adidas HALFTIMERealized

Year: First prize in competition 2014, completed 2018
Client: adidas Pension Trust
Program: Conference center, restaurant and showroom
Size: 15,500 m²

The world-famous company with the three iconic stripes has opened a huge and striking new building that forms part of its corporate headquarters, “World of Sports”, in the city of Herzogenaurach in southern Germany. The building, named HALFTIME, totals 15,500 m². In addition to a canteen for all HQ employees, the building contains meeting rooms, a conference center and a showroom where the company’s high-profile brand ambassadors, such as world-famous footballers and tennis players, can stop by to see the latest new designs, collections and ideas. The flexible and multi-functional architectural design makes it possible to transform and modify the building for varying purposes. To accommodate the many internal and public functions, HALFTIME is designed as a versatile multi-purpose building that brings as many of the company’s activities and functions as possible together under one roof. The huge rhomboid roof covers the entire building like an enormous carpet, bringing staff, visitors and brand ambassadors together in the same building and thus enabling more and wider contacts.

Employees, brand ambassadors and visitors – also known as the adidas family – are all users of HALFTIME, continuously inspiring each other in the development of new products under the adidas group brand.

adidas HALFTIME was designed with a holistic approach to staff relations and environment, underlining the adidas philosophy of viewing a healthy body and spirit as one.

The design is based on creating a pavilion in the park. A large roof structure hovers over the landscape and creates a seamless transition between inside and out. Underneath the roof, the canteen and conference areas are organized as an urban space, creating informal meeting and working places in between functions in a non-hierarchical and democratic work atmosphere.

The roof consists of concrete beams, each 16 meters long and weighing 28 tons, which add up to a total length of 3.2 kilometers.

One third of the roof is covered by skylights flooding the interior spaces with daylight. In addition, a large percentage of the roof is covered by solar panels.

The building contains a public conference center, an employee restaurant and a showroom, all arranged into an internal public space. The different sections can be joined into a single space with a capacity of up to 5,000 people or can be used separately in various configurations by means of large movable and turnable wall partitions. This flexible solution lets adidas adapt the space to the company’s needs as they evolve and vary over time.

Floor-to-ceiling windows on every side provide a visual connection to the outside and flood the building with natural light. An innovative cooling system using rainwater that is collected in the nearby lake brings substantial reductions in energy costs and CO₂ emissions.

Interior winter gardens, green walls and floor-to-ceiling glass panels create a natural and open atmosphere for anyone visiting or working at adidas HALFTIME.

The design makes use of the natural topography of the terrain and also continues this theme inside by enabling a split-level plan for public functions. The roof floats over the landscape to create a unified whole. The structure of the new building connects the north and south sections of the campus, both inside and out.

The building was designed in accordance with the latest energy standards and is on track for LEED Gold certification.

The building is designed to be easily accessible throughout for people with reduced mobility. The main entrance, with its large foyer, is located on the north-eastern side of the building. Easy access from the canteen to outdoor areas on the south side of the building invites employees to take their lunch break outside during the summer.

The interior is divided into different zones, each characterized by a distinct identity and featuring custom-made furniture. To make the canteen area more welcoming and easier to navigate, it is subdivided into areas designated for shorter and longer visits.

"A key task was to create the right atmosphere to reflect the unique adidas culture. We did this, in part, by matching the different needs with different sports, making room for big ideas and large gestures as well as a touch of humor. In addition to the event hall, which is designed as a gym, you can hold meetings at the bottom of a bright blue swimming pool, in a locker room or in the adidas founder Adi Dasler’s old workshop, complete with tools."
–Dan Stubbergaard, architect and founder, Cobe

With HALFTIME, Cobe has designed an inspiring, dynamic and unusual work environment that offers both formal and informal meeting places and networking opportunities for staff, visitors and brand ambassadors alike.

The building contains 12 workshop rooms, each representing a different sport venue, and a large event hall with room for 1,500 people, designed as a gym with old-school wall bars.

Inside, accessibility is promoted by wayfinding features and a consistent signage system that provides information on three levels, ranging from quick overview and orientation to more detailed directions. The wayfinding system is integrated into the architecture and designed in materials that match the athletic value base of the adidas brand.

Awards: Iconic Awards 2015 – Visionary Architecture, Red Dot Communication & Brands Award 2019, ArchDaily Building of the Year Awards 2020 Finalist, Iconic Awards 2020 – Architects’ Client of the Year, Dezeen Awards 2020 Longlist

Certifications: LEED Gold

Competition team: Cobe, CLMAP, Knippers Helbig, Transsolar, Cobe Berlin

Design and execution team: ARGE Cobe & CLMAP (lead consultant), Knippers Helbig, Fact, Bartenbach, Soda, PMI, HMP

Interior design: Cobe

Wayfinding and signage: Cobe & EIGA

The HALFTIME Chair: Cobe and HAY

Team: Alexander Forsch, Birk Folke Daugaard, Carlos Ramos Fernandez, Caroline Nagel, Clement Bue Maali, Danielle N. Eskildsen Dan Stubbergaard, Freya Dorbritz, Gina Perier, Greta Tiedje, Javier Barriuso Domingo, Johan Lund Pedersen, Karoline Liedtke, Kasper Larsen, Laura Diestel, Magda Bykowska, Maria Aufegger, Marianne Filtenborg, Matilda Andersson, Milada Vorzova, Milan Milenkovski, Morten Andersen, Morten Emil Engel, Navid Christensen, Nika Koraca, Ole Storjohann, Rasmus Hjortshøj, Rosa Bui, Ted Schauman, Thomas Krarup, Ulrich Pohl, Yannick Courtins.