National Athletics Centre

The stadium that reconnected an entire neighborhood with the Danube

The National Athletics Center is not just a stadium, but a world-class sports facility, an engineering feat, and the story of the rebirth of a once-derelict area.

Built on the banks of the Danube in Budapest’s 9th district, the center was designed for the 2023 World Athletics Championships, but from the very beginning, it was about much more than just a venue for a global competition. The goal was to create a stadium that would remain a vibrant part of the city even after the World Championships—with athletes, runners, families, and community spaces.

During the World Championships, it could accommodate nearly 40,000 spectators with the temporary upper grandstand, but after the event, it was transformed into a sustainably operated athletics center with a capacity of 15,000.

Today, the area surrounding the stadium features parks, running tracks, Danube riverfront promenades, and community sports fields-where a closed-off industrial zone once stood.

A new urban space born from a brownfield site

The stadium was built in the former industrial zone of South Pest, at the confluence of the Ráckevei Danube and the Danube. The site was previously home to VITUKI, the Water Management Research Institute, whose tower building was demolished in 2020. Construction of the new sports center-and with it, a fresh urban space-began on this brownfield site.

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The architectural plans for the National Athletics Center were designed by Marcel Ferencz. During the design process, it was necessary to comply with both the strict regulations of the International Association of Athletics Federations and the unique characteristics of the urban environment. The teardrop-shaped plot, the Danube panorama, the sunlight exposure, and the prevailing wind direction all shaped the building’s form.

One of the stadium’s most striking features is the light, open-roofed structure and the surrounding steel support framework, which functions both as an engineering element and as a facade.

840 meters of steel and millimeter-precise engineering

One of the stadium’s most significant technical features is the steel structure with a circumference of 840 meters, assembled from 48 units and a total of 384 structural elements. Linked to this is the cable roof system consisting of 268 elements.

During construction, KÉSZ Metaltech Kft., a member of KÉSZ Group, was responsible for the implementation of the steel support structure. What made the project unique was that by the end of construction, the structures followed the pre-planned geometric form with near-perfect precision—the deviation was only a few millimeters.

The construction of the stadium was considered an outstanding engineering achievement even on a European scale. During manufacturing, the geometry of the elements was continuously monitored using laser measurements, while the thermal expansion of the structure also had to be taken into account.

One of the greatest technical challenges was the hoisting of the cable roof. The operation was carried out in just over a month through the coordinated efforts of fewer than twenty specialists. The forces measured during the hoisting deviated from preliminary calculations by an average of only 1.2 percent.

The high architectural and technical standards of the stadium are well demonstrated by the fact that the National Athletics Center won the Construction Industry Quality Award in 2024.

Where life didn’t end after the World Championships

The National Athletics Center made its debut on the international sports scene as a central venue for the 2023 World Athletics Championships in Budapest. With one of the world’s most prestigious athletics events, Budapest has definitively put itself on the global map of the sport.

A nine-lane, world-class Mondo-surfaced track was built in the stadium, making it the first in Hungary to use this surface, which is standard at elite international competitions. The complex is connected to training tracks, warm-up areas, and the Robinson Bridge leading to Csepel Island, creating a sports infrastructure that is sustainable in the long term.

However, the stadium did not close after the World Championships. Where the temporary upper stands once stood, there is now a running track with panoramic views, outdoor sports zones, and community spaces.

Stadionpark features playgrounds, a fitness park, street workout equipment, bouldering walls, and a skatepark, while rest areas and promenades await visitors along the Danube riverbank. The Panorama Sportpark, located on the upper level of the stadium, offers a unique experience: indoor yet outdoor sports facilities with one of Budapest’s most spectacular views of the Danube.

As part of the development, the proportion of green spaces has also increased significantly. With the planting of more than a thousand trees and some eighteen thousand shrubs, a former brownfield site has been transformed into a vibrant, community-oriented urban space.

Starting in March 2026, the facility will bear the name of Olympic hammer throw champion Gyula Zsivotzky. The stadium has thus become not only a feat of contemporary architecture and engineering but also a new symbol of the future and traditions of Hungarian athletics.

Source of images: KÉSZ Group