Design Manager - Sports Adventure

WS Atkins & Partners Overseas Engineering Consultants; Riyadh; Hybrid; SAR 350,000 - 650,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Tax-free salary

Comprehensive life insurance

Medical insurance for dependents

Annual flight contribution

Relocation assistance

Housing & transportation allowances

Wellbeing program

Job summary

AtkinsRéalis in Saudi Arabia seeks a Design Manager – Sports to lead design of stadiums and sports venues within a PMC environment, ensuring high-quality, compliant, and coordinated solutions.

You will coordinate multidisciplinary teams, review deliverables, and ensure international standards compliance (FIFA, IOC, World Athletics). The role emphasizes design governance, stakeholder alignment, and on-site implementation support.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Architecture, Engineering, or related field.
• 12–15+ years of experience in sports facility design or design management.
• Experience in stadiums, major events, or large-scale sports developments.
• Experience in PMC, consultancy, or complex multidisciplinary projects.
• Strong knowledge of international sports design standards and venue requirements.
• Strong leadership and multidisciplinary coordination skills.
• Deep understanding of sports facility planning and operations.

Responsibilities

• Lead design activities for sports facilities from concept to construction.
• Coordinate architecture, structure, MEP, sports specialists, venue planners, and consultants.
• Review and validate design deliverables for compliance with requirements and standards.
• Establish and monitor the design programme aligned with milestones.
• Lead design reviews, workshops, and coordination meetings.
• Provide expert input on sports facility planning and design.
• Ensure compliance with international sports standards (FIFA, IOC, World Athletics).
• Review field/court layouts, spectator sightlines, circulation, and operations.
• Promote sustainable and legacy-driven design solutions.
• Act as interface between client, operators, consultants, and design teams.
• Coordinate with governing bodies to secure approvals.
• Support testing, commissioning, and handover of facilities.

Skills

Leadership

Coordination

Design governance

Stakeholder mgmt

Education

Bachelor's/Master's in Architecture/Engineering

Job description

Job Description Overview

The Design Manager – Sports is responsible for leading and managing the design of sports and leisure facilities across projects, ensuring delivery of high-quality, compliant, and technically coordinated solutions. This role combines design management expertise with specialized knowledge of sports venues (stadiums, training facilities, community sports complexes) within a Project Management Consultancy (PMC) environment. The role focuses on design governance, coordination, and technical assurance, acting as the client’s representative to ensure that sports facility designs meet international standards, operational requirements, and legacy objectives.

Your role

• Lead and manage design activities for sports facilities from concept through detailed design and construction stages
• Coordinate multidisciplinary teams (architecture, structure, MEP, sports specialists, venue planners, and consultants)
• Review and validate design deliverables to ensure compliance with project requirements, international standards, and best practices
• Establish and monitor the design programme aligned with overall project milestones
• Lead design reviews, workshops, and coordination meetings
• Provide expert input on sports facility planning and design
• Ensure compliance with international sports standards (e.g., FIFA, IOC, World Athletics, etc.)
• Review field/court layouts, spectator sightlines, circulation, and operational functionality
• Ensure integration of athlete facilities, media zones, VIP areas, and back-of-house operations
• Validate materials, surfaces, lighting, acoustics, and equipment specifications
• Promote sustainable and legacy-driven sports design solutions
• Act as the key interface between client, operators, sports consultants, and design teams
• Coordinate with governing bodies and authorities to secure approvals and certifications
• Facilitate stakeholder alignment on operational and functional requirements
• Participate in client presentations and technical decision-making forums
• Monitor design progress against budget and schedule
• Assess impact of design changes on project cost, programme, and functionality
• Support value engineering initiatives specific to sports infrastructure
• Identify and mitigate risks related to design coordination, compliance, and constructability
• Provide technical design support during construction, including review of shop drawings and RFIs
• Ensure the design intent for sports facilities is maintained on site
• Coordinate with site supervision teams and contractors for issue resolution
• Support testing, commissioning, and handover of sports facilities

About you

Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Architecture, Engineering, or related field

• Minimum 12–15+ years of experience, including: Sports facility design and/or design management
• Experience in stadiums, major events, or large-scale sports developments
• Previous experience in PMC, consultancy, or complex multidisciplinary projects
• Strong knowledge of international sports design standards and venue requirements
• Strong leadership and multidisciplinary coordination skills
• Deep understanding of sports facility planning and operations

Rewards & benefits

• Tax-free salary.
• Comprehensive life insurance coverage.
• Premium medical insurance for you and your dependents.
• Generous annual leave balance.
• Flexible and hybrid work solutions.
• Remote work opportunities outside of country.
• Company gratuity scheme.
• Discretionary bonus program.
• Annual flight contribution.
• Relocation assistance.
• Transportation & housing allowances (available for remote work locations).
• Employee Wellbeing Program: 24/7 access to specialists in finance, legal matters, family care, personal health, fitness, and nutrition.

About AtkinsRéalis

We're AtkinsRéalis, a world-class engineering services and nuclear organization. We connect people, data and technology to transform the world's infrastructure and energy systems. Together, with our industry partners and clients, and our global team of consultants, designers, engineers and project managers, we can change the world. We're committed to leading our clients across our various end markets to engineer a better future for our planet and its people. Find out more. Worker Type Employee Job Type Regular At AtkinsRéalis, we seek to hire individuals with diverse characteristics, backgrounds and perspectives. We strongly believe that world-class talent makes no distinctions based on gender, ethnic or national origin, sexual identity and orientation, age, religion or disability, but enriches itself through these differences. Created by the integration of long-standing organizations dating back to 1911, AtkinsRéalis is a world-class engineering services and nuclear company dedicated to engineering a better future for our planet and its people. We create sustainable solutions that connect people, data and technology to transform the world's infrastructure and energy systems. We deploy global capabilities locally to our clients and deliver unique end-to-end services across the whole life cycle of an asset including consulting, advisory & environmental services, intelligent networks & cybersecurity, design & engineering, procurement, project & construction management, operations & maintenance, decommissioning and capital. The breadth and depth of our capabilities are delivered to clients in strategic sectors such as Engineering Services, Nuclear and Capital. News and information are available at Atkinsrealis or follow us on LinkedIn.