK, US studio Sasaki Associates and local firm Studio T-Square. Together, the partners will design a new

Funding has been approved for a 27,500-seater stadium designed to bring Major League Soccer (MLS) to Nashville, Tennessee. Nashville’s Sports Authority has approved a $225m (£171m, €191) bond resolution, solidifying funding before the proposal goes to the Metro Council for final approval in November. Concept designs from global architecture firm HOK show the stadium covering 500,000sq ft (152,400sq m) at The Fairgrounds site in the capital of Tennessee. The renderings

Sports and leisure architects Populous have announced the opening of a new office in Tokyo as the firm continues its global expansion. The decision to establish an office in Japan expands Populous’ global footprint to 15 branches worldwide, including six in the Asia-Pacific region. The organisation now has more than 500 employees around the globe. “Japan offers a wealth of opportunity with its strong culture, burgeoning sports scene and as

Dubai has revealed its legacy plans following the 2020 World Expo, announcing plans to turn the site into a multi-use urban leisure district following the six-month event’s conclusion. More than 80 per cent of the HOK-Arup masterplanned expo site will be reused after the international event closes, with a new community-led development called District 2020 repurposing the site under the government’s legacy scheme. Anchored by 65,000sq m (700,000sq ft) of

Almost 2,000 people have attended a private opening event for the Little Ceasers Arena; a 20,000-capacity sports and entertainment venue located in the heart of Detroit. Politicians, athletes, media personalities and business and civic leaders attended the event on Tuesday (5 September) to take a first look at the hotly-anticipated venue – the new home of National Hockey League (NHL) franchise the Detroit Red Wings and National Basketball Association (NBA)

Atlanta’s new two million square foot stadium has hosted its first game – a preseason National Football League tie between the Atlanta Falcons and the Arizona Cardinals. Tens of thousands of supporters attended the match to take a first look at the hotly-anticipated US$1.5bn (€1.24bn, £1.16bn) sports and entertainment facility, named the Mercedes-Benz Stadium after its principal sponsor. Designed by the Sports + Recreation + Entertainment arm of architecture firm

A ‘southern gourmet’-style restaurant inspired by the Grammy-winning Zac Brown Band, and a barbershop owned by rapper and activist Killer Mike will be part of the “transformed” Philips Arena – home to NBA franchise the Atlanta Hawks. Country music legend Zac Brown – the lead singer of the eponymous band – has helped to design the Zac Brown Social Club, which will treat fans to a “fully-immersive” dining experience that

US National Football League (NFL) franchise the Atlanta Falcons has released a new video showing the final stages of construction work on their US$1.5bn (€1.3bn, £1.1bn) stadium. The Mercedes-Benz Stadium, designed by sports architects HOK, is scheduled to officially open on 26 August for a Falcons preseason game against the Arizona Cardinals. The video, filmed in May, shows construction workers adding the finishing touches to the structure’s unique eight-petal plastic

HOK’s sport and recreation division has been recognised for its sustainability credentials, being nominated for a Sports Humanitarian of the Year award. The Kansas-based architecture practice finds itself in the Corporate Community Impact Award category of the third edition of the ceremony, which is organised by sports broadcaster ESPN. Among the achievements it is being recognised for is its design of the Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, which is the first-ever

HOK has been selected to design the first-ever multi-purpose arena on Abu Dhabi’s Yas Island – an 18,000-capacity sport and entertainment venue. The flexible Yas Arena can be transformed from an 18,000-capacity venue to an intimate 500-seat theatre depending on the nature of the event it is hosting. Sporting events, concerts, conventions and community gatherings are expected to take place at the arena. As well as standard seating, the arena

Global sports architects HOK have collaborated with four international rugby players to discuss what is needed in the rugby stadiums of the future. John Rhodes, a director of the practice’s Sports + Recreation + Entertainment division, met with Jamie Roberts of Wales, Tim Visser of Scotland, James Horwill of Australia and Danny Care of England to learn from their experiences as players and fans. HOK has released the conversation and

A 13m (43ft) bird of prey has found a perch front of the new US$1.5bn (€1.3bn, £1.1bn) home of NFL franchise the Atlanta Falcons. The statue, which represents the team’s signature falcon, is the biggest bird representation in the world and the biggest sculpture ever created by Hungarian artist Gabor Miklos Szoke. It’s wingspan is 20m (66ft) long and it weighs 73,000 pounds (33 tonnes). Millions of people will enter

Architect Carl Galioto, the managing principal of HOK’s New York and Philadelphia offices, has been named the practice’s new president. Galioto, who also serves on HOK’s board of directors and leads its technical board, will now work directly with HOK chair and CEO Bill Hellmuth, himself promoted last year, to lead the global design, architecture, engineering and planning firm. “Carl is extremely well-qualified to assume this position,” said Hellmuth. “In