New sport-inspired mixed-use development The:Square3, which will consist of three towers of gold, silver and bronze, is expected to open in Berlin in 2017. Located near the Olympic sports centre and Europe's largest urban nature reserve, The:Square3 urban quarter will offer hotels, 1,000 apartments, educational facilities and sport-themed retail experiences all in one place. Conceived by Berlin-based developer Moritz Gruppg and designed by architects, LAVA, the 146,000sq m (1.5m sq

A new multi-million euro sports, music and culture indoor arena, designed by C3XN, is set to launch in Copenhagen, Denmark. Designed to hold between 12,500 and 15,000 spectators, the arena will be situated in the Ørestad-area of Denmark's capital, and is scheduled to be completed by Q3 2015. The development team includes sports and venue specialists from AECOM, HKS Architects, Arup, ME Engineers and Planit. Realdania and the City of

Three zip lines are among the new features at Kawarau Bungy Centre in Queenstown, New Zealand, which officially reopened 1 March. The attraction, which first opened 24 years ago and was the first commercial bungy site, also includes a new café, bar, photo and video system in its redesign. The centre will also be able to transform into an event space for up to 800 guests in the evenings. The

Planning permission for a luxury golf and spa resort development for Northern Ireland’s North Antrim coast has been upheld by the High Court, following a challenge by the National Trust. Northern Ireland environment minister Alex Attwood has welcomed the decision on the Bushmills Dunes Golf Resort and Spa, which he granted approval for in February 2012. The £100m development will include a 120-room hotel with spa and conference facilities and

England’s first national stadium for beach sports will be constructed at Skegness Beach, Lincolnshire, pending planning permission. The 2,040-seat facility would be home to the National England Beach Soccer Team and also host sports such as beach volleyball, rugby, cricket, handball and Futsal It will also host events such as fun days for kids, sand sculpture events, movies on the beach, and Red Bull events. It is expected to attract

A legal challenge to prevent Oxford City Council closing a public swimming pool so a £9.2m replacement can be built has been dropped, following the High Court’s rejection of the claim the community had not been properly consulted. Councillor Van Coulter, member for the council’s leisure board, said he was glad the “costly and time consuming” case – launched in October 2011 – was over. The council plans to operate

Belfast communities are being consulted this week regarding opportunities to improve local sport and leisure facilities in tandem with the development of Windsor Park and Casement Park. Northern Ireland sports minister Caral Ni Chuilin has pledged £130m to sport developments in the city, including the two stadia. Belfast City Council is consulting residents on opportunities to provide public leisure facilities in both stadia, a welcoming boulevard style entrance to Windsor

Construction work on the £22m Aquatics Centre at the Aberdeen Sports Village has reached another landmark and the facility is on track to open in early 2014 - in time for the Commonwealth Games. Graham Construction, which is building the facility, has taken delivery of the centre's Olympic standard diving boards. The installation of the three, five, 7.5 and 10-metre boards is the last major structure to go in before

Nottingham City Council has granted permission for the demolition of the city’s former Turkish Baths, built in 1928, to make way for a new link road. The application for demolition has now been referred to the secretary of state for a decision, with work to start in summer if it is given the go ahead. The baths are currently vacant but had been part of the Victoria Leisure Centre before

Planning permission has been granted for an 18,000-capacity stadium at Windsor Park in Northern Ireland, in the fastest turnaround ever for a major planning application. The Irish Football Association (IFA) submitted the application for two new stands and an extension of the north and west stands in early December and permission was granted in 11 weeks. The project is part of a £110m pledge by Northern Ireland sports minister Caral

Wyre Forest District Council has appointed S&P Architects to draw up outline plans for a new £10.1m leisure centre in the Worcestershire district, which will provide a cost-effective alternative to existing facilities. A council review into leisure provision in the region determined a new centre would save the council around £7.5m in maintenance costs over 30 years. Council cabinet member for community wellbeing Ian Hardiman said: "The district deserves a

Scottish Football League team Berwick Rangers FC has commissioned a feasibility study into building a new stadium, which would see them move from their existing facility in Northumberland, by the English-Scottish border. The club is said to be negotiating the possible purchase of land nearby, also in Tweedmouth, which architecture and design firm Frank Whittle Partnership (FWP) has been commissioned to complete a stadium feasibility study for. The Rangers' current

Work has started on a £6.3m development project at Lee Valley White Water Centre in North London as part of legacy plans for the London 2012 Olympic venue. Scheduled to be completed by early 2014, the works on the site will include improving the international competition-standard facilities with the creation of a new gym and physiotherapy suite housed in an extension to the existing centre. For non-competition users, there will

A Minnesota-based construction firm has been selected to build a new $975m (£600m, 750m euro) Vikings stadium by the Minnesota Sports Facility Authority (MSFA). Local contractor Mortenson Construction has built more than 100 sports and entertainment venues and expects the new Minnesota Vikings stadium to be open for the 2016 football season. MSFA, which will own and operate the new stadium, chose Mortenson based on the company's national sports construction

University of San Diego's (USD) ballpark, which is home to Division I baseball team the Toreros, has undergone a US$13.8m (£8.6m, 10.3m euro) renovation. Led by specialist sports architects Populous, the newly renovated Fowler Park will seat 1,700 with the ability to expand to 3,000 for NCAA playoff events. The stadium renovation included the creation of five levels - an entry level with plaza space, a suite and press level,

Olympic stadium designers Populous have been selected to design the new French national stadium of rugby by the French Rugby Federation (FFR). Grand Stade FFR stadium, which is being developed by Paris-based architects Ateliers 2/3/4, will have a capacity of 82,000. Construction work will commence in 2015 with the project expected to be complete by the end of 2017. The FFR expect the venue to host 17-20 events a year,

K2 Crawley leisure centre in West Sussex is set for a £650,000 reconfiguration that will see the centre house a new music and comedy venue. Other plans for K2 include an expansion of the gymnastics hall with a second gymnastics floor space and a new three-tier soft play area. The council's proposed changes would also see the removal of its indoor bowls green. Crawley Borough Council, which held a public

Plans to create a new inland surfing facility on the Isle of Wight have been unveiled by the team behind The Wave: Bristol. Colliers International said that it is in discussions regarding building The Wave:IOW, which would bring together surfing, nature and education. At the centre of the plans is a lake in which water technology would generate waves of up to 1.6m high, at a rate of 120 waves

Five design firms have been shortlisted to develop the proposed US$1bn stadium for the Atlanta Falcons American football team in Atlanta, US. Olympic stadium designers Populous are among the finalist to be chosen by the Georgia World Congress Centre Authority (GWCCA), which owns the site. The other architectural firms include Philadelphia-based EwingCole, Dallas-based HKS, Atlanta-based tvsdesign (in partnership with Heery International and Gensler), and Kansas City-based 360 Architecture. All of

A US county authority has put its support behind proposed bed tax increases and rebates on goods and services taxes to partially fund $400m (296.93m euro, £254.17m) worth of improvements to Miami’s Sun Life Stadium. The Miami-Dade Board of County Commissioners heard an upgrade of the 25-year-old stadium would contribute $2bn (1.48bn euro, £1.27bn) in economic benefit over 15 years, and passed a resolution at their 23 January meeting urging

Local Scottish authority Dumfries and Galloway Council will take court action against contractor Kier Northern over a number of problems with the DG One leisure centre, which opened in 2008 at a cost of £17m. A detailed report by independent technical experts found the cost of addressing defects in the gym, games hall, bar, swimming pool and changing village would total £3.7m. At its policy and resources committee meeting on

Construction firm Willmott Dixon are working with South Tyneside Council in the early development stages of a new £11m leisure centre in Hebburn. The new centre is being developed by the council and forms part of a masterplan to regenerate the town centre. The leisure hub will comprise a 25m, six-lane swimming pool as well as a learner pool, sports hall, dance studio, library and customer service facilities. Construction on

US-based football club New York Cosmos has submitted a proposal to the State of New York to build a new stadium, with an estimated cost of US$400m (300.7m euro, £252m). The 25,000-seat Cosmos stadium would be located at Belmont Park, Nassau County, Long Island along with a youth soccer field and a 4.3-acre public park. The privately funded Elmont Town Crossings project will be led by Turner Construction, which provided

The Los Angeles Dodgers have this month announced plans to upgrade their 51-year-old stadium in time for the 2013 season. Improvements will include high definition video boards, Wi-Fi, increased disability access, new food service facilities, a new home clubhouse, new batting cages, and a new sound system that will minimise echoes and sound migration outside the stadium. Dodger president and chief executive Stan Kansten said the stadium would retain its

A new cricket stadium in Rajkot, India is making its international debut today when it hosts a one-day match between India and England. Spread over 29.48 acres, the Saurashtra Cricket Association Stadium, which opened earlier this week, has a total seating capacity of 28,000. The stadium houses three stands, South Pavilion, West Stand and East Stand featuring a health club, media box and president box. A sports complex for other

Essex construction firm Mulalley has been confirmed as the preferred contractor for the new Atherton Leisure Centre, Stratford, UK. Newham Council is investing £14.7m in the centre, which will include swimming pools, a gym, crèche facilities, disabled facilities, and possibly some housing. It will replace the existing leisure centre, which was found to contain significant amounts of asbestos and closed its doors for the last time on 31 December. Construction

The University of Houston (UH) Athletics Department has unveiled plans for its new on-campus stadium, to open for its inaugural game 30 August 2014. The 40,000-seat synthetic turf stadium, with future capacity for 60,000, is set to cost US$105m (79.12m euro, £64.49m) and host events including football games as well as other university events. The plans were unveiled on 19 December by representatives from Manhattan Construction and DLR Group who