Nuovo Stadio Milano – design description

Nicknamed the Cathedral, the stadium is expected to bring to mind the image of other Milan's landmarks, primarily the Duomo and the Galleria. Fans and tourists alike are to be lured to the area with iconic architecture, as they are with the old San Siro.

Here, raw concrete is smoothened in form by unique shape of girders and softened by the addition of nearly transparent glass facade around the entire stadium. Elevated public concourses resemble church naves, building up the atmosphere of a football temple before fans reach their seats.

Once in their seats, fans would instantly notice two immense upper decks behind each goal, a space created for fans of Inter and Milan to organise their vast choreographies. Both stands along the side would be far more regular, with three tiers and extensive corporate hospitality offer.

The stadium designed by Populous is expected to astonish with its scale, while enchanting with spatial order and harmony. It's also expected to be a green venue, not just because of the small trees around concourses. Tiled with photovoltaic panels, the roof would harness energy and batteries below would store it.

Ironically, the concept sees no direct memorial of the old San Siro, which would be demolished and replaced largely with commercial spaces, even if topped by public green areas.

Both presented variants of the future stadium would see it built beside San Siro, which would then be demolished and replaced with mixed-use development. The stadium itself would be surrounded by a vast podium, elevated by 2m from ground space, releasing 127,000 m² of space on ground level for various uses. The field itself would be 7m below ground level so that the stadium doesn't become too imposing in size.

While analysed between 55,000 and 65,000, the official listed capacity is 60,000 and should meet the demand of both Milan and Inter. Contrary to San Siro's under 4,000 premium seats, a new stadium would provide up to 12,500 such seats, depending on demand, while also providing a bowl that would not emit much noise to neighbours, limited at 60db.