Weird stadiums are spread out throughout the world, and that may say a few things about the architects that are around. When you take a look at many of the stadiums that are built in the United States, they’re all fairly simple and similar. Teams in each sport try to copy each other to find what is the most appealing at that time period, and use similarities to build new stadiums. But around the world, things can be a little bit different.
In many places like Europe and Asia, the exterior of the stadium is extremely important. Not that it’s not important in the United States, but in other countries they really make an effort for it to stand out, and be a focal point of the landscape. The architects who designed some of these stadiums though, may have went a little bit overboard.
If you like to experience new things, “weird” stadiums will probably be something you may enjoy. But the majority of people that like to watch the game for how it is, in a comfortable setting, might be really surprised to see what some of these stadiums look like that they may not be familiar with.
Usually big-name teams and organizations don’t have too exotic of stadiums, but some of the other teams and stadiums decide to think outside the box. Thinking outside the box could draw in a lot of people, but it could also lose a lot of the mainstream audience. Prepare to be surprised with some of the most bizarre, weird stadiums that exist.
20 Svangaskarð - Toftir, Faroe Islands
Imagine watching a soccer game while being forced to sit on a hill. People do it at some sporting events to save money, but at Svangaskaro, you really have no choice. When you look at the “stadium,” you wouldn’t really consider it a stadium. But, the venue can hold up to 6,000 people.
It’s far from a big venue, but it’s one that could fit a decent amount of people.
Many collegiate level stadiums are a lot nicer than this, so it’s weird to see a soccer “stadium” look so poorly. Maybe on the Faroe Islands this is considered a decent venue.
19 Ingalls Rink - New Haven, Connecticut
You would think a school like Yale would have their hockey team play at a normal rink. But instead, they play at an arena that looks like an old-school boat, as well as somewhere that you would study religion. The outside is such a weird shape, and looks big, yet the parking is right alongside the arena.
Imagine being on the Yale hockey team and trying to intimidate your opponent when they enter your stadium, and they see this big whale looking rink. The opposing players will either be confused, or just laugh at how weird the arena looks. At least the inside is decent.
18 Vozdovac Stadium - Belgrade, Serbia
While there are those fans who don’t care about anything but watching the game, many fans enjoy going to sporting events to see the stadium and experience the game in a new way. Soccer fans in Serbia can have the blandest experience at Vozdovac Stadium. There might not be a more boring looking stadium in the world.
The way the stadium is designed looks like a big box with the same style of seats all around the stadium. It would be difficult to sell tickets there because no seats look better than any other. If you just care for the game and only the game, you may enjoy watching a game here.
17 Mmabatho Stadium -Mafikeng, South Africa
You go into the fifth largest stadium in South Africa, and it looks like a big diamond that is separated into unique sections. People that walk to get to their seats at Mmabatho Stadium probably always get lost. The layout of the stadium is so different and confusing.
Many of the seats in the stadium aren’t even centered to fully look at the game.
So, a lot of the fans actually have to turn their heads different ways to see the game, which could be very annoying. It probably doesn’t get used that often due to fans probably not enjoying their time at the stadium.
16 Eidi Stadium - Eidi, Faroe Islands
Definitely not your typical stadium. Eidi Stadium is directly on the shoreline, to the point where if there was a storm, the stadium would probably be destroyed. There really isn’t that much information on the stadium itself because it’s probably rarely used. The Faroe Islands have some nice views, and this stadium definitely features them.
The seat arrangements seem like you would just sit wherever, considering there’s no actual seats. It’s a nice way to watch some soccer and enjoy the sunset. But, it could also be really scary if you choose to be there during troublesome weather.
15 Scotiabank Saddledome - Calgary, Alberta, Canada
For a city with such a nice skyline like Calgary, Alberta Canada, you would expect a nicer, more modern looking pro sports venue. The current team that uses the venue are the Calgary Flames, along with a few other teams. It’s has a unique look, but on first glance it just looks so weird.
When you’re looking towards the city and see the stadium, it basically looks like a pancake that is being folded. It’s a weird type of look for an arena that holds a NHL team. The Flames have been trying to find a new arena for a while now, and hopefully the team's threats to leave Calgary are just empty threats.
14 Ericsson Globe - Stockholm, Sweden
No, you are not at Epcot at Walt Disney World, and you are not taking off from a space center. Instead, you are at Ericsson Globe, which is actually the largest hemispherical building in the world. It’s located in Stockholm, Sweden, and holds 16,000 people. The arena is used for ice hockey and concerts.
It seems like a fun venue, but it literally feels like you are walking into Spaceship Earth at Epcot.
You would never really expect to walk into this arena and expect to see a concert, or to watch a hockey game. But, Sweden decided to make things a tad different.
13 Gospin Dolac - Imotski, Croatia
Surrounding the Gospin Dolac Stadium is a unique area that is elevated and near mountains and hill tops. The venue is pretty small, only seating 4,000 people, and it houses the NK Imotski Football Club. Honestly, this venue could probably be one of the most visited in the world if they really put more money in to make it look good. Right now, it basically has a side of bleachers that look slightly larger than a high school football stadium. If you’re going to have a venue like that, you need to invest more than $1 million and bring in more sporting and entertainment events.
12 Kassam Stadium - Oxford, England
It doesn’t seem like anyone knows what the people who built Kassam Stadium were trying to accomplish. Looking around, three quarters of the stadium looks like a legitimate stadium and decently nice. Then, you see behind one net where all you see is the parking lot. It makes the stadium look incomplete, not to mention, the parked cars that could get hit by an errant ball.
When you look at it, it almost seems like they didn’t have enough money to completely wrap the stadium with seats, so they just decided to stop there. It’s a very cheesy stadium for those who thinking of visiting.
11 Estadio Municipal De Braga - Braga, Portugal
What? Who in their mind would decide that it makes sense to build a stadium directly next to a hill, and then add a screen on top of the hill? Most owners would probably be freaking out that the screen would eventually fall and someone could get hurt. What if some incident happens off of that hill?
Whatever drops from the hill, comes crashing down on to the field.
It’s a really different and unique way to place a stadium, but it seems dangerous and odd. Let's just hope that the area never experiences any extreme weather conditions, because that's a very vulnerable spot.
10 University of Phoenix Stadium - Glendale, Arizona
One of the most conventional looking stadiums on this list, is probably the University of Phoenix Stadium. Home of the Arizona Cardinals, it looks a lot more traditional. But what many don’t know, is the turf actually rolls into the stadium from outside. So, when there are other events besides football games going on, the grounds crew actually rolls the turf outside.
It’s such a weird concept because it’s over 100 yards of turf, not something you would expect to be moving around. But here, they actually take the time to bring the turf in and out of the stadium. It's a pretty cool visual when it does happen. This is a case where weird is also awesome.
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Sapporo Dome - Toyohira
Baseball fans, maybe you can relate on how you would feel watching a game at Sapporo Dome. Baseball is not just big in the United States, but also huge in Japan. Which is why many times you will see talents come overseas to play in the majors. But just looking at the stadium, it looks so strange.
In the United States, baseball fields all have different layouts.
Sapporo Dome is basically one big dome, with one scoreboard in right field. It’s probably the lamest baseball field you would ever see. Fans love going to the ballpark and getting an afternoon outdoors, but this concept just takes that charm away.
8 Estadio Nacional Julio Martinez Pradanos -Ñuñoa, Chile
Would you find it interesting to sit in one big stadium that is just a giant circle, with no tiers or anything? If you’re all the way in the back, you will probably have a hard time viewing the game from your seats. When looking at the stadium from above, it literally looks like a big bowl of soup.
If you want to please fans, this isn’t the way to do it. It may be cheaper to build, but it takes away from the atmosphere. All the seats seem so far from the field. People complain about where the Los Angeles Rams play, yet this is the same style, yet worse.
7 Beijing National Aquatics Center - Beijing, China
Now you know where Michael Phelps broke a bunch of records, but aren’t you kind of disappointed to see that this is where it was done? You think of Phelps and the history he broke, and then you see the building and it’s just weird. The National Aquatics Center looks like it could be some type of art museum from the outside, but instead there’s a pool inside that had one of the greatest swimmers in history in there. It’s just a weird concept. When you drive by some may assume that it’s one big fish tank, and it really looks a lot like that.
6 Guangdong Stadium -Guangzhou, China
What are they building over in China? The Guangdong Stadium is one that seems like they had extra money to spend, and decided to be funky with the roofing.
When you look at it from certain angles, it looks like there’s two half stadiums.
But no, it’s one stadium where the roofs are not the same height, which makes it really confusing to look at.
When you’re building something, you expect there to be a purpose for everything. This roof has no purpose to look like that, which is just irritating to look at. Plus, the color scheme in the stadium could really throw some people off.
5 Ottmar Hitzfeld Stadium - Gspon, Switzerland
The death trap. Without the netting that stops soccer players or even fans from jumping off of a cliff, there would be a lot of law suits at Ottmar Hitzfeld Stadium. Many call it one of the wonders of the world, because the view from up there is so beautiful. You can see all the mountains, and look far down at ground level. Because it’s so high, the air is thin which makes it tougher for some to play. But the most unique part about this stadium, is that because it is so high, fans and players actually need to take cable cars up to the stadium to get there.
4 Estadio BBVA Bancomer - Guadalupe, Mexico
One of the stadiums on this list that looks a little more conventional, is Estadio BBVA Bancomer, located in Mexico. The inside looks normal, despite the fact that it’s abnormally big. Using tiers to help even the cheaper seats is beneficial, because it gets the lower income families into the stadium. When seats are really far back and you can barely see, nobody wants to purchase those tickets.
But the weird thing about this stadium is what it looks like from the outside. If you look at it and compare it to something you know, it may look like a snail to you. It’s just not an appealing stadium to look at.
3 Stadion Vozdovac - Belgrade, Serbia
When you look at these stadiums, you really question who designed them. Like the people who created Stadion Vozdovac. Used for soccer, it is one weird looking stadium from the outside.
From the outside, it looks like a mix of a Super Target and a Ripley’s Believe It or Not, as the building looks like it gets smaller or you’re going higher on the road.
And then the inside is plain, with everything looking the same. It’s kind of creepy to think about. Just picture one of those movies where every house or whatever looks the same, it’s kind of the same concept.
2 Olympiapark - Munich, Germany
If you take a look at Olympiapark, it looks like a sports complex, rather than a stadium with a shopping area. Now, Gillette Stadium, home of the New England Patriots, has the same concept. But with this stadium, it’s really hard to tell the difference between the sports stadium and the shops itself. When catering to the public, you want to make it as easy as possible for them to understand where they are going and how to get around.
Another weird thing is that the park looks like it was built using elaborate tents. It just doesn’t have that stadium feel.
1 The Float @ Marina Bay - Singapore
Give it up for the weirdest stadium of them all, The Float at Marina Bay in Singapore. What’s sad is this may be the best location for a stadium out of all the stadiums that are listed on here. Right in the city, literally on the water, with cheap stands. It just seems like they were so sold on the actual location of the stadium, that they didn’t want to put any additional work into the rest of the stadium. The potential is there, there should be some more features added to it. The views are breathtaking, now it just needs some flair.