National Stadium Warsaw

A new national stadium has been built on the existing “Stadion Dziesieciolecia”, a dilapidated earth wall stadium that had not been used since 1988, which is located in the “Skaryszewski Park” to the east of the city on the banks of the Vistula river, and which forms the center of the new “Sportpark”. The structure of the stadium has been systematically separated into two parts: the grandstand is made of prefabricated concrete components. Above this is a steel wire net roof with a textile membrane suspended from freestanding steel supports with inclined tie rods. The interior roof is the largest retractable membrane roof of a stadium worldwide, measured by area, and consists of a retractable membrane sail which folds together above the center of the pitch. The top tier is accessed via twelve arch-shaped, singleflight staircases. The exterior façade consists of anodized expanded metal that provides another transparent envelope for the actual thermal shell of the interior areas and access steps. The stadium is a multi-purpose arena for 55,000 spectators shaped in the form of a traditional, local wicker basket, in the national colors of red and white. During the day the play of light and shadows results in a relief-like effect on the elevation, while at night the whole building is illuminated in radiant colors.