Australia’s Wave Park Group has proposed bringing one of its URBNSURF parks to Perth as a 4.5 hectare centrepiece for the city’s sports and recreation precinct. The surf park company wants to redevelop a bowls club in the 22 hectare Tompkins Park into a world-class destination that attracts surfers disappointed by the surfing opportunities along the coastline. “Perth is blessed with a number of idyllic beaches, but the surf quality

Manica Architecture have revisited their stadium design for National Football League (NFL) franchise Oakland Raiders, with the proposed location shifting from California to Nevada. The studio originally designed the 65,000 capacity stadium to be a joint home for the Raiders and fellow NFL side the San Diego Chargers as part of a joint bid which would have seen them both relocate to Los Angeles. That move was rejected by the

China’s Wanda Group has taken the next step on its mission to become an unrivalled tourism entity; signing an agreement to build “the world's first culture, tourism, sports and commerce super complex.” The group has pledged to invest CN¥63bn (US$9.4bn, €8.4bn, £7.2bn) to construct Jinan Wanda Culture, Sports and Tourism City – it’s 13th mega-development in the country. Unlike its previous Wanda Cities, the new project in Jinan, Shandong province

The body in charge of organising Tokyo’s Olympic Games has admitted its decision to cancel Zaha Hadid Architects’ (ZHA) National Olympic Stadium design in favour of a cheaper alternative has already cost it ¥68.6bn (US$650.6m, €582.4m, £497m) in compensation payouts. According to media reports in the country, the Japan Sports Council (JSC) announced it has already earmarked the sum – ¥600m US$5.8m, €5.2m, £4.4m) higher than the amount estimated by

Chelsea Football Club’s plans to build one of the largest stadiums in England have hit a stumbling block – the local population of endangered bats. The club submitted its plans for the £500m (US$660m, €584m) project to London’s Hammersmith and Fulham council last year, but have been asked to provide more evidence of how they will protect the nearby grade I-listed Brompton cemetery and its population of the nocturnal mammals.

Ground has been broken on the US$250m (£188.7m, €222m) stadium being built for future Major League Soccer (MLS) franchise Los Angeles FC. The Gensler-designed arena – which will seat up to 22,000 spectators – is expected to be completed in time for the 2018 MLS season, when the team will join. According to Los Angeles FC, the stadium will “bring more than US$350m (£264.3m, €310.7m) in private investment" to the

The architects charged with revamping FC Barcelona's iconic Camp Nou stadium have given CLAD an exclusive snapshot of their competition-winning design for the project. Japanese practice Nikken Sekkei and Catalan firm Joan Pascual – Ramon Ausio Arquitectes are masterminding the design of the new ground, which will have a semi-transparent roof, an increased capacity of around 105,000 and three skyrings surrounding the perimeter. “FC Barcelona is a club for the

One of the leading architects behind a new football stadium for Dutch club Feyenoord has told CLAD how the development will revitalise a neglected part of Rotterdam. David Gianotten, managing partner-architect for international studio Office of Metropolitan Architecture (OMA), described how the firm’s design for the stadium reflects the fact that sport is an integral part of the city’s society and urban fabric. “There were two previous attempts to build

The winner has been announced in a hotly-contested competition to design a new leisure centre and area of public realm for Finsbury, north London. Pollard Thomas Edwards Architects were selected from a five strong shortlist and will now develop their vision for the site, which will replace the existing 1970s Finsbury Leisure Centre building with a new sports and health hub. New council homes will also be provided as part

Architecture practice Perkins + Will have revealed new details about the stadium they’re building in Al Aweer, Dubai, which will be the largest in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The Mohammed bin Rashid Stadium was approved earlier this year by UAE prime minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, but detailed images and information about the project have only just been released. Currently in the planning and design phase, the

The architect behind the Rio 2016 Olympic Park masterplan has revealed how a focus on sustainable design and temporary venues has created a lasting legacy for the Brazilian city. Bill Hanway, executive vice president at AECOM, has worked with the international practice to masterplan Olympic parks for both the Rio Games and the London Olympics four years earlier. In an exclusive interview, he told CLAD how this time round there

A new football-specific stadium has been earmarked for Nashville, Tennessee as a result of the city launching a bid to establish a Major League Soccer (MLS) franchise. A 22-member organising committee – headed up by businessman and investor Bill Hagerty – is leading the bid to bring top-flight football to the city. The group has been in contact with a number of potential investors and located several stadium sites with

Beijing is preparing to transform the facilities it built for the 2008 Olympic Games to accommodate other sports ahead of the 2022 Winter Olympics. China’s capital city will host the Games in six years time, and organisers are planning to reuse venues created for the 2008 showpiece rather than build more expensive facilities. The Water Cube Aquatics Centre – which has been converted into a public water park since the

Leinster Rugby has submitted proposals for the €26m (£22m, US$29m) redevelopment of its home RDS Arena. The three-time European champion has applied for planning permission from Dublin City Council to increase the capacity of the stadium from 18,500 to 21,000, while improving the visitor facilities within the Anglesea stand. Dublin studio Newenham Mulligan and London-based architects Grimshaw have been selected to create the design concept. Redevelopment work will not only

Planning approval for a “game-changing” £37m (US$49m, €43.7m) water park has been granted by Coventry City Council. The FaulknerBrowns-designed facility – which is located in the city’s town centre, and was funded by both private and public investment – is expected to open its doors in 2018. As well as flume rides the water park contains toddler areas, leisure water and lane swimming. Most of the water features and high

AECOM has taken on the project of renovating Los Angeles’ Memorial Coliseum as part of the city’s bid to host the 2024 Olympic Games. The US$270m (£205.1m, €241.7m) revamp will be funded by the University of Southern California, which used the stadium as the home ground for its Trojans American football team. Sports, training and media facilities will be upgraded, while the track surface which will be used for the

New images have been released of the completed handball arena for the Rio Olympics and Paralympics, which will be dismantled after the Games so that the materials can be used to build four schools. The temporary 12,000-seat stadium – designed by Brazilian practices Oficina de Arquitetos and Lopes, Santos & Ferreira Gomes in collaboration with London studio AndArchitects – will be used officially for the first time when sport’s biggest

The rebuilding of a disused ice rink in Schierke, Germany has officially started, with architecture studio GRAFT transforming the site into a multi-use sports arena with a unique roof structure. The Nature Rink, located at the foot of the snow-topped Harz Mountains, is one of the country’s oldest natural ice stadiums. It is being renovated at a cost of more than €7m (US$7.7m, £5.8m) enabling it to host ice sports

Construction on future World Cup venue the Qatar Foundation Stadium is expected to begin soon, with a contractor reportedly now attached to the project. According to Arabian Business, Cyprus-based engineering firm Joannou & Paraskevaides (J&P) has been awarded the contract to build the 40,000-capacity venue, which will host games at the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar. The stadium has been designed by Fenwick Iribarren Architects, who have taken inspiration

The main contractor has been appointed for the construction of Urban Sports Park (USP) – a multi-level indoor skating complex in Folkestone, UK designed by Guy Holloway Architects. The developer of the project, Shepway Sports Trust, has commissioned Westridge Construction to carry out the main work on the building, which received approval from the district council in February. Preparations will take place soon for construction to begin, with a target

Championship football club Queens Park Rangers (QPR) has won planning permission to build a £175m (US$231.4m, €209.2m) mixed-use development on the site it has identified for a new stadium. The football club and Genesis Housing Association have received the green-light from the Old Oak and Park Royal Development Corporation (OPDC) to establish 605 new homes – 40 per cent of which are being described as affordable – and leisure amenities

The owner of British National League football team Forest Green Rovers hopes the club’s ambitious stadium plans will act as a catalyst for the development of more eco-friendly sports facilities. After tending out a brief to design the stadium earlier this year, Dale Vince and the Forest Green board have whittled the competition down to two firms – Glenn Howells and Zaha Hadid Architects – from an original pool of

A billion dollar entertainment district and hockey arena is rapidly taking shape in Detroit, US. The HOK-designed Little Caesars Arena is on schedule to open in Q3 2017. It will be the new home for the Detroit Red Wings National Hockey League (NHL) franchise, and will host a number of other sports, entertainment and community events. The proposed 20,000-seat arena will replace the current Joe Louis Arena, which has been

According to media reports in Bahrain, the country’s government is planning to build its biggest integrated sports stadium, with capacity for 50,000 spectators. The facility, to be located in Sakhir, Southern Governorate, would have an international standard football pitch and facilities to accommodate basketball, handball, bowling, badminton and table tennis. A shopping complex, sports training school, Olympic-size swimming pool and cinema are also planned, according to the Gulf Daily News.

English League Two football club Luton Town has filed a planning application as its ambitious bid to build a new stadium complex gathers pace. The application includes plans for a 17,500-capacity stadium in the Power Court part of the town, and a mixed-use development including hotels and a cinema – expected to fund the stadium – to be built in Newlands Park. The project has been designed by AndArchitects. The

Dubai investment firm Najibi Group has unveiled plans for a AU$400m (US$300.7m, €270.4m, £226.3m) “active lifestyle” destination in Queensland, Australia. Najibi recently launched its new Australian investment and development offshoot Sanad Capital, which has been created to serve as a springboard for a diverse range of projects on the Sunshine Coast. The firm’s first project will be a community lifestyle and tourism hub “never-before seen in Australia”, according to Sanad.

Glenn Howells Architects (GHA) and Zaha Hadid Architects (ZHA) have reached the final in the competition to design a new stadium for Forest Green Rovers Football Club in Gloucestershire, UK. Almost 50 entries from around the world were submitted to the competition, and the winning pair have been selected from a shortlist of nine candidates. The brief called for a fan-focused and sustainable 5,000 capacity stadium in line with the