The Greater Bay Area Sports Centre by Zaha Hadid Architects, now approaches its final stages of construction. Located in Guangzhou’s Nansha District, the large-scale venue will open in June 2025 ahead of the China National Games scheduled for November. With interior finishes underway and the surrounding parkland taking shape, the project marks a major development for the fast-growing Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Greater Bay Area.
This region, projected to reach a population of 100 million by 2030, stands as one of the most rapidly expanding metropolitan clusters in China. The sports centre anchors a new civic and residential zone on the western bank of the Pearl River, and sits adjacent to Line 18 of the Guangzhou Metro and the Shenzhen-Zhongshan Bridge, improving access for residents across the Greater Bay Area.
Facilities Built for Competition and Community
The sports centre supports both elite athletics and grassroots programming. Local schools and clubs will gain access to top-tier infrastructure, while national and international competitions will use the centre for track and field, basketball, swimming, and more. Athletes will train year-round thanks to the region’s warm winters and the site’s purpose-built outdoor training zones.
Within a 70 hectare riverside park, the centre contains a 60,000 seat stadium, a 20,000 seat indoor arena, and a 4,000 seat aquatics centre with a 50 metre competition pool and a diving well. Additional outdoor pitches and running tracks expand its function beyond scheduled events, supporting local government initiatives to increase sports access for younger generations.
The development also includes athlete housing and a wide range of supporting amenities. Designers placed a strong focus on adaptability, allowing spaces within the stadium to shift between sports events and cultural performances throughout the year.
Architecture Rooted in Regional Influence
Zaha Hadid Architects led the design in collaboration with the Guangdong Architectural Design & Research Institute, following an international competition organized by the Nansha District Bureau of Culture & Sports in 2023. The design draws from the geometry of historic sailing vessels developed during the Song Dynasty. These traditional ships once turned the Pearl River into a key channel for international trade and inspired the project’s sweeping, fluid architectural language.
The centre also references Lingnan architecture, integrating shaded walkways and open-air cooling features to respond to the region’s humid subtropical climate. With wide sheltering roof layers, the stadium protects spectators from both sun and rain, while allowing warm air to rise and exit through built-in ventilation systems. The roof’s pleated form takes visual cues from silk fans, reinforcing the building’s regional design vocabulary.
Infrastructure Designed for Performance and Flexibility
Engineers incorporated a responsive stadium bowl into the 60,000 seat arena, allowing the venue to adjust according to the type of event. Organizers can reposition seating for optimal views during competitions or reconfigure the venue entirely to host large-scale cultural events with a central stage. During performances, a grand arch provides sweeping views of the Pearl River, anchoring the event experience to the site’s natural setting.
To address Guangzhou’s climate and seasonal conditions, the architects integrated vertical louvres along the curved buildings, developed using advanced digital modeling. These elements optimize shading and encourage airflow from the South China Sea, naturally cooling the interior spaces.
Beyond serving spectators, the 70 hectare park that surrounds the facility plays a dual role in environmental management. Wetlands within the site regulate water flow and help protect against extreme river levels, forming part of the district’s broader flood protection strategy.
Construction Timeline and Future Use
Construction of the Greater Bay Area Sports Centre began on August 31, 2023. The main stadium and arena structures reached their full height by February 2024. Roof and curtain wall installations for the arena and aquatics centre wrapped in February 2025. Crews now work through the final construction stages, targeting handover by June.
Architect: Zaha Hadid Architects (ZHA)
Design: Patrik Schumacher
ZHA Project Directors: Lei Zheng, Nils Fischer
ZHA Project Associates: Jinqi Huang, Vishu Bhooshan, Jakub Klaska
ZHA Project Architect: Hung-da Chien
ZHA Project Team: Teodor Andonov, Shajay Bhooshan, Taizhong Chen, Heba Eiz, Vegard Elseth, Matthew Gabe, Sonia Magdziarz, Ling Mao, Keerti Manney, Xin Swift, Ke Yang, Chris Whiteside, Svenja Siever, Tul Srisompun
ZHA Competition Team: Luca Bacilieri, Niran Buyukkoz, Junfei Chen, Nils Fischer, Matthew Gabe, Jakub Klask , Han Hsun Hsieh, Jingwen Yang, Paul Joseph, Shuaiwei Li, Juan Liu, Sonia Magdziarz, Yuling Ma, Satoshi Ohashi, Michael On, Xin Swift, Ceren Tekin, Ke Yang, Bo Zhang, Chu Zhou, Lei Zheng
Competition Sports Consultant: Clive John Lewis
Competition Consortium Member: Guangzhou Architectural Design & Research Institute
Consultants
Executive Architect: Guangzhou Architectural Design & Research Institute (GDAD), China Southwest Architectural Design and Research Institute (CSWADI)
Structural Engineers: GDAD, CSWADI
General Contractor: China Construction Eighth Engineering Division & China Construction Third Engineering Division
Façade Engineering: RFR(Rice Francis Ritchie sarl) Engineers, GDAD, CSWADI
M&E Engineering: GDAD, CSWADI
Landscape Consultant: AECOM
Lighting Design: Lichtvision Design & Tsinghua Urban Planning and Design Institute
(THUPDI)
Site Supervision: Guangzhou Runhe Consulting, Guangzhou Pearl River Supervision and Consulting Group, Guangzhou Construction Engineering Supervision Co.
