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Designing for Sport
In Colombia, soccer is a national passion that extends beyond sport.
“It’s a very important part of our culture,” says Sofia Rivera ’26, a native of the country.
Rivera loves soccer. An athletic girl who played basketball, lacrosse and was a cheerleader, Rivera focused on soccer as a high school student in Norwalk, Connecticut, where she lived from age
13. It’s her interest in sports as an athlete and fan that sparked her interest in stadium and sports facility design. “It was kind of right in front of my face all along, but I didn’t make the professional connection until watching the Olympics and Copa América this summer,” she says.
“I enjoy the aesthetics, the complexity of the designs, and the inspiration they take from surroundings and local culture,” says Rivera. “But I am also drawn to the experience that teams and spectators have, the urban plan and multifunctional use of the facilities. For example, Santiago Bernabeu Stadium in Madrid has
a museum accessed through the Bernabeu Tour and also holds concerts.”
Rivera has always considered herself a creative, artistic person but initially attended a computer science high school. When she wanted to take an art class, she discovered the curriculum was so structured she was unable to.
She ended up transferring to another school. In an art history elective, she found herself fascinated by building design and the history of architecture. “My drawing teacher encouraged me to follow that interest,” she says.
Researching college architecture programs, Rivera discovered her “dream school,” Syracuse University. “I never thought I would get in but applied as kind of a lark. I sent my portfolio and all the required essays but really didn’t expect anything back,” she says. “When I was accepted, I immediately discarded all the other options.”
But architecture, a five-year program, is a notoriously demanding major. “Coming into college. I didn’t think I deserved to be here and totally focused on academics during my freshman year,” says Rivera. “I basically spent all my time in Slocum Hall.” Each semester, the architecture studio course has a different focus. “One semester can be a housing project, the next can be a park, the next can be a museum,” Rivera says. The goal is to learn design at different scales. “We are mostly worried about design choices, layouts that make sense and aesthetics.”
Having done well in her first year, Rivera began branching out. She was accepted into the Honors Program; became head of graphic design for DelSol magazine, which gives Latino and Hispanic voices on campus an outlet to express themselves; andbecame a mentor with Dimensions, a program that helps young women of color in their transition to college. She serves as a peer advisor in the School of Architecture and is an Our Time Has Come (OTHC) Scholar.
“That definitely changed my college experience for the better,” she says of OTHC. “Connecting with successful students and alumni of color has really helped me to get where I am today. Being around these successful individuals has helped me believe in myself and given me the confidence to take on some leadership roles.” Outside of studies and extracurriculars, Rivera enjoys cycling classes at the Barnes Center at The Arch and reading Colombian authors in Spanish. With much of her family still in Colombia, she visits regularly for holidays.
Currently a fourth-year student, Rivera is enjoying the course Advanced Building Systems, where she’s learning to conduct climate analysis to ensure building comfort, about sustainable design practices and efficient design choices. Next year will focus on her capstone project, in which she hopes to encompass her
interest in sports facility design.
She’ll take inspiration from the many matches she watches, cheering on her favorite teams, Colombia, and the club team Real Madrid CF. “This is something that has been passed on to me through my family,” she says.
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