Puskás Arena, Budapest

All projectsPuskás Arena, Budapest

Puskás Arena, Budapest

Hungary

After sixty-six years Hungary comes up with a new monumental arena in Budapest, replacing the glorious Ferenc Puskás Stadium with a totally new construction, which revives the splendour of the former sport and entertainment venue in a modern way marked out by a ground breaking illumination system by GRIVEN.

Named after the legendary Hungarian football player and coach, Ferenc Puskás Stadium, also known as Népstadion, was commissioned in 1948 and completed in 1953. As the largest sports arena in the country, it hosted great sports events, mainly football matches, as well as epochal shows and concerts. At its peak, it was sold out for the match Austria vs Hungary in 1955, and in the course of the years was at capacity for the concerts of Louis Armstrong, Queen, Rolling Stones, U2, Michael Jackson, Tina Turner and Placido Domingo. Here Pope John Paul II met with the Hungarian youth in 1991, on the occasion of his first visit to Hungary.

Year

2019

Lighting design

LISYS-PROJECT LTD.

Pictures

LISYS-PROJECT LTD.

As it had been seriously deteriorated over time, plans for the refurbishment of the old stadium had been taken into consideration since 2011, but were finally kick-started by the nomination of Budapest among the 12 host cities of UEFA Euro 2020 in 2014. The Hungarian capital city definitely needed a new stadium to face this important football event in the best way. The demolition started in 2016 and the renamed Puskàs Arena was erected in less than three years on the foundations of the dismantled old venue.

Awarded with the Order of Merit, the appointed architect György Skardelli wanted to preserve the distinctive character of the original building while creating a modern facility capable of meeting the most advanced expectations, beside of course the demanding FIFA requirements. He was inspired by the oval shape of the old stadium, its entrance building, as well as by its decorated pylons, which were faithfully kept as main architectural features of the new arena. The old stadium’s entrance building, by the way the only original element left untouched, still remains with its exposed brickwork walls as a symbol of the past glory days and hosts now a sport museum, perfect connection to the past legacy of the stadium.

Built on three levels, the majestic grandstand has a capacity of about 68.000 seats for matches, 80.000 for concerts. Its total area of 36,374 square meters is covered by a 57,142-square meter roof, which leaves only the playground area under the open sky. Ranked as the 19th biggest stadium in Europe, Puskás Arena is fitted with the most modern and unique hybrid lawn coverage to offer a smooth playground for optimal performances.

The last details of the new arena were finally ready in due time for the opening match held on November, 15 2019. The friendly game Hungary vs Uruguay, a true classic of the Hungarian football golden era of the 50's, was a success of public as all the tickets went sold out in a few hours. What now is Central Europe’s biggest and most modern stadium, will hold three group stage matches and one quarter of UEFA Euro 2020, the first tournament to be staged across multiple cities around the continent to celebrate its 60th anniversary.

To complete the renovation, a ground breaking lighting system was required to deliver a strong emotional impact to the arena at night. GRIVEN distributor for Hungary, the company LISYS-PROJECT LTD was charged with the complete project development, and specified our LED lighting fixtures to comply with all the project prerequisites. Griven has therefore proudly provided the color and the glitz to the new arena with an army of Powershine MK2 S and Coral units plus a vast array of Zaphirs, Rubys and Jades 16 used for the preserved Football Museum located next to the arena. Relying upon a 20-year experience in the lighting industry, LISYS-PROJECT LTD. has been providing a 360° offer based on innovative lighting solutions, professional consulting and high quality service since its inception and proved to be the perfect professional provider for such a complex and demanding installation.

A lighting test was held some days before the inauguration match to double check that the complex lighting system of the arena was working seamlessly delivering the required colour changing effect. The fixtures installed to light up the whole arena were chosen with different optics layouts but in the same RGBW colour configuration. 120 units of Powershine MK2 S with either extra wide, medium or wide optics were installed in groups of 4 on poles located in front of the squared pylons in order to deliver an even colour distribution to their whole height, enhancing their traditional pattern. Over 200 units of CORAL were used to illuminate the glass walls above the staircases as well as the upper ring of the stadium. The museum was lit up by some units of RUBY MC R embedded at the four corners of the building, while its side walls shine in bright colous with the help of an array of ZAPHIR units fitted with wide optics. To complete the lighting scheme, some units of JADE 16 enhance architectural details and the niche of the entrance building façade. All the installed fixtures have been customized on request with a hybrid monocable, which could facilitate the mounting and DMX controlling of all the units.

The final result is exciting, the colour changing effect amazing and the arena is ready to host the EURO 2020 programmed matches in full splendour.