Adidas Arena | France
17 februari
Project: Adidas Arena, Paris // France
Architect: SCAU + NP2F, Paris // France
Fabricator: bysteel SA, Braga // Portugal
Installer: Bouygues bâtiment ile de France, Paris // France
Façade System: Riveted/Screwed
Year of Construction: 2023
Product: ALUCOBOND® PLUS naturAL Brushed
Photos: Nicolas Grosmond
Silver for Paris
The new Adidas Arena opened this year in good time for the games in Paris. However, calling this development an “arena? is really an understatement: the huge sports complex in Porte de la Chapelle, on the northern edge of Paris, comprises one 8,000-seat covered stadium for large events, two other equally spacious sports halls, another level for events and a number of connected functional spaces. Two Parisian architecture firms, SCAU and NP2F worked in collaboration to organise and design the space which extends over 26,000 m² in total. An outstanding building was required, if for no other reason, because of the site location: the Adidas Arena is set directly beside the Paris ring road and also clearly visible to numerous rail passengers. It is also situated at the very interface between the city centre and the suburbs, a point in Paris often associated with the social divide. As a result, the building’s long-range effect is both physical and metaphorical. It should not only send a welcoming signal, visible from afar, to all guests and athletes from all over the world; it should also to act as a unifying element bringing together very disparate parts of the city. The neighbourhood should also feel respected and welcome in the arena. To ensure everyone is able to “come on in” to the stadium, stars, athletes and townspeople alike, the architects designed two volumes. One is curved and offers sufficient stadium space for supra-regional events. The other is a cube-shaped, accommodating sports halls and event space for smaller, local sports clubs and cultural associations. The architects selected a cladding in ALUCOBOND® naturAL Brushed tray panels for both volumes, creating a minimalist façade with no openings and few details. The uniform surface emphasizes and connects the two volumes. Thanks to the matt-reflective ALUCOBOND® surface, the complex is like a mirage which, depending on the light and weather conditions, is sometimes conspicuous against the horizon and sometimes indistinct. It is, however, well grounded: the architects set both volumes in a shared 11.5 m high base. Its glass façades, wooden panels and perforated ALUCOBOND® tray panels, enhance the scale, add detail and make it more inviting. It is designed to be seen close-up and links the large volumes with the surrounding urban area. Guests coming from the south cross a large forecourt to reach the various entrances which lead to the respective activity or event spaces. In the interior, these different sectors are more obviously separated than the façade and the equally minimalist interior design might indicate. Internal partitions allow the space to be used more effectively for different activities at the same time. The architects also wanted the arena to send a strong an ecological message: They used the roof expanses to install photovoltaic systems, for a green, living roof, as well as for viewing terraces. They also designed rainwater use, employed recycled and renewable building materials and climate-friendly concrete, as well as some clay bricks and alternative insulation materials. The architects' climate goals were ambitious, but typical for Paris. After all, this is where the important “Paris Agreement? on climate protection was signed by politicians from all over the world in 2015. So this project is not merely concerned with sport, tolerance and hospitality; Paris is opening the door to the future and calling out to everyone: “Take heart, come on into a climate-friendly world.?