Dutch architect MVRDV has won a design competition for a complex that will house a sports arena, a hotel and apartments all contained in a giant, 100m-diameter ball in Tirana, Albania.
The so-called “Grand Ballroom” – because it’s in the shape of a ball – is planned on the site of Tirana’s Asllan Rusi Sports Palace, named after Albania’s most famous volleyball player, who died in 1983.
Inside the sphere, near the bottom, will be a 6,000-seat arena for volleyball and basketball.
Under the arena at ground level will be retail and cafes. Above the arena will be a two-floor hotel with rooms giving a view of matches.
At the top of the sphere will be residential space.
The design allows a relatively small footprint for the site. The tapering at its base allows for public plazas and outdoor sports facilities, while the tapering at the crown creates terraces for residents.
The cantilever above the stands creates an oculus in the arena ceiling, which can be covered with a thick layer of glass to form a soundproof barrier.
Apartments are set in a double shell structure, featuring a mixture of outward-facing and dual aspect units. The flats are set back within the sphere’s shell creating shaded interiors. Residents will have access to a courtyard garden.
Three- and four-storey-high openings in the building’s shell allows for ventilation.
MVRDV worked alongside Trema Tech, Likado, Albanian Capital Group and BCN Investments on the competition entry.
Winy Maas, MVRDV founder, said: “The Grand Ballroom will become a beacon, aiming to inspire and encourage people to play and to watch sport.
“The spherical shape is a reference to the round ball used by so many sports. Yet it also recalls enlightenment temples, from Étienne-Louis Boullée’s Cenotaph for Newton to Buckminster Fuller’s tribute to technological optimism, the geodesic dome. A great sphere in the heart of Tirana can similarly become a temple to sport and community.
“By connecting the different functions, it invites everyone in the building to be part of the action. By providing public spaces complete with sports facilities, it becomes a part of its neighbourhood. By serving as a landmark, it draws people from all over the city and beyond to gather together and celebrate. It thus continues the growing Tirana Collection of new buildings.”
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