Guangzhou Football Park – design description

What is the story behind the project to build a new representative stadium in Guangzhou?

In the second decade of the 21st century, Guangzhou Evergrande FC, a football club from Guangzhou, a huge city (and even bigger agglomeration) in southern China, backed by real estate giant Evergrande Group, was enjoying a series of extraordinary sporting successes and was popular with fans.

Thanks to the opportunities Evergrande Group had, there were plans to build a new stadium for the team. It would be no ordinary stadium, as with a capacity of 100,000 spectators it would become the largest (football-specific) stadium in the world, at least until the Camp Nou was expanded. The facility was to be built about 20 kilometers south of downtown Guangzhou, near the Guangzhou South railroad station.

In the original design, the stadium was to look like a blooming lotus flower. While it was a very impressive vision, it also stirred up quite a bit of controversy, so a few months after the presentation, a modified, more subdued variant was adopted, according to which the stadium was to resemble both a flower and a diamond.

Construction began in 2020 and initially went very smoothly, but in the process Evergrande Group ran into huge financial difficulties and was unable to continue to maintain the club or pay for the construction of the stadium. Starting in mid-2021, work was already proceeding at a much slower pace. In mid-2022, construction was halted completely, and a company controlled by the city took over the project.

It was decided to finish the construction, but now according to a completely different design. Capacity was reduced to 73,000 spectators, which is still expected to make the stadium the largest – at least in China alone. Work resumed in March 2024, with completion scheduled for the end of 2025.

What is the story of the implementation of the new stadium project in Guangzhou in detail?

For more details on the project's origins and plans to build the Evergrande Stadium with a capacity of 100,000 spectators, see a separate subpage

When did the construction of the new stadium in Guangzhou begin?

Construction of the stadium according to the original concept, which envisioned a 100,000-seat stadium, began in April 2020. The work was carried out by China Construction Fourth Engineering Bureau, and the construction contract was worth 4.3 billion yuan. Together with other costs (including the huge price of the plot – 6.81 billion yuan), the expenses of the investor, Evergrande Group, were expected to exceed 12 billion yuan.

Work initially proceeded as planned. After completing the foundations in 2020, the lower ring of stands was built in the first half of 2021.

Why was the construction of the new stadium in Guangzhou halted?

In 2021, news broke of Evergrande Group's massive problems and debts exceeding $300 billion (these problems later led the company to bankruptcy and liquidation).

Due to Evergrande's problems, construction of the stadium slowed down in mid-2021. The city's Guangzhou City Investment Group took over supervision of the investment. Work was still underway, although no more significant progress was made over the next year.

On August 3, 2022, an agreement was signed whereby the site, along with the unfinished stadium, was handed back to the local authorities. The indebted Evergrande received 5.52 billion yuan for handing over the plot. Construction work was halted completely.

When was the new, reduced concept of Guangzhou Football Park conceived?

In September 2022, the city announced a new tender for the sale of the plot. The starting price was set at 3.155 billion yuan (much lower than in 2020, when it was 6.81 billion yuan). The tender was resolved on October 10, 2022, and the buyer (for a base price of 3.155 billion yuan) was Guangzhou City Investment Group, the same company that actually took over management of the project back in 2021.

Guangzhou City Investment Group invited architects to work on optimizing the project, and announced the renaming of the stadium to Guangzhou Football Park (from the previously used name Guangzhou Evergrande Football Stadium).

On September 6, 2023, the Guangdong Province Architectural Design and Research Institute announced the victory in the Guangzhou Football Park design optimization competition and released the first renderings of the new concept.

When will the construction of Guangzhou Football Park be completed?

The completion of the stadium's construction has been entrusted to China Construction Fourth Engineering Bureau (the same company that started construction and ran it until it was suspended due to Evergrande's problems). The value of the new contract is 2.356 billion yuan. Work resumed on March 26, 2024, and is expected to be completed by the end of 2025.

A report on the construction of Guangzhou Football Park can be seen on a separate subpage

What does the Guangzhou Football Park concept entail?

The new project involves completing the stadium's construction on a reduced scale, compared to the original plans. Changes include a reduction in the capacity of the stands to 73,000 spectators (compared to the previously envisioned 100,000), and the height of the building is to be 63.6 meters (instead of 91.85 meters).

The exterior has been completely transformed: instead of references to the lotus flower and the diamond, the new concept is inspired by the design of an ancient artifact with a dragon and phoenix found in the Mausoleum of King Nanyue, as well as the local art of ivory carving.

The stands will be divided into three floors (including a fairly narrow middle level) and will be covered by a lightweight membrane roof. The six floors of backstage facilities (including two underground) will accommodate parking spaces, changing rooms, function rooms, a press conference room, commercial space and fitness centers.

What role will Guangzhou Football Park play?

Despite the reduction in capacity to 73,000 spectators, Guangzhou Football Park is still expected to be the largest football stadium in China and rank among the largest in all of Asia. It will be a representative stadium not only of Guangzhou itself, but of the entire Pearl River Delta Metropolitan Region.

The new facility will most likely be hosted by Guangzhou FC (formerly Guangzhou Evergrande FC), although after Evergrande Group withdrew from sponsorship, the team lost its leading position and was relegated to China League One in 2022. The stadium will be suitable for hosting major domestic and international events, such as Asian Cup and the FIFA World Cup.