Danish architecture office CEBRA has won an international competition for the design of the new Skenderbeu Stadium in Korça, Albania. The winning proposal sets the 10,000-seat stadium in a lively neighborhood to create an engaging environment for fans, active citizens, businesses, and visitors of the Albanian city. The masterplan proposes buildings and alleys inspired by the Korça typologies to create a familiar cultural experience both in and around the stadium.
When designing the stadium, CERBA set out to challenge the traditional stadium setting, usually surrounded by parking spaces. The design proposes to extend the Parku Rinia city park nearby to free the space around the stadium and replace the parking with an extension of the city fabric. The master plan divides the site into city blocks and extents the adjacent streets from the surrounding areas. The buildings of each block feature various functions, and sizes, leading visitors through the neighborhood to the arena.
Besides the new Skenderbeu Stadium, the 158,000 square-meter site features additional amenities dedicated to sporting activities. These include the integration of an existing athletic games training area, additional football pitches and smaller courts, a new Olympic pool, indoor multi-sport courts, and accommodation for athletes. At the entrance of the stadium, a public plaza welcomes fans, while the extended park across the Bulevardi Rilindasit houses a new restaurant, a pink pavilion coffee stand, and the Tamana Nikolla Sports Palace. Family housing, shops, daycare centers, museums, pubs, and supermarkets are also included in the master plan to create a vibrant city life for both fans and residents of the new district.
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CEBRA's 'Mount Tirana' Wins Competition for a New Landmark in the Capital of AlbaniaOne of the main criteria for selecting the winning design was the careful integration into the scale of the city and the respectful attitude towards the park and green spaces existing on site. CEBRA’s design also takes inspiration from the old town in the center of Korça, basing the character of the master plan on the analysis of the local and historical building typologies. Consequently, the proposed neighborhood consists of two to four-floored buildings with variations in shapes and sizes which define irregular urban spaces.
The design is ground-breaking in the sense that it almost camouflages the stadium among new city blocks, alleys, and the public park. This is not to hide the arena but to celebrate sports and culture in a wider architectural context that holds the very essence of Korça. The new stadium is not just an icon for sports, but an asset for the neighborhood in one of the most important cultural cities in Albania. -Mikkel Frost, Founding Partner at CEBRA
Danish architecture and design practice CEBRA, founded in 2001 and owned by architects Mikkel Frost, Carsten Primdahl, Kolja Nielsen, and Mikkel Hallundbæk Schlesinger, has a growing international portfolio, with projects in Europe, the Middle East and North America. CEBRA’s Albanian portfolio also includes the ongoing project at Mount Tirana, following an international competition for the design of a multifunctional tower in the center of the Albanian capital city.
