Conversations in Soccer – Gino Rossetti of Rossetti Architects

Filed under: Conversations in Soccer

When you think of people that are positively and forever changing the scope of soccer in the United States, Gino Rossetti might not be the first name that comes to mind. But he should be. See, Gino is the principle at architecture firm Rossetti, and they are responsible for designing and building three MLS stadiums (Home Depot Center, Toyota Park and Rio Tinto) and they have two more they are currently working on (Red Bull Arena and Union Field). With soccer specific stadiums being an intergral part of the future and success of MLS, Gino and his firm are having a huge impact with how we as Americans interact with the teams and the sport that we love and support. I was lucky enough to be able to sit down with Gino and Andrew Leeson from Rossetti to talk architecture, soccer, canopy roofs and the future of stadium design.

Hit the jump for the full story

[Home Depot Center model]

Tell us a little bit about your firm and your involvement in soccer. – The firm has been involved in soccer very deliberately for the past fifteen years and we have designed a number of the stadiums in the US. We have also ventured off into both Asia and Europe, which is altogether a different brand of patron participation. The beauty and the fun that we have had in the sport is when we start out, every owner has a different take on what he or she believes is really the nucleus and strength of what they believe their soccer stadium should be about. As a firm, we always start by trying to listen carefully to the owners and what it is that they want. About the only thing that is really the same with each stadium is the size of the pitch for the MLS stadiums, and some of the configurations as far as all of the rules. Things like sound, lighting, etc, etc. Our job is to start off by listening to the owner, what’s unique to them, what is their vision, and then after that, we try to give them guidance as far as what we have learned from each stadium that we have designed and each stadium that is played in. We end up coming back and making some alterations, corrections or updating things.

[Rio Tinto rendering]

Speaking of working with each individual owner, how collaborative is the process of designing the stadium? – Collaboration is the key word. It would be a failure if it wasn’t a collaboration. The owner has a heightened level of expectations and usually a broad set of partners that are involved and they usually come to the table with some preconceived notions of what they want, how they want to do it and what they expect. A big part of it is dealing with egos and another major part has to do with economics and the financing of it. Every single MLS owner got to where they are by being very sharp. They have a built in need for what they want, so it’s important to really understand that and try to maximize the strengths that each of them comes to the table with. Almost every one of our stadiums has a different kind of owner and a different belief in what they want. Some are very focused only on the soccer side, others are focused on broader issues of how to use the stadium. What other alternatives can be brought in to maximize the number of fans and participation days that happen? Another kind of owner is using the stadium as leverage to bring in a more synergistic aspect of bringing soccer back into the urban community where it can add more activities to the neighborhood like retail. Some owners have a great sense of what they want from their fan base all the way to others who try to maximize things like suites or alternative ways of bringing in revenue. All of these dictate what kind of space you need and the revenue that can be generated from it.

[Union Field at Chester]

You mentioned different owners have different approaches and want different things from their stadium. One aspect of that is maximizing the space and using it for other events. With mixed use comes stadiums that have things like stages built in to one of the ends. When you’re presented with building a multi function stadium, how much does that affect your approach? Does this affect how you lay out things like site lines or any other specific design challenges that this presents? – That’s a loaded question. At some point in time everything gets down to net return. Everything has a different guidance on that. In the foreseeable future, all of the owners recognize that they have to have TV coverage and that there is revenue coming in from additional ways so that it can be self sustained. For most of the facilities, even the HDC which houses two teams, it’s still a difficult task to make money. All of the teams have to look at what other outlets can fit into a 20,000 – 25,000 seat stadium comfortably, but not wreck the pitch. That’s why their including rugby and lacrosse as an example which is a safe bet. Eventually it might not be necessary to bring in these other events, but it is currently.

[Toyota Park]

When designing a stadium, how important is it to blend new technology as well as the history and tradition of the specific team and city? – There’s a number of givens that take place just for fan comfort. This could be as simple as how you feel when you approach the stadium from your car or as a pedestrian. What is the flow and what is the feel you have when you walk into it. If you go into something that is very basic, and almost rough in nature, you act accordingly to your surroundings. If it’s too plush, some of the patrons will think that an awful lot of money was spent for no reason and maybe that’s why their ticket price is so high.

I think that the new Red Bull Stadium is going to perhaps change a lot of perceptions in future stadium design. At the same time most people are looking at the stadium as a very traditional European style with the flow canopy covering everyone all the way around. It’s a different kind of stadium for hosting VIP’s, a different approach to food and beverage and hospitality. It’s a slight gamble on their part, but it’s coming from a lot of good experiences that they have with stadiums that are very successful in Europe.

[Rio Tinto]

On the other hand you might have something that is very straightforward like the stadium that is for Real Salt Lake. That stadium really focuses on fan friendliness to both the players and the fans, and there is a certain pride of the people of Salt Lake City that they believe that the structure and the look of it allegorically speaks to the mountains and the scenery on the periphery. There is no right or wrong, it’s what it is perceived by the owners for what they want. With these owners (RSL and RBNY), both are very aware of the location that they have set their stadiums in and they believe that the stadiums will become a very synergistic anchor for the community, which will make for more of an attraction.

Like every sport, it continuously changes and you have to work around the technology that is available, the digital lifestyle, the whole aspect of advertising. All of these things are changing dramatically, especially in soccer. It’s much different now than it was ten years ago.

[Rio Tinto]

I’ve been to Rio Tinto in Utah and the design really takes into account the mountains in the background. You get amazing views of the scenery while you watch the game. It’s a beautiful stadium to watch a game at. – It turned out really beautiful. We’re really proud of it.

[Red Bull Arena]

Touching on the new Red Bull Arena, there is a lot of excitement and anticipation for this stadium. I think some of that has to do with the European style canopy and the fact that it seems very high tech and futuristic.. You mentioned that it is a potentially game changing stadium, can you touch on that a bit more? – I don’t think so much from the sports aspect. The pitch is pretty consistent, the site lines are totally uncompromised, the lighting is a factor that is really set by television standards etc. From those aspects there pretty much the same. What’s going to be a major change in the Red Bull concept is the whole delivery of food and beverage and the flow between the game, the seating and the way fans interact with the stadium. I think maybe were a little bit prejudiced, but I think it will be very successful. I think this stadium is going to be a surprise to a lot of people and I think it will be well received. I think it will be a way for future owners to think about how and what we are doing.

[Red Bull Arena]

Soccer is unique because fans are leaving their seats mainly in between halves, whereas in other sports, fans can get out of their seats much more frequently without missing the action. Other sports have much different time frames, and game progression effects things and that is something that this stadium addresses.

[Andrew] – A lot of that comes from Red Bulls belief that soccer should be experienced as a participatory format. Where often we are kind of used to secluding ourselves in suites and having private gatherings at the stadium. Red Bull really wants the fans to interact with one another and form a sense of community between each other rather than being private and separate from one another. It’s definitely a different way of thinking for us.

[Union Field rendering]

I think it’s great that the focus is on the community and letting the fans enjoy the game collectively. The game is intended for that – Right. Like Gino said, there are specific elements you always have to provide, so the suites are there. But the food service is done in a way where you come out of the suites and interact with other people and form a stronger bond and hopefully identify with the team in a better way.

Check for part two of my conversation with Gino tomorrow. For now here are some more images.