Everyone is an expert when it comes to architecture and football

This saying was common back when I was an architecture student. I think I think I first heard it from one of our design studio teaching assistants back in architecture school.

At a football match, every spectator can see where the ball should have been passed, how a player could have dribbled past an opponent, and why the striker should have scored. From the stands, everything seems simple. But making the right decision in a matter of seconds, on the pitch, under pressure from an opponent, is something entirely different.

It is only natural for people to express whether they like a space and how they feel in it. What is less visible is the work behind the final result.

An architectural project requires constant coordination with structural and building services engineers. It involves urban planning constraints, environmental regulations, health and safety standards, operational safety requirements, and fire protection regulations. It requires building physics calculations, thermal and acoustic insulation, sunlight and wind studies, as well as decisions about materials, waste management, recycling, and sustainability. All these aspects must be carefully balanced with the functionality of the spaces, the architectural character of the building, and its integration into the surrounding context.

Even a seemingly minor change can require structural, building services, or façade solutions to be redesigned.

The architect’s role is to bring all these elements together and transform constraints into a place where people can live, work and grow.