From Runway to World Stage: Hong Kong’s Kai Tak Stadium Makes Its Global Debut

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From Runway to World Stage: Hong Kong’s Kai Tak Stadium Makes Its Global Debut

2025-04-04 04:30 Last Updated At：04:41

HONG KONG & LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Apr 3, 2025--

Against the backdrop of Victoria Harbour and beneath Kai Tak Stadium’s sweeping roofline, the Cathay/HSBC Hong Kong Sevens returned in full force this year—louder, livelier, and more momentous than ever before. Held for the first time at the newly opened Kai Tak Sports Park, the city’s most iconic sporting event was reimagined in a setting that felt both futuristic and fiercely local: a $4-billion waterfront venue rising from the site of Hong Kong’s legendary Kai Tak airport runway, where jumbo jets once made famously dramatic landings in the heart of the city.

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The event drew a record-breaking crowd of more than 130,000 fans over three days to Kai Tak Stadium, as 30 international teams competed during a weekend that brought high spirits and energy to the sports park. The South Stand—the tournament’s most uninhibited fan zone, known for extravagant costumes and crowd-wide choreography—returned in full technicolor, while the stadium’s state-of-the-art design elevated every try, tackle, and celebration.

Off the field, the entertainment was just as electric, with a laser-lit opening ceremony, high-energy musical performances, and nightly afterparties at the Fan Village that kept the energy going well past the final whistle.

The Stadium Built to Move a City

Kai Tak Sports Park opened its doors this past year as Hong Kong’s most ambitious venue to date, marking a powerful milestone while underscoring the city as a sports and entertainment destination. Built on the former runway of one of aviation’s most iconic airports, the stadium now serves as the beating heart of a 3-million-square-foot sports and entertainment district designed to redefine how a city moves, celebrates, and comes together for major cultural moments.

Architecturally striking and built for a new generation of fandom, the 50,000-seat stadium balances scale with intimacy—featuring individual-seat cooling technology, over 30 curated dining concepts, one of Asia's longest bars, and the sleek Jin Bo Law Skybar, a stylish Hong Kong offshoot of London's renowned rooftop lounge. A 360-degree seating bowl pulls fans close to the action, while wraparound HD screens, efficient sound proofing, and a fully retractable roof add drama and dimension to every match regardless of weather conditions.

Designed by Populous, the global architecture firm behind some of the world’s most iconic stadiums, Kai Tak captures the spirit of a city in motion. Rooftop gardens with skyline views, waterfront promenades, and open public spaces dissolve the boundaries between venue and city. At its edge, the Dorsett Kai Tak hotel offers sleek accommodations and front-row views of the stadium itself—turning a stay into part of the experience.

That same energy is rippling across Hong Kong. With over 44.5 million visitors in 2024—a 31% year-over-year surge—the city is a top global hub for culture, entertainment, and once-in-a-lifetime experiences.

Sevens Like Never Before

This year’s Hong Kong Sevens remained true to everything that makes it a global favorite—world-class rugby, bold team rivalries, and the legendary energy of the crowd—with the move to Kai Tak giving the tournament a new kind of momentum. From synchronized K-pop cheer squads and crowd-wide singalongs to dazzling pyrotechnics, live performances from world-renowned rock bands and a viral halftime DJ set, the tournament offered moments that echoed far beyond the stadium walls. Among them: a surprise appearance by South Korea’s KIA Tigers cheerleaders, whose famous choreography brought the crowd to its feet and added a pop-cultural punch to an already high-energy weekend.

Social feeds lit up, the stands vibrated with song and celebration, and fans celebrated together rooting for their favorite teams with pride. Argentina triumphed in the men’s competition, beating Olympic champions France with a 12-7 win, while in the women’s finals New Zealand defeated Australia 26-19 and won the tournament for a third time in a row. The tournament, which included performances by DJ Pete Tong and English band Kaiser Chiefs earlier in the day and ended with the awards ceremony closing out the tournament.

Kai Tak Coming Attractions

With Coldplay set to take the stage at Kai Tak Stadium in April, the venue’s future as a global entertainment hub is already well underway. The stadium is slated to host a lineup of major concerts, international sporting events, and large-scale cultural festivals in the months ahead.

For the thousands who filled the stands, and the millions watching around the world, the Sevens wasn’t just a tournament, it was the height of global sport and entertainment.

Learn more at DiscoverHongKong.com and start planning your sports and entertainment trip to Hong Kong.

In their words: Survivors and others talk about fatal Swiss Alpine bar fire

CRANS-MONTANA, Switzerland (AP) — In the aftermath of a fire inside a Swiss Alpine bar that killed 40 people celebrating the new year, survivors, friends and family members, the region’s top authorities and even Pope Leo have spoken to the public in remarks in French, Italian, German and English, reflecting the tradition of Swiss multilingualism.

Another 119 people were injured in the blaze early Thursday as it ripped through the busy Le Constellation bar at the ski resort of Crans-Montana, authorities said. It was one of the deadliest tragedies in Switzerland’s history.

Investigators said Friday that they believe sparkling candles atop Champagne bottles ignited the fatal fire when they came too close to the ceiling of the crowded bar.

Here’s a look at what people said in the wake of the disaster:

— “I’m looking everywhere. The body of my son is somewhere,” Laetitia Brodard told reporters Friday in Crans-Montana as she searched for her son, 16-year-old Arthur. “I want to know, where is my child, and be by his side. Wherever that may be, be it in the intensive care unit or the morgue.”

— “We were bringing people out, people were collapsing. We were doing everything we could to save them, we helped as many as we could. We saw people screaming, running,” Marc-Antoine Chavanon, 14, told The Associated Press in Crans-Montana on Friday, recounting how he rushed to the bar to help the injured. “There was one of our friends: She was struggling to get out, she was all burned. You can’t imagine the pain I saw.”

— “It was hard to live through for everyone. Also probably because everyone was asking themselves, ‘Was my child, my cousin, someone from the region at this party?’” Eric Bonvin, general director of the regional hospital in Sion that took in dozens of injured people, told AP on Friday. “This place was very well known as somewhere to celebrate the new year,” Bonvin said. “Also, seeing young people arrive — that’s always traumatic.”

— “I have seen horror, and I don’t know what else would be worse than this,” Gianni Campolo, a Swiss 19-year-old who was in Crans-Montana on vacation and rushed to the bar to help first responders, told France's TF1 television.

—“You will understand that the priority today is truly placed on identification, in order to allow the families to begin their mourning,” Beatrice Pilloud, the Valais region's attorney general, told reporters Friday during a news conference in Sion.

Pope Leo said in a telegram Friday to the bishop of Sion that he " wishes to express his compassion and concern to the relatives of the victims. He prays that the Lord will welcome the deceased into His abode of peace and light, and will sustain the courage of those who suffer in their hearts or in their bodies.”

— “We have numerous accounts of heroic actions, one could say of very strong solidarity in the moment,” Cantonal head of government Mathias Reynard told RTS radio Friday. "In the first minutes it was citizens — and in large part young people — who saved lives with their courage.”

— “Switzerland is a strong country not because it is sheltered from drama, but because it knows how to face them with courage and a spirit of mutual help," Swiss President Guy Parmelin, speaking on his first day in the position that changes hands annually, told reporters Thursday.