SoFi Stadium in Inglewood

Location Inglewood, CA, USA Client / operator StadCo LA, LLC.

Architects HKS US – Los Angeles, CA 90024 www.hksinc.com

Structural engineer Walter P Moore

Landscape architect Studio-MLA

Author Kathleen M. O’Donnell Hannah Jaggers Photos Nic Lehoux Bruce Damonte

Official opening September 2020 Construction costs USD 5.5 billion (circa EUR 5 billion)

OPEN-AIR AND BELOW GROUND

SOFI STADIUM IN INGLEWOOD

The open-air SoFi Stadium is the first indoor-outdoor stadium to be constructed and the largest stadium in the NFL at 288,000 m². It has a seating capacity of approximately 70,000, expandable up to 100,000. It features 260 luxury suites and more than 13,000 premium seats. Part of the 121-hectare Hollywood Park mixed-use development in Inglewood, SoFi Stadium is the new home for the Los Angeles Rams and Los Angeles Chargers. Designed by HKS, the stadium combines Southern California’s indoor / outdoor lifestyle with state-of-the-art sports and entertainment architecture.

The sweeping coastline and the beauty and strength of the Pacific Ocean contribute to the clean and dramatic curves of the stadium’s unmistakable architecture. The stadium’s translucent roof, seating bowl, concourses and landscape were sculpted and designed to create the feel of an outdoor venue while providing the flexibility of a traditional domed stadium.

Open concourses and landscaped canyons draw visitors into the stadium. An open-air design capitalizes on Southern California’s mild climate, allowing visitors to feel as if they are inside and outside at once. The design encourages wind flow, provides relief from direct sun and protection from rain while maintaining connection to the sky and surrounding nature. Whether they’re walking through the wide concourses or catching the action from their seats, people who visit SoFi Stadium enjoy cooling ocean winds that make attending events in the LA heat feel like a breeze.

The design team studied cliffside architecture and ocean access points throughout the region and was inspired by the naturally occurring formations and design solutions. The result is a series of terraced, landscaped canyons that lead visitors down into the stadium’s seating bowl – a walk that takes them on a tour of local flora and fauna.

Seismic safety Situated under one monumental roof canopy, three state-of-the-art venues – the 70,000-seat SoFi Stadium, the 1-hectare covered outdoor plaza and a 6,000-seat performance venue – can simultaneously host different events.

The entire building is engineered to withstand seismic events. The roof is detached from other components, meaning the stadium bowl, theater and plaza can independently move in response to shifts in the Inglewood seismic fault line. A giant, “seismic moat” up to 30 cm wide and 250 cm deep encircles the stadium to keep it safe during earthquakes.

A structural marvel The building’s monumental exterior shell and roof structure have a distinct form reminiscent of Pacific coastal waves that wash ashore just over five miles away.

The stadium’s porous canopy comprises more than 35,000 anodized aluminum panels, with each panel conforming to the geometry in a way that no two are the same.

SoFi Stadium does not have exterior walls. Instead, the long-span cable roof structure anchors to the ground in four locations.

Semi-subterranean building design SoFi Stadium sits directly in the flight path of Los Angeles International Airport, located just three miles away.

The Federal Aviation Administration height restrictions, one of the project’s initial design challenges, became one of the most prominent features within the overall project: the seating bowl sits 30 m below the existing grade – about two to three times the depth of other similar multiuse venues.

To create a memorable procession experience for patrons navigating their way down to their seats and concourses, HKS demurred from the typical series of elevators, escalators, stairs and ramps, and created an indoor / outdoor meandering series of paths that guide fans through visually rich landscaped environments replete with amenities along the way.

Games are projected onto the top of the stadium’s roof The ETFE roof canopy comprises three parts: the structural steel shell, including the compression ring, the cable net system, and the ETFE, a lightweight and transparent plastic that acts as the roof and covers the entire structure. The ETFE roof provides a guarantee, rain or shine, for the multitude of events hosted by SoFi, all while maintaining connectivity to the outdoors and flooding the venue with natural light. The ETFE film features a 65 % frit pattern that shelters guests from direct sun and reduces solar gain into the venue. The roof also features a series of operable panels distributed around the perimeter of the ETFE that can open and close, depending on the climatic conditions, to promote airflow in the stadium and a comfortable environment for fans.

An LED system embedded in the ETFE panels projects video without sacrificing transparency inside the stadium. Live feeds can be seen from the air by passengers traveling in and out of the nearby airport.

Largest dual-sided video board in sports The first dual-sided 4K LED display system, the “Infinity Screen” is the largest in sports, suspended above the playing field and visible from every seat. The video board measures 6,503 m², displays 80 million pixels and weighs 998 tons. The

video board’s weight holds the roof down in high winds. SoFi Stadium’s enormous roof can act as a wind sail in a major storm.

A “water wise” strategy Droughts and fires are common in California, and water is one of the state’s most precious resources. The success of the design, which includes more than 5,000 trees and native plantings, hinges on responsible water use.

Though the LA area experiences significant rainfall somewhat infrequently, designers incorporated multifaced stormwater capture strategies to capitalize on every possible opportunity to keep naturally occurring water on site. The nearby lake, as well as bioswales, storm drains and rolling arroyos all collect rainwater that gets filtered by wetland vegetation and soil so it can be used to irrigate the rest of the landscape. The stadium’s 11.3-hectare roof and subterranean cisterns also collect and store rainwater, leveraging the architecture as a tool for environmental health. Approximately 75 % of stormwater that reaches the site is retained there for irrigation.

A “water laboratory” was installed on site for six months to test out different methods and chemistries, resulting in a filtration process that could support a thriving ecosystem over time. Now, an estimated 984,207 liters of water per year – 100 % of all irrigation water used on site – is reclaimed.

Ultimate entertainment destination in the greater Los Angeles area The stadium’s club spaces, suites and concourse areas that extend as far down as the field provide a diverse array of opportunities for fans to engage with the NFL experience. SoFi Stadium will host a variety of sports and entertainment events throughout the year. In February 2022, it was the venue for Super Bowl LVI, the biggest single sporting event in the world. Other events are the College Football National Championship game in 2023, and the Opening and Closing Ceremonies of the 2028 Olympic Games.