Algarve Stadium
Faro, Portugal
HOK Sport

Dynamic roof symbolizes athleticism on the playing field below

© Patrick Bingham-Hall

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The Algarve Stadium, part of a development known as the Parque das Cidades (Cities Park), was constructed for the Euro 2004 Football Championships. Situated on the São João da Venda in Esteval, between the cities of Faro and Loulé, the 34-acre complex will include an indoor sports arena, botanical gardens, and golf courses, as well as civic buildings and a hospital. It was jointly financed by both cities.

Although both the Farense and Louletano soccer squads call the Algarve Stadium home, HOK Sport designed the building to adapt for use by other sports, concerts, and conferences. The building’s regular capacity is 30,300 people—of which 300 seats are for VIP’s. This can scale up to 35,000 people or down to 22,000 people, thanks to removable seating at the building’s south side and in the upper levels of its east and west sides. The stadium also has 30 luxury boxes that feature separate entrances, reserved parking, and access to an exclusive restaurant.

The stadium’s twin sail-like roofs span the east and west sides of the building and cover two-thirds of the seating. Each one is comprised of four steel masts that rise 236 feet high and anchor 689-foot-long catenary cables. These cables, in turn, support transparent PVC fabric that billows upward in a dynamic movement that the architects say is reflective of the athleticism displayed on the playing field below. The two largest seating sections, along the east and west sides of the stadium, are each four stories tall and swell upward to meet the roofs.

Located close to the Faro airport, Algarve Stadium features rail access to both Faro and Loulé and offers parking for 2,843 cars and 166 buses. The building also includes a conference center with meeting and seminar rooms, as well as a restaurant, located on the third floor of the west side of the building, that offers panoramic views of the surrounding countryside.

Formal name of Project:
Algarve Stadium

Location:
Faro, Portugal

Gross square footage:
699,654 sq. ft.

Total project cost:
$51.6 million

Client:
Societe Parque das Cidades, Estádio

Architect:
HOK Sport
14 Blades Court, Deodar Road
London SW15 2NU, United Kingdom
44-208-874-7666 tel.
44-208-874-7470 fax
www.hoksve.com