Populous (formerly HOK Sport Venue Event) is a global architectural firm specializing in the design of sports facilities, arenas and convention centers, as well as the planning of major special events.
Populous formerly operated as HOK Sport Venue Event, which was part of the HOK Group. In January 2009, Populous was created through a management buyout, becoming independently owned and operated. It is reported to be one of the largest architecture firms in the world.
In 1983, HOK under Jerry Sincoff created a sports group (initially called the Sports Facilities Group and later changed to HOK Sport Venue Event). The firm initially consisted of eight architects in Kansas City, and grew to employ 185 people by 1996.
On several projects, HOK Sport had teamed with international design practice LOBB Partnership, which maintained offices in London, England, and Brisbane, Australia. On HOK Sport's 15th anniversary in November 1998, the firm merged with LOBB. The new practice retained headquarters in all three cities.
The Kansas City, Missouri, office was first based in the city's Garment District in the Lucas Place office building. In 2005, it moved into its headquarters at 300 Wyandotte in the River Market neighborhood in a new building it designed, on land developed as an urban renewal project through tax incentives from the city's Planned Industrial Expansion Authority. It was the first major company to relocate to the neighborhood in several decades. In March 2009, HOK Sport Venue Event changed its name to Populous after a managers’ buyout by HOK Group.
In October 2015, Populous relocated to its new headquarters at the newly renovated Board of Trade building at 4800 Main street near the Country Club Plaza in Kansas City.
The company is one of several Kansas City-based sports design firms that trace their roots to Kivett and Myers which designed the Truman Sports Complex which was one of the first modern large single purpose sports stadiums (previously, stadiums were designed for multipurpose use). Other firms with sports design presence in Kansas City that trace their roots to Kivett include Ellerbe Becket Inc. and HNTB Corp.. 360 Architecture is also based in Kansas City.
Populous is credited for spearheading a new era of baseball park design in the 1990s, beginning with Oriole Park at Camden Yards. At Camden Yards, and in other stadiums built by Populous soon thereafter like Coors Field and Progressive Field, the ballpark was designed to incorporate aesthetic elements of the city's history and older "classic ballparks." Camden Yards's red brick facade emulates the massive B&O Warehouse that dominates the right field view behind Eutaw Street, whereas Progressive Field's glass and steel exterior "call to mind the drawbridges and train trestles that crisscross the nearby Cuyahoga River." Starting with the Great American Ball Park in Cincinnati in 2003, a number of Populous Sport's stadiums featured more contemporary and even futuristic designs. Subsequent stadium exteriors featuring this motif opened in Washington and Minnesota.
In addition to moving away from the concrete exteriors of the "cookie-cutter" multi-purpose stadiums that preceded the new parks, Populous incorporated other innovative touches: natural grass playing surfaces (instead of artificial turf), asymmetrical field dimensions, various park-specific idiosyncrasies (like Tal's Hill), and less foul territory that would keep fans farther from the diamond. And because the stadiums were designed for baseball instead of several sports, the sightlines were "uniformly excellent."
Camden Yards was not only hugely popular with baseball fans. The success of a new ballpark in downtown Baltimore convinced many cities to invest public funds in their own new ballparks to help revitalize struggling urban neighborhoods. From 1992 to 2012, HOK Sport/Populous were the lead architects on 14 Major League Baseball stadiums and helped renovate four existing stadiums.
Populous's designs across Major League Baseball have become so prevalent that some critics have asserted that the distinctiveness that was originally found in early "retro" ballparks is impossible to maintain: "There are nearly 20 [new ballparks] around the league, [so] their heterogeneity has come to seem altogether homogenous." Whereas "classic" ballparks like Fenway Park were given strange dimensions simply because of the limitations provided by the plots of land on which the parks were built, new stadiums do not feature such restrictions. One sportswriter said the attempt to emulate the old parks in this way is "contrived."
In addition, a number of commentators have criticized what they see as a tendency to cater new ballparks toward wealthier ticket buyers, such as with expanded use of luxury suites instead of cheaper, conventional seating. Several writers have noted that upper deck seating at new ballparks may actually be farther away from the field than in the older parks, partly as a result of these new upper decks being pushed higher by rows of luxury suites.
One writer in The New Yorker said it is "not quite right to credit or blame Populous" for trends in their new stadiums—as it is ultimately team owners that plan what they want in future stadiums—but they "certainly enabled" such changes.
Kansas City, Missouri, USA
London, UK
Boston, USA
Brisbane, Australia
San Francisco, USA
Denver, USA
Knoxville, Tennessee, USA
New York City, United States
Norman, Oklahoma, United States
Pittsburgh, United States
New Delhi, India
Sydney, Australia
Singapore
Beijing, China
Sun Life Stadium, Miami Gardens, Florida – NFL Miami Dolphins, MLB Florida Marlins (1987)
U.S. Cellular Field, Chicago – Chicago White Sox (1991)
Oriole Park at Camden Yards, Baltimore – Baltimore Orioles (1992)
Progressive Field, Cleveland – Cleveland Indians (1994)
Coors Field, Denver, Colorado – Colorado Rockies (1995)
Angel Stadium of Anaheim, Anaheim, California (Renovation of Anaheim Stadium, joint project with Walt Disney Imagineering) – Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim (1998)
Comerica Park, Detroit – Detroit Tigers (2000)
Minute Maid Park, Houston – Houston Astros (2000)
AT&T Park, San Francisco – San Francisco Giants (2000)
PNC Park, Pittsburgh – Pittsburgh Pirates (2001)
Great American Ball Park, Cincinnati – Cincinnati Reds (2003)
Citizens Bank Park, Philadelphia (joint project with Ewing Cole Cherry Brott of Philadelphia) – Philadelphia Phillies (2004)
Petco Park, San Diego – San Diego Padres (2004)
Busch Stadium, St. Louis, Missouri – St. Louis Cardinals (2006)
Nationals Park, Washington, D.C. – Washington Nationals (2008)
Kauffman Stadium, Kansas City – Kansas City Royals (renovations in 1997 and 2009)
Citi Field, Willets Point, Queens, New York – New York Mets (2009)
Yankee Stadium, Bronx, New York – New York Yankees (2009)
Target Field, Minneapolis – Minnesota Twins (2010)
Marlins Park, Miami – Miami Marlins (2012)
jetBlue Park at Fenway South (2012)
SunTrust Park, Cumberland, Georgia (Atlanta postal address) – Atlanta Braves (2017)
Stanley Coveleski Regional Stadium, South Bend, Indiana – A South Bend Silver Hawks (1987)
Metro Bank Park, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania – AA Harrisburg Senators (1987)
Coca-Cola Field, Buffalo, New York – AAA Buffalo Bisons (1988)
Northwestern Medicine Field, Geneva, Illinois – A Kane County Cougars (1991)
Harbor Park, Norfolk, Virginia – AAA Norfolk Tides (1993)
Smith's Ballpark, Salt Lake City – AAA Salt Lake Bees (1994)
Durham Bulls Athletic Park, Durham, North Carolina – AAA Durham Bulls (1995)
Victory Field, Indianapolis – AAA Indianapolis Indians (1996)
The Hangar, Lancaster, California – A Lancaster JetHawks (1996)
San Manuel Stadium, San Bernardino, California – A Inland Empire 66ers of San Bernardino (1997)
Joseph P. Riley, Jr. Park, Charleston, South Carolina – A Charleston RiverDogs (1997)
LeLacheur Park, Lowell, Massachusetts – A Lowell Spinners (1998)
Chukchansi Park, Fresno, California – AAA Fresno Grizzlies (2002)
Baseball Grounds of Jacksonville, Jacksonville, Florida – AA Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp (2003)
Bright House Field, Clearwater, Florida – A Clearwater Threshers (2004)
Trustmark Park, Pearl, Mississippi – AA Mississippi Braves (2005)
Dow Diamond, Midland, Michigan – A Great Lakes Loons (2007)
Arvest Ballpark, Springdale, Arkansas – AA Northwest Arkansas Naturals (2008)
Coca-Cola Park, Allentown, Pennsylvania – AAA Lehigh Valley IronPigs (2008)
Parkview Field, Fort Wayne, Indiana – A Fort Wayne TinCaps (2009)
ONEOK Field, Tulsa, Oklahoma – AA Tulsa Drillers (2010)
Alliance Bank Stadium, Syracuse, New York – AAA Syracuse Chiefs (1997)
Community Maritime Park, Pensacola, Florida – AA Pensacola Blue Wahoos (2012)
Southwest University Park, El Paso, Texas – AAA El Paso Chihuahuas (2014)
Spirit Communications Park, Columbia, South Carolina (2016)
Baum Stadium, Fayetteville, Arkansas – Arkansas Razorbacks (1996)
Ray Fisher Stadium Renovation – Wilpon Baseball and Softball Complex, Ann Arbor, Michigan – Michigan Wolverines (2008)
Bryson Field at Boshamer Stadium, Chapel Hill, North Carolina – North Carolina Tar Heels (2009)
Carolina Stadium, Columbia, South Carolina – University of South Carolina Gamecocks (2009)
Triton Ballpark Renovation, La Jolla, California – University of California, San Diego Tritons (2015)
BMO Harris Bradley Center, Milwaukee – Milwaukee Bucks (1988)
United Center, Chicago – Chicago Bulls (1995)
Pepsi Center, Denver – Denver Nuggets (1999)
Philips Arena, Atlanta – Atlanta Hawks (1999)
Air Canada Centre, Toronto, Canada – Toronto Raptors (1999)
Toyota Center, Houston, Texas – Houston Rockets (2003)
Prudential Center, Newark, New Jersey – New Jersey Nets (2007)
Amway Center, Orlando, Florida – Orlando Magic (2010)
Wisconsin Entertainment and Sports Center, Milwaukee – Milwaukee Bucks (2017)
Toyota Center, Houston – Houston Comets (2003)
BMO Harris Bradley Center, Milwaukee – Marquette Golden Eagles (1988)
Kohl Center, Madison, Wisconsin – Wisconsin Badgers (1998)
Mizzou Arena – Columbia, Missouri – Missouri Tigers (2005)
UCF Arena, Orlando, Florida – UCF Knights (2007)
KFC Yum! Center, Louisville, Kentucky – Louisville Cardinals (2010)
Ford Center, Evansville, Indiana – Evansville Purple Aces (2011)
John Smith's Stadium – Huddersfield, England, UK – Huddersfield Town F.C (1994)
Macron Stadium – Bolton, England, UK – Bolton Wanderers F.C. (1997)
Sir Bobby Robson Stand at Portman Road – Ipswich, England, UK – Ipswich Town Football Club (2002)
Estádio da Luz – Lisbon, Portugal – S.L. Benfica (2003)
Estádio Algarve – Loulé, Portugal – S.C. Farense, Louletano D.C. (2004)
Emirates Stadium – London, UK – Arsenal Football Club (2006)
Northumberland Development Project - London, UK - Tottenham Hotspur opens 2018
Sahlen's Stadium – Rochester, New York – Rochester Rhinos (2006)
Stadium:mk – Milton Keynes, UK – Milton Keynes Dons F.C. (2007)
Wembley Stadium – London, UK – England (joint project with Foster and Partners) (2007)
Dick's Sporting Goods Park – Commerce City, Colorado – Colorado Rapids (2007)
FNB Stadium (formerly Soccer City) – Johannesburg, South Africa – South Africa (2009)
Estadio Omnilife – Zapopan, Jalisco, Mexico – C.D. Guadalajara (2010)
Fossetts Farm Stadium – Southend, UK – Southend United (2011)
Children's Mercy Park – Kansas City – Sporting Kansas City (2011)
Arena das Dunas – Natal, Brazil – América de Natal (2013)
Friends Arena – Stockholm, Sweden – Sweden (2012)
BBVA Compass Stadium – Houston, Texas – Houston Dynamo (2012)
Parc Olympique Lyonnais – Lyon, France – Olympique Lyonnais (2013)
Kazan-arena – Kazan, Russia – FC Rubin Kazan (2013)
Estadio BBVA Bancomer – Monterrey, Nuevo León, Mexico – C.F. Monterrey (2014)
Stade des Lumières – Décines, France – Olympique Lyonnais (2014)
City of Manchester Stadium expansion – Manchester, UK – Manchester City F.C. (2015)
Orlando City Stadium – Orlando, Florida – Orlando City SC (2017)
New Queens Park – London, UK – Queens Park Rangers (2018)
Minnesota United FC Stadium – Saint Paul, Minnesota – Minnesota United FC (2018)
Northumberland Development Project – London, UK – Tottenham Hotspur F.C. (2018)
Sun Life Stadium, Miami Gardens, Florida – Miami Dolphins; University of Miami football; Orange Bowl; Super Bowl XXIII, XXIX, XXXVI, XLI and XLIV (1987)
EverBank Field – Jacksonville Jaguars; Gator Bowl; Georgia vs. Florida football game; Super Bowl XXXIX (1995)
Bank of America Stadium, Charlotte, North Carolina – Carolina Panthers; Meineke Car Care Bowl (1996)
Raymond James Stadium, Tampa, Florida – Tampa Bay Buccaneers; University of South Florida football; Outback Bowl; Super Bowl XXXV and XLIII (1996)
FedExField, Landover, Maryland – Washington Redskins (1997)
M&T Bank Stadium, Baltimore – Baltimore Ravens (1998)
Nissan Stadium, Nashville, Tennessee – Tennessee Titans; Music City Bowl (1999)
FirstEnergy Stadium, Cleveland, Ohio – Cleveland Browns (1999)
Heinz Field, Pittsburgh – Pittsburgh Steelers; University of Pittsburgh football (2001)
Gillette Stadium, Foxborough, Massachusetts – New England Patriots (2002)
NRG Stadium, Houston, Texas – Houston Texans; Texas Bowl; Super Bowl XXXVIII (2002)
University of Phoenix Stadium, Glendale, Arizona – Arizona Cardinals; Fiesta Bowl; Super Bowl XLII (2006)
TCF Bank Stadium, Minneapolis – University of Minnesota Football (2009)
Arrowhead Stadium, Kansas City – Kansas City Chiefs (renovations from 2007–2010)
Ralph Wilson Stadium (renovation), Orchard Park, New York – Buffalo Bills (2014)
UCF Arena – Orlando, Florida NCAA UCF Knights (2007)
Kyle Field (redevelopment plan), College Station, Texas – Texas A&M Aggies football (2012)
McLane Stadium, Waco, Texas – Baylor University Football (2012)
Etihad Stadium, Melbourne – Carlton Blues; Essendon Bombers; North Melbourne Kangaroos; St Kilda Saints; Western Bulldogs (2000)
Simonds Stadium, Geelong, Victoria – Geelong Cats (2010)
Metricon Stadium, Gold Coast, Queensland – Gold Coast Suns (2011)
Spotless Stadium, Sydney – Greater Western Sydney Giants (2012)
Bradley Center, Milwaukee – Milwaukee Iron (1988)
Verizon Wireless Arena, Manchester, New Hampshire (2001)
The O2, London, UK (formerly the Millennium Dome) (2007)
Sprint Center, Kansas City (2007)
3Arena, Dublin (formerly The O2 Dublin) (2008)
AMSOIL Arena – Duluth, Minnesota (2010)
Ford Center – Evansville, Indiana – Used for Professional Ice Hockey, College Basketball, and Music Concerts (2011)
First Direct Arena, Leeds (2013)
Philippine Arena – Bulacan, North of Metro Manila, Philippines – multi-purpose arena, plenary hall for Iglesia Ni Cristo (Church of Christ) Centennial Project – a 50,000 seating capacity (2014)
Philippine Arena, Manila, Philippines (2014)
Darling Harbour Live Theatre, Sydney, Australia (2016)
Bristol Arena, Bristol (2020)
Pepsi Center, Denver (1999)
Ascot Racecourse, Berkshire, UK (2006)
Eagle Farm Racecourse, Brisbane, Australia (2016)
Honda Center – Anaheim, California – Anaheim Ducks (1993)
United Center – Chicago – Chicago Blackhawks (1995)
Bridgestone Arena – Nashville, Tennessee – Nashville Predators (1996)
Air Canada Centre – Toronto, Canada – Toronto Maple Leafs (1999)
Pepsi Center – Denver – Colorado Avalanche (1999)
Xcel Energy Center – St. Paul, Minnesota – Minnesota Wild (2000)
Gila River Arena – Glendale, Arizona – Arizona Coyotes (2003)
Prudential Center – Newark, New Jersey – New Jersey Devils (2007)
Consol Energy Center – Pittsburgh – Pittsburgh Penguins (2010)
Videotron Centre – Quebec City – Potential new or relocated NHL team and Quebec Remparts, QMJHL (2015; joint project with ABCP Architecture and GLCRM & Associates)
T-Mobile Arena – Las Vegas – Vegas Golden Knights (2016)
BMO Harris Bradley Center, Milwaukee – Milwaukee Admirals (1988)
GIANT Center – Hershey, Pennsylvania – Hershey Bears (2002)
Toyota Center – Houston, Texas – Houston Aeros (2003–2013)
Verizon Wireless Arena, Manchester, New Hampshire – Manchester Monarchs (2001)
Wells Fargo Arena at the Iowa Events Center, Des Moines, Iowa – Iowa Wild (2013–14 season)
Maverik Center – West Valley City, Utah – Utah Grizzlies, 2002 Winter Olympics (1997)
Ford Center – Evansville, Indiana – Evansville Ice Men (2011)
Tropicana Field – St. Petersburg, Florida (joint project with Lescher & Mahoney Sports(Tampa) & Criswell, Blizzard & Blouin Architects (St. Pete) (1990)
Ervin J. Nutter Center – Fairborn, Ohio – NCAA Wright State Raiders (1990)
Alamodome – San Antonio, Texas (1993)
Hong Kong Stadium – So Kon Po, Hong Kong (1994)
Manchester Velodrome – Manchester, England, UK (1994)
Millennium Stadium – Cardiff, UK – Wales football team and Wales rugby union team (1999)
ANZ Stadium – Sydney, Australia – 2000 Summer Olympics (1999)
Westpac Stadium Wellington, New Zealand (2000)
Nanjing Olympic Sports Center – Nanjing, China (2004)
Croke Park – Dublin, Ireland – Gaelic Athletic Association (2004)
Queensland Tennis Centre – Tennyson, Queensland, Australia (2009)
Birmingham-Jefferson Convention Complex Multi-purpose facility (Convention space/Stadium) – Birmingham, Alabama {In design stages} (Ground-breaking held 9/21/2009)
Ravenscraig Regional Sports Facility – Motherwell, Scotland, UK (2010)
Aviva Stadium – Dublin, Ireland – Ireland rugby union team and Ireland football team (joint project with Scott Tallon Walker) (2010)
Forsyth Barr Stadium – Dunedin, New Zealand (2011)
Incheon Asiad Main Stadium – Incheon, South Korea
Taipei Dome – Taipei, Taiwan
HARBORcenter – Buffalo, New York – hockey-themed mixed-use development (2015)
Perth Stadium – Perth, Western Australia (architectural consultants – proposed completion 2018)
Suncorp Stadium – Brisbane, Queensland, Australia – NRL Brisbane Broncos (2003)
cbus Super Stadium – Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia – NRL Gold Coast Titans (2008)
ANZ Stadium, Sydney, Australia (1999)
Eden Park, Auckland, New Zealand (2010)
Forsyth Barr Stadium, Dunedin, New Zealand (2011)
Westpac Stadium, Wellington, New Zealand (1999)
Margaret Court Arena, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia (2014)
Queensland Tennis Centre, Brisbane, Australia (2009)
Zhuhai Tennis Centre, Zhuhai, China (2015)
Wimbledon AELTC, London, UK (2009)
Pennsylvania State University Training Facility – University Park, Pennsylvania (1999)
GWS Giants Learning Life Centre, Sydney, Australia (2013)
Texas A&M Bright Football Complex, College Station, USA (2015)
Brisbane Broncos Training, Administration and Community Facility, Brisbane, Australia (2017)
Convention and Civic centers
University of Houston Athletics and Alumni Center – Houston, Texas (1995)
Grand River Event Center – Dubuque, Iowa, USA (2003)
Iowa Events Center – Des Moines, Iowa, USA (2005)
Peoria Civic Center Expansion – Peoria, Illinois, USA (2007)
Phoenix Convention Center – Phoenix, Arizona, USA (2008)
Qatar National Convention Centre, Education City, Qatar (2011)
San Jose McEnery Convention Centre Expansion, San Jose, USA (2014)
Darling Harbour Live, Sydney, Australia (2016)
Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Centre, San Antonio, USA (2016)
World Trade Center Bhubaneswar – Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India (2017)
1996 Atlanta, Georgia, USA
2000 Sydney, NSW, Australia
2002 Salt Lake City, Utah, USA
2004 Athens, Greece
2006 Torino, Italy
2008 Beijing, China
2010 Vancouver, BC, Canada
2012 London, England, UK
2014 Sochi, Russia
2016 Chicago, Illinois, USA (Bid; lost to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil)
2014 Glasgow, Scotland
(selected events)
1983 – Super Bowl XVII – Pasadena, California
1986 – Super Bowl XX – New Orleans, Louisiana
1990–1992 – NFL American Bowl – Berlin, Germany
1994 – Super Bowl XXVIII – Atlanta, Georgia
2002–2007 – NFL Pro Bowl – Honolulu, Hawaii
2004 – Super Bowl XXXVIII Houston, Texas
2005 – Super Bowl XXXIX – Jacksonville, Florida
2006 – Super Bowl XL – Detroit, Michigan
2007 – Super Bowl XLI – Miami Gardens, Florida
2008 – Super Bowl XLII – Glendale, Arizona
2009 – Super Bowl XLIII – Tampa, Florida
2010 – Super Bowl XLIV – Miami Florida
Major League Baseball All-Star Game
1993 – Baltimore, Maryland
1997 – Cleveland, Ohio
1998 – Denver, Colorado
1999 – Boston, Massachusetts
2000 – Atlanta, Georgia
2001 – Seattle, Washington
2002 – Milwaukee, Wisconsin
2003 – Chicago, Illinois
2004 – Houston, Texas
2005 – Detroit, Michigan
2006 – Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
2007 – San Francisco, California
2009 – St. Louis, Missouri
2013 – Queens, New York City, New York
2014 – Minneapolis, Minnesota
(Selected Events)
1986 – FIFA/UNICEF World All Star Game – Los Angeles, California, USA
1994 – FIFA World Cup – 9 US cities
1996 – Major League Soccer Inaugural Game – San Jose, California, USA
1998 – FIFA World Cup – Toulouse, France
2002 – FIFA World Cup – Korea/Japan
2010 – FIFA World Cup – Johannesburg, South Africa
2014 – FIFA World Cup – Natal, Brazil
(Selected Events)
1986 – NBA All Star Game – Indianapolis, Indiana, USA
1996 – Democratic National Convention – Chicago, Illinois, USA
1998 – NCAA Basketball Women's Final Four – Kansas City, Missouri, USA
1999 – Rugby World Cup – Cardiff, Wales, UK
2002 – Modern Pentathlon World Championships – Stanford, California, USA
2004 – The Main Street Event – Houston, Texas, USA
2005 – US Women's Open Golf – Denver, Colorado, USA
2005 – Daytona 500, Master Plan – Daytona, Florida, USA
2007 – Breeders' Cup - Oceanport, New Jersey, USA
2008 - Republican National Convention - St. Paul, Minnesota, USA
2015 – Final Four - Indianapolis, Indiana, USA
