In the world of billionaires and the similarly wealthy teams they own, designing a state-of-the-art stadium goes beyond the visual.
In the offices of architecture firm Arup, there is a downstairs soundproof room with premium grade surround-sound speakers and a large screen. It looks like a small theatre.
“We can put a client in there and say, ‘when your team scores, this is what it will sound like if your stadium roof is shaped this way,'” says Chris Dite, who is responsible for the firm’s sports projects.
“But, if we change the roof shape to this, then this is what it will sound like.”
The way the pitch and intensity of the crowd noise changes in the aftermath of a goal is based on data from stadium projects the firm have completed over the last 25 years.
Dite’s previous work includes the Allianz Arena used by German football giants Bayern Munich and the Gtech Community Stadium where Brentford play.
“If you can sit the client in those front rows and make them feel like they’re in it, that’s where you start to really invoke an emotional response,” Dite tells BBC News.
What a goal might sound like in the new Manchester United stadium was not part of the presentation given by the club earlier this week, but the design of the new £2bn ground certainly invoked emotional responses.
Some questioned how realistic it was to build such tall pillars from which a glass panelled canvas drapes over the new stands and surrounding grounds.
The three pillars in the artist’s impression, unveiled by the firm Foster and Partners, are a nod to the trident on the Red Devil’s crest.
“Gravity still exists, unfortunately for us,” remarks Dite. He says he “can’t comment on other architectural businesses” but that Arup doesn’t issue any public designs that haven’t been approved by structural engineers.
