Sports Citadel

The Sports Citadel of L’Aquila was conceived to provide the city with a versatile sports facility, designed not only to host a variety of disciplines but also to encourage social interaction and inclusion. The project revitalizes an area within the Progetto C.A.S.E. in the Roio district, transforming a previously urbanized site into a vibrant place for sport and culture.

More than a simple sports complex, the Citadel aspires to become an integrated public space, where people can meet, share experiences, and build connections. The building takes shape as a compact, linear volume, opening towards the valley. A long shed roof, acting like a blade of light, brings daylight into the interiors and creates a dialogue between the stands inside and the landscape outside. Simple in form and materiality, the architecture nevertheless carries a strong symbolic presence, becoming a social landmark within the neighborhood.

At the heart of the facility lies the multi-purpose hall, around which the stands, circulation paths, and service areas are arranged. The main entrance leads directly to the central space, while a longitudinal corridor runs alongside the playing area, separating athletes from spectators and linking to additional services and vertical circulation. The upper level offers a second stand, enriching the collective experience and emphasizing the inclusive nature of the project. Flexibility is at the core of the design. All spaces are conceived as dynamic and adaptable, with equipment that can be easily assembled or removed to accommodate different sports and events. In this way, the Citadel becomes an open and flexible hub, welcoming people of all ages, abilities, and interests.

More than a building, the Sports Citadel is an architecture for the community—a place where functionality and expression, sport and culture, leisure and inclusion come together. It restores vitality to a peripheral area while reaffirming the power of sport as a driver of social cohesion and urban regeneration.