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South Africa’s Mmabatho Stadium is famous for its unusual design, which
features elevated stands that don’t actually face the pitch but other
stands.
Built in 1981, during the apartheid era, Mmabatho Stadium is often cited
as an example of impractical architectural design. It was commissioned
by Lucas Mangope’s government which ruled the Bophuthatswana Bantusan
and designed by Israeli architect Israel Goodovitch and engineer Ben
Abraham. They came up with an unconventional concept that went against
pretty much every basic principle of stadium design, and not in a good
way. However, authorities apparently loved the idea and went ahead with
the construction. After it was inaugurated, it didn’t take long for
people to realize that its weirdly elevated stands didn’t offer the best
view of the action on the pitch and actually required them to turn their
heads to the side in order to watch the match.
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Located 300 km from Johannesburg, close to South Africa’s border with
Botswana, Mmabatho Stadium is the African nation’s fifth largest
stadium, but it rarely sees any use these days because of its
impractical design. It was the home of the Mmabatho Kicks of the
now-defunct Bophuthatswana Professional Soccer League, but once the
Bantusan era ended, teams and events migrated to other venues.
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The unusual design and poor viewing experience were the main reason that
Mmabatho was snubbed during the 2010 FIFA World Cup both for official
games and even as a training field. The only action it sees these days
involves occasional charity matches and neutral ground games between
South African soccer clubs.
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The 59,000-seat structure is most often described as “curious”,
“strange” and even “bizarre”, but some actually view it as a work of
art, and even compare it with a bloomed tulip. Unfortunately, the sharp
angles, quirky geometry, and the fact that the stands are too far from
the pitch make Mmabatho a poor stadium, at least as far as fans are
concerned.
As bold as Mmbatho’s design may be, its blatant lack of functionality
has relegated this massive stadium to the rank of monument to a bygone
era, and has inspired no imitations.
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