Photos show construction underway on a stadium in Buffalo, New York for NFL team the Buffalo Bills, designed by Kansas City-based architecture studio Populous with a canopy that’s heated to melt snow and engineered to amplify the crowd sounds in the stadium.
Located in the Bills’ hometown of Buffalo, the new Highmark Stadium is being constructed directly across the street from the previous stadium of the same name.
Informed by local venues such as the Rockpile, the city’s former outdoor soccer stadium, renderings of the stadium show its exterior clad in translucent precast perforated panels, a slightly curved roof and blue lighting lining the lower and upper levels.
Recent construction photos show the stadium’s completed canopy, which wraps around its perimeter and extends slightly over the interior bowl.
It is made of structural steel and metal decking, in part to create noise, according to Populous.
“It will reverberate the crowd noise, intimidate the opposing team and create an NFL gameday energy that will be second-to-none in the league,” Populous Americas managing director Jonanthan Mallie told Dezeen.
Photos also show several of the large exterior precast metal panels being installed on its black structural steel system, which will wrap around the entirety of the stadium when completed.
“The construction process reveals what’s behind the stadium’s finished materials,” said Mallie.
“You can see more of the foreboding black structural steel right now while it’s under construction. You can see more of the concrete precast seating bowl, and you can feel the power of the workforce that is out there every day bringing the new Highmark Stadium to life.”
According to Mallie, the stadium will be equipped with “the world’s largest and technically advanced snow melt system”, as Buffalo receives about 95 inches of annual snowfall.
The canopy will cover 60 per cent of the stadium seating and manage snowfall, while sensors will react to snowfall and activate the hydronic system, according to the Bills.
Upon the release of its design, some social media commentators likened the stadium’s design to a “bed pan”.
When asked about these comments, Mallie said they were “fun comparisons”.
“The public attention always garners fun comparisons during construction, especially with millions of eyes on the stadium design,” said Mallie.
“Public opinion will continue to evolve on the new stadium until one day when finished, its presence will transform both Buffalo and the NFL.”
Designs for the Highmark Stadium were revealed in 2022, and according to Populous, construction is on track to complete the stadium for the opening of the 2026 NFL season.
Recently, Dezeen rounded up seven massive sports stadiums to be built across the US, including a new stadium for the Cleveland Browns and a renovation to the Jacksonville Jaguars home stadium in Florida.
The photography is courtesy of the Buffalo Bills.