New Porto Football HQ Features Striking Honeycomb Facade

Arena Liga Portugal, the new headquarters of the governing body of Portuguese football, is located in Porto and was designed by local architecture studio OODA. The 13,200-square-metre facility brings together the operational, cultural, and community roles of the Liga Portuguesa de Futebol Profissional within a single structure.

Positioned on a fragmented site north of Porto’s city centre, the building combines office spaces with a football museum, a timber-lined auditorium, and an indoor pitch. First unveiled in 2020 and now fully operational, the project strengthens the league’s institutional identity while creating a civic space intended to engage the surrounding community.

Site Strategy and Contextual Response

The project site is characterised by disconnected urban patterns, with few defining architectural landmarks. OODA’s approach uses a landscaped base or plinth to address this discontinuity, transforming a level change into an opportunity for civic engagement.

Key site interventions:

• Green-roofed plinth extends a neighbouring park into the site
  
• Public garden surrounds the building, softening its interface with adjacent roads
  
• Sunken entrance courtyard carved into the plinth provides access to public functions
  
• Circulation paths facilitate pedestrian movement across and around the structure
  

The architects noted, “The building sits in a fragmented part of Porto, where the urban fabric is discontinuous. The proposal responds by establishing new relationships between built form and landscape.”

The plinth acts as both a landscape feature and a spatial connector, bridging natural and built environments.

Architecture and Form

Above the landscaped plinth rises a glazed cubic office block, enclosed by a hexagonal metal screen. This design references the surface pattern of a football while maintaining abstract architectural integrity. The result is a form that is legible, symbolic, and functionally efficient.

Design highlights:

• White hexagonal screen provides shading and reduces solar heat gain
  
• Glazed curtain walls allow natural light into the office floors
  
• Suspended cube form creates a strong institutional identity
  
• Rhythmic geometry introduces variation in daylight and night-time lighting
  

As described by the studio, “From early on, the idea was to integrate distinct programs under one roof while reinforcing the League’s connection with the city and its community.”

The hexagonal motif recalls football without direct mimicry, allowing the building to operate as a professional space while still reflecting its purpose.

Programme Distribution

Arena Liga Portugal is designed to accommodate multiple uses within a unified framework. The division between public and private areas is handled through vertical zoning, with community-focused elements located at the base and official league functions housed above.

Components include:

• Offices (six floors) for administrative and operational staff
  
• Indoor football pitch for training and events
  
• Football museum showcasing the history of Portuguese football
  
• Auditorium finished in timber for press conferences and league functions
  
• Reception and lobby spaces accessed via the sunken courtyard
  

The variety of uses reflects the league’s evolving role—not only as a regulatory authority but also as a cultural institution.

Environmental and Spatial Design

The green roof serves dual purposes: visually integrating the building with nearby public spaces and enhancing environmental performance. This roof acts as an infrastructural canopy, reducing runoff and moderating indoor temperatures.

• Green roof functions as an extension of the riverside park
  
• Shading system reduces glare and cooling loads
  
• Natural light modulation across the façade changes throughout the day
  
• Transparent lower levels encourage visibility into public spaces
  

This approach supports a smoother transition from civic areas to institutional domains, reinforcing the building’s public-facing character.

Design Intent and Broader Impact

According to the architects, the central concept was to unify various programs—offices, sport, exhibitions, and public access, under a single architectural gesture. The result is a structure that embodies the league’s presence while participating in the surrounding urban context.

• Responds to fragmented urban edge by creating a legible urban form
  
• Reinforces Liga Portugal’s identity through abstracted football imagery
  
• Supports civic use while protecting institutional functions
  
• Acts as a catalyst for regeneration in the site’s immediate surroundings
  

Conclusion

Arena Liga Portugal by OODA represents a strategic architectural response to both programmatic complexity and urban disconnection. Through a layered approach—combining landscape, public facilities, and office functions—the building serves as a contemporary model for sports governance infrastructure. The hexagonal facade, green roof, and multifunctional base not only define the identity of Liga Portugal but also reconnect the site with its urban and civic surroundings.

Images by Pedro Cardigo