Kai Tak Sports Park is Hong Kong’s largest integrated sports and entertainment hub, spanning 28 hectares on the site of the former Kai Tak Airport.
It features world-class sporting venues, community facilities, and dynamic public spaces designed to bring people together and continue the site’s legacy of welcoming the rest of the world to Hong Kong.
Populous led the design of Kai Tak Sports Park, delivering a world-class, multi-venue precinct that seamlessly integrates elite sport, community access, cultural identity, and Hong Kong’s long-term vision for sport and recreation. Discover how our Design team reimagined a cherished site, crafting a dynamic space that seamlessly hosts global events while enriching everyday life.
Senior Principal | Managing Director – APAC
Kai Tak Sports Park is one of those transformative precincts Populous thrives at — a destination for global events and entertainment, yet deeply rooted in the everyday life of the community it serves. It’s more than a venue; it’s a gift to Hong Kong, designed to be embraced by the city not just on event days, but every day.
Official Opening Date
2025
Kai Tak Sports Park Site Scale
28 Hectares
Retail, Dining and Entertainment Space
5.7 Hectares
Kai Tak Stadium Capacity
50,000
Kai Tak Arena Capacity
10,000
Kai Tak Youth Sports Ground Capacity
5,000
Kai Tak Sports Park is a transformative development that unites key elements of Hong Kong’s sporting landscape while unlocking commercial and community-driven opportunities. Anchored by the state-of-the-art 50,000-seat Kai Tak Stadium, Kai Tak Arena, and Youth Sports Ground, the precinct offers an unparalleled destination for year-round activity, attracting both locals and visitors.
Kai Tak Sports Park represents a bold reimagining of urban space in Hong Kong, transforming the 28-hectare site of the former airport into a vibrant, multi-use precinct that blends elite sport, entertainment, and everyday community life. Anchored by the 50,000-seat Kai Tak Stadium — with its iconic “Pearl of the Orient” façade and retractable roof — the precinct is designed to host world-class events like the Rugby Sevens and international concerts, while remaining accessible to the public year-round. Its integration of advanced design, flexible infrastructure, and seamless connectivity to transport and surrounding districts positions it as a landmark destination for both locals and global visitors.
More than just a venue, Kai Tak Sports Park is a catalyst for community engagement and urban renewal. With facilities like Kai Tak Youth Sports Ground offering free public access, and with amenities including retail, wellness and dining spaces, the precinct is designed to be part of daily life — it’s not just for event days.
Sports Avenue, a pedestrian spine linking key areas from Station Square to the harbourfront, ensures intuitive navigation and a memorable visitor experience. By combining commercial viability with cultural and recreational value, Kai Tak Sports Park sets a new benchmark for how cities can integrate sport, entertainment, and community into a single, thriving ecosystem.
Kai Tak Stadium has quickly established itself as Hong Kong’s premier destination for sports and live entertainment, delivering a world-class matchday and event experience at the heart of the city’s vibrant Kai Tak Sports Park.
The 50,000-seat venue has already welcomed major international occasions including the Hong Kong Rugby Sevens, the first-ever North London derby outside the UK between Tottenham and Arsenal, and a four-night Coldplay concert attended by nearly 184,000 fans.
The stadium’s bowl maximises atmosphere and sightlines, with a compact layout that brings spectators close to the action. Its fully retractable roof ensures year-round flexibility, while the natural grass pitch meets the highest international standards, enabling the stadium to host AFC, FIFA and other global competitions.
Set on the former Kai Tak Airport site, the venue forms the centrepiece of a wider mixed-use development that integrates transport, retail, and leisure facilities with dedicated fan zones.
As a key anchor for Hong Kong’s sporting future, Kai Tak Stadium provides training amenities, media infrastructure and elite hospitality, creating a holistic environment for athletes, performers and supporters alike.
With its rapid emergence on the world stage, Kai Tak Stadium is both a catalyst for football growth in Hong Kong and a gateway for hosting the region’s most prestigious international events.
The Kai Tak Arena is a world-class indoor venue designed for flexibility, scale and spectacle. With a capacity of up to 10,000, the ‘Grand Hall’ features approximately 80% retractable or removable seating, allowing the space to seamlessly adapt for international tournaments, concerts, exhibitions and community events.
A column-free design ensures exceptional sightlines from every seat, while the removal of seating opens up a vast floor area—equivalent to nearly 40 standard badminton courts—supporting a wide range of configurations. Whether set for sport, live entertainment or large-scale gatherings, the arena prioritises spatial efficiency and audience experience. Centrally positioned within the 28-hectare Kai Tak Sports Park, the arena is directly connected to Kai Tak and Sung Wong Toi MTR stations, and linked across the precinct by the pedestrian-friendly Sports Avenue.
As Hong Kong’s newest landmark for sport and entertainment, the Kai Tak Arena is set to host a diverse range of events, from international sports competitions to concerts and community gatherings, making it a vital part of the city’s most ambitious sports and leisure development to date.
The Kai Tak Youth Sports Ground is a 5,000-seat community-focused venue within Hong Kong’s Kai Tak Sports Park, designed to provide an accessible platform for grassroots sport, training and local competitions. Developed as part of the city’s most ambitious sports infrastructure project, the facility balances professional-standard amenities with a welcoming environment for everyday use.
The ground includes a full-sized natural turf football pitch encircled by a 400-metre running track, making it suitable for athletics training and school tournaments. With its open-air design and spectator stands, the venue offers flexibility for community events, youth leagues, and regional matches, while also serving as a training base for teams competing at the adjacent Kai Tak Stadium.
Floodlighting, changing rooms, and integrated media facilities ensure the Youth Sports Ground meets modern performance requirements, while strong connections to public transport make it highly accessible. By encouraging participation across all levels, the venue is set to inspire the next generation of athletes and provide a vital bridge between grassroots development and elite competition.
As part of Kai Tak Sports Park’s holistic design, the Youth Sports Ground reinforces Hong Kong’s long-term vision for sport, health and community engagement.
Kai Tak Sports Avenue forms the central pedestrian spine of Kai Tak Sports Park, connecting all major venues and public spaces within the 28-hectare precinct.
Designed as a vibrant, active corridor, it links the 50,000-seat Kai Tak Stadium, the 10,000-seat Kai Tak Arena, the 5,000-seat Kai Tak Youth Sports Ground and the surrounding retail, dining and entertainment areas.
The Avenue has been carefully planned to create a seamless visitor journey, encouraging movement between sporting, cultural and leisure destinations. Wide pedestrian boulevards, shaded walkways and landscaped zones provide comfort and orientation, while clear sightlines ensure that the stadium and arena façades remain visible as landmark reference points. The space also integrates retail frontages and food and beverage outlets, reinforcing its role as a lively gathering place.
More than just a circulation route, Sports Avenue is designed as a destination in its own right. It acts as the social heart of the precinct, hosting fan activations, festivals and community events, while accommodating peak matchday crowds. By connecting world-class facilities with public amenities, Kai Tak Sports Avenue underlines the vision of the precinct as a cohesive, accessible and inclusive hub for sport, culture and community.
Populous developed the comprehensive wayfinding strategy for the entire precinct, ensuring intuitive navigation across multiple venues and user types. Our approach integrates wayfinding into the architecture and landscape—merging functionality with the design language of the park to support a cohesive and accessible visitor experience.
Our scope included signage strategy, placement and design, digital wayfinding, accessibility considerations, and material and technology specifications. Every element was designed with user behaviour in mind—from event-day crowds to everyday community visitors—ensuring that movement throughout the precinct is seamless, legible and inclusive.
By combining architectural insight with user-centred thinking, we created a navigation experience that not only supports venue operations, but also enhances the identity and usability of one of Asia’s most ambitious sports and entertainment destinations.
It’s easy to get lost in a venue of this size and complexity, which is why we developed an innovative intuitive wayfinding strategy combining traditional directional signage with a cultural art program that creates lasting memories at various areas of the Park. The large distinctive artworks dotted around the Park evoke feelings, thoughts and memories.
This urban renewal project is more than just a sports complex – it has become a bustling, integrated community hub. Along with the sporting venues, the precinct features retail spaces, a health and wellness center, outdoor recreational areas, and dining facilities, ensuring it remains a focal point for daily life. The Kai Tak Sports Park also connects seamlessly to surrounding districts and public transport, enhancing accessibility for all. The Kai Tak Sports Park is already a globally recognized landmark, supporting Hong Kong’s ambitions to promote sports, foster community engagement, and enhance its reputation as a center for international events.
Senior Principal | Senior Architect
The scale of Kai Tak allows us to connect the heart of the region with emerging neighbourhoods, extending all the way to the waterfront and creating a seamless harbourfront experience. For Populous, this project embodies who we are and reflects the legacy of what we’ve achieved throughout our history.
"The key to success, based on my experience, is about partnering — I'm actually very glad that I'm able to work with Populous — as we all know, Populous being one of the best stadium designers in the world."
Populous infused Kai Tak Sports Park with global design excellence, prioritising sustainability and community impact. Our visionary approach shaped a landmark that reflects innovation, inclusivity, and world-class delivery—showcasing the very essence of what Populous stands for.
Unlike many sports and entertainment precincts, Kai Tak Sports Park has no gates or barriers around the perimeter. This was intentional to invite people in, particularly on non-event days when the Park is still fully accessible and visitors are invited to enjoy and explore the facilities, including Kai Tak Mall, which covers over 700,000 square feet across three purpose-designed buildings, offering a diverse range of consumer options of 200 stores, including sports, retail, dining and leisure experiences.
Situated in the heart of Hong Kong, KTSP is approximately 35 minute drive away from Hong Kong International Airport and Hong Kong–Zhuhai–Macau Bridge, making it easily accessible for visitors from around the globe. In addition to Hong Kong's population of 7.5 million, KTSP's strategic location also draws from over 86 million people in the Greater Bay Area, all within a two-hour train journey.
Locally, getting to the Park is convenient with a variety of public transport options available. There are two MTR stations Kai Tak and Sung Wong Toi within walking distance, and there are three major bus stops nearby. Visitors travelling from North Point can benefit from the nearby Kowloon City Ferry Pier, which serves the North Point-Kowloon City ferry route. For those driving, there are two carparks as well as designated taxi and private car pick-up/drop-off areas.
The Sports Park is more than just for sports; it is designed to welcome everyone. From one of the city’s largest children’s playgrounds to a visitor’s centre and sports museum, and a shopping mall that is patronised by those attending the Park for events as well as those living nearby, Kai Tak Sports Park is an activated community precinct.
Dining Cove offers a vibrant mix of more than 30 food stalls serving up local Hong Kong favourites, international bites, and artisanal desserts, alongside retail stalls featuring handcrafted goods, lifestyle products, and even pet-friendly treats. With live performances, rotating weekend vendors, and a lively atmosphere, this area of the Park is open during events and is the ultimate destination for foodies, families, shoppers and pet lovers.
There are several green spaces designed to help the public stay active and well. The North Garden includes a jogging track, a covered hard-surface court and beach ball courts.
Right from the earliest sketches, Populous’ team knew how important the façades and interfaces of this project would be, not only for the Stadium but also the 10,000-seat indoor Kai Tak Arena and the 5,000-seat outdoor Kai Tak Youth Sports Ground.
Two distinct approaches to the two halves of the site were taken, linked by Kai Tak Sports Avenue, which runs across the entire precinct from North to South, offering covered connections between the heart of the neighbourhood and the waterfront.
At the Southern end of the Park is the “Pearl” – the Stadium – an object that shines majestically on the edge of Victoria Harbour. The Stadium façade is made up of over 27,000 specially coated, self-cleaning aluminium panels, creating a stunning, shimmering pearlescent effect.
The Initial concept required over 47,000 panels of varying shapes and sizes. However, through parametric design techniques, the team rationalised this to just 27,000 with only two main geometry types, which reduced installation time.
The entire process, from design to construction, was executed digitally using an openBIM approach. This minimised material consumption, production time and fabrication cost.
Spanning over 28 hectares, KTSP is committed to sustainability in its design, construction, and daily operations, setting a new benchmark for sustainable event hosting in Hong Kong. With initiatives focused on green building standards and energy efficiency, KTSP fosters environmental responsibility while engaging the community and supporting athletes, ensuring long-term stakeholder value.
KTSP has been designed with a genuine focus on sustainability. It meets various international standards, achieving multiple green building certifications, including:
→ BEAM Plus Neighbourhood (Platinum Rating)
→ Provisional Platinum rating under the BEAM Plus New Buildings
→ LEED Gold Pre-certification for Building Design and Construction
→ China 3-Star Green Building Design Label
These accolades recognise KTSP's adherence to high environmental standards and commitment to ongoing sustainable development.
2025
Finalist - World Architecture Festival Awards
International Architecture & Design Awards - Sports, Recreation & Wellness Facilities
2024
ACEHK Annual Awards - Overall Best Project
BuildingSMART International - OpenBIM Award
2023
World Architecture Festival Awards 2023 Visualization Prize – Finalist
2022
Guangzhou Design Week, Best of Property Winner for Cultural, Education and Public Award
2021
Hong Kong Construction Industry Council (CIC) BIM Achievement Award
BEAM Plus (Neighbourhood) Platinum - China Green Building (HK)
3-Star Design Label - China Green Building (HK)
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet consectetur, adipisicing elit. Non facere corporis et expedita sit nam amet aut necessitatibus at dolore enim quis impedit eius libero, harum tempore laboriosam dolor cumque.
Lorem, ipsum dolor sit amet consectetur adipisicing elit. Illo temporibus vero veritatis eveniet, placeat dolorem sunt at provident tenetur omnis, dicta exercitationem. Expedita quod aspernatur molestias eum? Totam, incidunt quos.