The organising, together with Ukraine, of the UEFA European Championship in 2012 changed the way Poles understand the word ‘stadium’. Although only three new arenas were raised for the event (in Warsaw, Gdańsk and Wrocław; in Poznań, a previously existing facility was modernised for the occasion), it’s been commonly believed since that a stadium must constitute a large-scale, showy mass. Indeed, the red-and-white ‘basket’ – the National Stadium in Warsaw – and the amber-like Energa Stadium Gdańsk became well-known, easily recognisable objects.
However, the two are not particularly representative of the architecture of contemporary football arenas and stadiums, which combine turf with athletic facilities. Enormous arenas meant to fit 60,000 viewers are built relatively rarely, but smaller city or club stadiums tend to be no less interesting. Despite their unique forms, their scale is suited not only to local needs, but also to the surroundings, as exemplified by the Białystok city stadium, built in 2014 and designed by Kuryłowicz & Associates, surrounded with an openwork structure made of steel pillars; the Legia stadium in Warsaw (designed by JSK Architects, finished in 2011), covered with a zigzagged roof made of half-transparent membrane; the minimalist Arena Lublin (designed by Estudio Lamela); and the Silesian Stadium in Chorzów, rebuilt in 2014 (designed by gmp Architekten von Gerkan, Marg und Partner).
A hall like a sculpture