milan’s 2026 winter olympic makeover
As Milan prepares to host the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, the city is undergoing a transformative moment. A lineup of high-profile projects is reshaping the city’s skyline, driven by renowned firms such as Skidmore Owings & Merrill (SOM), Kengo Kuma & Associates, Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG), and Stefano Boeri Architetti. Notable projects include SOM’s Olympic Village, which integrates green public spaces with the historic Porta Romana Railway Yard, and David Chipperfield‘s elliptical Arena Santa Giulia, a modern amphitheater set to host major Olympic events. BIG’s CityWave will introduce Europe’s largest urban solar canopy, while Kengo Kuma’s biophilic Welcome project will bring biophilic workspaces to the Rizzoli district.
Alongside these marquee projects, the city is seeing a number of smaller yet significant changes ahead of 2026. The recent opening of the M4 Metro promises to enhance urban mobility, while the city’s controversial decision to replace parts of its bumpy, uneven cobblestone streets with smoother, pedestrian-friendly surfaces should marks a more accessible shift in infrastructure. A major public policy change includes a new outdoor smoking ban within ten meters (33 feet) of others. This new architecture and infrastructure reflects efforts to improve the quality of life for both residents and visitors, and improve the fabric of Milan as it prepares to take center stage for the 2026 Milano Cortina Winter Olympics.
CityLife district | image by Beauty and the Bit
In July 2021, SOM was announced the winner of an international competition to design the Athletes’ Village for the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan. Forming part of a larger masterplan to revitalize Porta Romana Railway Yard in Milan, the winning scheme prioritizes sustainable building strategies and establishing a new urban community that will long outlast the olympic games.
The project by Skidmore Owings & Merill (SOM) comprises public green spaces, two renovated historic structures and six new residential buildings that will house athletes during the Olympics. Once the games are over, the spaces will be converted and reused. The athletes’ accommodation will be used for student housing, the park and railway-side buildings will become affordable housing, and the Olympic Village Plaza will turn into a neighborhood square with social functions like shops and cafés. There will also be outdoor space for farmers’ markets and community events. The Olympic Village is expected to be complete by July 2025.
Olympic Village, Skidmore Owings & Merrill, Parco Romana | image © SOM
Arup and David Chipperfield‘s Berlin office are developing a stadium in Milan for the 2026 Winter Olympic Games with an elliptical shape inspired by amphitheaters. The sports and cultural venue will form the centerpiece of Milan‘s new Santa Giulia neighborhood in the southeast of the city. Named Arena Santa Giulia, the stadium will have a 16,000-person capacity and is set to be complete by 2025.
David Chipperfield Architects looked to the archetype of the amphitheater for the elliptical shape of the building but added metallic materials and dynamic forms for a modern reinterpretation. The architecture is articulated by three ‘floating’ rings separated by glass bands. During the day, these rings will be characterized by shimmering aluminum tubes while LED strips will light the building up at night.
Arena Santa Giulia, David Chipperfield Architects, Santa Giulia district | images © Onirism Studio
International architecture and interior design practice ACPV ARCHITECTS Antonio Citterio Patricia Viel unveiled the design for this Torre Faro, or Lighthouse, in August 2021. Set to house the new Milan headquarters of Italian company A2A, the project reimagines the company’s office spaces as capable of adapting to people’s ever-changing needs at work. The 144-meter-high office tower will revive the local urban fabric of the Symbiosis business district with 6,320 square meters of new green public spaces.
The new tower will accommodate 1,500 people in spaces that are flexible, open, and are complemented by a green courtyard. Vertically, the tower is centrally divided into two sets of office floors framed by the spacious entrance hall on the first floor, the sky garden in the middle, and a belvedere on top. With the project, the architects address future professional needs by integrating flexible spaces — including co-working lounges and meeting rooms — that can be reconfigured for multiple uses.
Lighthouse, ACPV, Symbiosis business district | image © ACPV
A biophilic development designed by Kengo Kuma & Associates broke ground in March 2021. Titled ‘Welcome’, the mixed-use project is located in Milan‘s former Rizzoli district, previously an abandoned industrial area. Anchored around a newly established public piazza, the project seeks to act as a catalyst to revive the entire area — uniting people and nature for a better quality of life and work. Once complete, KKAA‘s project will include offices, co-working spaces, meeting rooms, and auditoriums, as well as restaurants and lounges, shops, a supermarket, a wellness area, and places for temporary exhibitions.
Welcome, Kengo Kuma and Associates, Rizzoli district | image © KKAA
Bjarke Ingels Group begun construction on its sweeping CityWave building in Septmeber 2021 as part of the existing CityLife District in Milan. The project will host a new office space for the ever-evolving Italian city, and will become an iconic element of the area’s regeneration efforts, with its gestural and high-tech roof structure. The project will mark the fourth building of the site, which already contains towers by Zaha Hadid Architects, Daniel Libeskind, and Arata Isozaki. Here, the team aims to introduce an improved quality of life along with sustainable building.
With its monumental roof, the team at Bjarke Ingels Group notes that it will bring what will likely be the largest urban integrated solar canopy in Europe — estimated to produce an annual 1,200-megawatt hours of power. Upon its completion, CityWave will seek to represent the workplace of future.
Citywave, Bjarke Ingels Group, Citylife district | image © BIG
The collaborative team of Diller Scofidio + Renfro (DS+R) and Stefano Boeri Architetti (SBA) has been chosen to regenerate a site at the center of Milan’s Porta Nuova Gioia district. The mixed-use project — referred to as ‘Pirelli 39’ — involves the renovation of the site’s existing ‘Pirellino’ office tower, and the construction of a new residential high-rise that will include 1,700 square meters of integrated vegetation. Finally, a bridge connecting the two structures will serve as a hub for events, shows, and exhibitions. This bridge will also house a biodiverse greenhouse that will offer immersive, educational experiences as a dedicated laboratory.
It is expected that the tower by DS+R and SBA will absorb fourteen tons of CO2 and produce nine tons of oxygen per year — comparable to a 10,000 square meter forest. Thanks to 2,770 square meters of photovoltaic panels, the tower will be able to produce 65% of its energy needs, while the use of structural wood will decrease its carbon footprint.
Pirelli 39, Diller Scofidio + Renfro & Stefano Boeri Architetti, Porta Nuova Gioia district | rendering by Aether Images
Ahead of the 2026 Winter Olympics, Fabio Novembre has designed the new Padel Pavilion, an innovative sports center located in Milan’s CityLife district’s park. The building aligns visually with the existing architecture, especially with the gentle curves of Bjarke Ingels Group’s CityWave project, together forming a sort of gateway from the northeast. The structure is characterized by a 17-meter curved overhang, inviting park visitors toward the entrance.
The pavilion by Fabio Novembre Studio will stand twelve meters tall and span 2,800 square meters, housing seven padel courts. Inside, there will be a refreshment area and a raised multifunctional space offering a prime view of the sports activities.
Padel Pavilion, Novembre Studio, CityLife district | image © Novembre Studio