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A state of the art new stadium in Madrid

The Palacio de Deportes of the Madrid region has seating capacity for 18,000 spectators.

The Palacio de Deportes was raised on the spot formerly occupied by the previous Palace which had succumbed to a fire on the 18th of June of 2001. Inaugurated in 2005, the new building is multipurpose, easily accessible and has innovative design elements integrated into its functions.

After investing 124 million euros and spending three years on its construction, this symbol of Madrid’s history is ready to host all kinds of events and spectacles, be they sports, cultural or political ones, serving the same purpose as the previous structure.

Occupying 82,044 square meters that are 14,000 additional square meters of space over and above what the old Sports Palace had, the new building can host up to 18,000 people. The construction plans took great care in preserving the surrounding architectural assets, the facades of the adjacent plaza conceived by Salvador Dali, including Felipe II avenue and Calle Fuente del Berro, which soften the urban space around the modern-looking palace with a unique charm. The latest building techniques were used in order to make the it a maximally flexible and polyvalent space, accessible to all publics and above all, one of the safest of its kind in the world. 

The Old Sports Palace 

On the 26th of February of 1960, the Region of Madrid inaugurated the first Sports Palace of the city, which was one of the most modern for its time, since it was also designed for plural uses, including use as a velodrome, horse rink, basketball court, tennis court and boxing ring, while functioning as a stage for musical, cultural, social and political events.

Construction began in 1958 with a total budget of 336 556 euros, or 56 million pesetas and a design based on an drawings by the architects José Soteras Mauri and Juan García Barbón, who had already built a similar structure for the city of Barcelona. Their design was inspired by the shape of roman amphitheatres, and exposed concrete and large glass facades were used as primary construction materials. The base design was a circle measuring 115 meters in diameter, with  11 000 seats for spectators.

One can say that it was witness to some important scenes from contemporary Spanish history, having hosted some exciting sports events, such as the first Spanish Athletics Championship in a enclosed track, as well as the European Athletics Championship. Historical political rallies and spectacular concerts were also held there, with the likes of ACDC; Bob Dylan, Genesis, Tom Jones, Eric Clapton, Luz Casal, Texas and Camaron de la Isla having gone on stage.

In 1985, the Madrid regional government took over as the management company of the Sports Palace, and decided to undertake some reform work. The roof covering, the inner rooms, the track surface, the chairs, the loudspeaker system, the press room, the gymnasium and the infirmary, among others, were all renovated and changed.

After 41 years of faithful service, the Sports Palace finally destroyed in a fire, on the 28th of June 2001, leaving little standing aside from the concrete shell. The destruction made way for the initiative to raise a new building able to host a wider number of international sports events.  

New Facilities

The reconstruction work and the raising of a brand new building called for a total investment of 124 million euros, according to plans by the architects Enrique Hermoso and Paloma Huidobro.

The structures ability to ply and adapt to different events is due to three design elements. In the first place, there are four tiers that can be telescoped out, below the level of the permanent spectators seating. Providing an additional capacity for 5 000 spectators, they automatically unfold towards the ring area thus allowing for a higher seating capacity, which of course changes the volume and shape of the events space. All of this takes only a few minutes. Additionally, the seating in the north end of the palace can seta an additional 2 861 people, in rows which can extend into the very centre of the ring.

In the second place, there are mobile bleachers seating up to 690 people which can be moved around the ring area, depending on the nature of the show being presented. Finally, there are four gigantic fireproof curtains which can split the ring area into several volumes so that several events can take place at the same time.

The new Palace has 36 box seating areas for optimum viewing. These can hold up to 450 people. There is also a large area set aside for the assembly facilities, with annex rooms for training, and warming up, lockers, changing rooms and an infirmary. The media area has two rows of 204 seats to itself, as well as places to set up the cameras and radio material as well as rest areas and conference rooms.

Among the most notable facilities is the athletics track, which was inaugurated on the 19th and 20th of February in the Spanish Athletics Championship. Its main features and dimensions are its 200 meters in length, 6 lanes, 8 central straight lanes, 2 poll vaulting lanes, 2 triple jump and long jump lanes, an area for high jumping as well as an area for weight throwing. 

In the inside space of the palace, there is a multiple-purpose area measuring 125 by 100 meters, which is partly taken up by a 92 by 50 meter ring, surrounded by a double tier of seating.

The public has been kept in mind and its comfort attended to, since there is a whole area for relaxing and eating, with a shop, bars, restaurants with a view of the ring and accessible from the street area, as well as a large underground parking lot with space for 867 vehicles of all kinds.

A Safe and All-access Building

In order to avoid the type of accident that destroyed the previous building in a fire, the building has been fitted with the best security system available. The whole facility is designed in modular sections, which are linked and provided for with clear directional guides and ample escape routes.

Besides the four access towers which look out over the street, there are also 17 stairwells leading into the building. Smoke screens are another feature included in the permanent design, and there are fire detectors that are pressure sensitive, sprinklers situated in storage areas, fire alarms, emergency lighting, crowd control loudspeakers, fire doors with anti-panic bars and emergency elevators in all four towers. In addition, in the event of a fire, there is a computer controlled fire detection observation room which will give precise and immediate description as to the place where the fire originated.

One of the main features that were included in this new building, and which has made it different from the last one, is the fact that it is accessible to all people. There is special seating for wheelchair bound spectators, the visually and hearing impaired. There are parking spaces sets aside for vehicles that transport handicapped as well as facilities for handicapped players and participants in sports events.

The new building was also designed to seat 15 000 spectators in sporting events, and 18 000 if it is a cultural show. Sports such as basketball, handball or tennis will be able to hold a spectator capacity of between 14 000 and 15 000. Boxing can be watched by at least 16 000 people, while athletics meets of all kinds can be attended by 10 000 people.  

A Multi-purpose Space

In order to improve the quality of all events, the new Palace has improved its acoustic attributes using new and advanced sound techniques which will  no doubt make listening as enjoyable in one seating area as in another  to which one may include complete soundproofing to avoid noise pollution. This was successfully tested in the musical inaugural with the singers Ana Torroja and David de Maria, who had the honour of testing the system.

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