Running has always been about more than just miles. The conversations before a session, the familiar faces in the changing room and even the time spent together after crossing the finish line all help turn the sport into a community. For Amsterdam Marathon weekend, Bambas Sports Club and New Balance bring that spirit into a physical space with Bambas Clubhuis, a temporary clubhouse open in Amsterdam from 15 to 18 October 2026.
The project explores how running culture continues to evolve beyond performance, connecting the sport with fashion, art, design and everyday life. Bambas and New Balance are creating a space shaped by the people who make the community what it is.
Bambas Sports Club brings together members from different backgrounds across Amsterdam’s creative industries. Runners contribute their own skills, perspectives and interests, creating a community where movement becomes a starting point for wider creative exchange. Bambas Clubhuis brings that collective identity into focus, giving members and visitors a shared space during one of the city’s biggest running weekends.
From Flower Shop to Sports Clubhouse
Hosted at MIDI Flowers, a neighbourhood flower shop, Bambas Clubhuis reimagines the traditional sports clubhouse through a contemporary design lens. The rituals of sports remain central, but the settings moves away from conventional locker rooms and performance-driven spaces. Instead, furniture, objects and spatial details draw on the functional language of sports while also introducing a more considered approach to materials, colour and form.
Ollee Means, one of Bambas founding members and the founder of Amsterdam-based design studio Bothi, leads the spacial design. His position within the community gives the project a personal perspective, bringing his professional experience into a space designed for people he runs alongside.
“Design and running are getting closer together in this project, and it’s great to bring both of those overlapping fields into a physical concept. It’s about taking those details, from elements like shoe colors, and making them feel truly represented in the space.”
The result is a clubhouse that treats sports design as something to experience beyond the track. Details drawn from running footwear and equipment become part of the environment, connecting the visual language of a performance products within the atmosphere of a shared social space.
Designed by the Community, for the Community
That sense of belonging sits at the heart of the collaboration. New Balance and Bambas share an interest in the people and creative energy surrounding running, recognising that the culture extends well beyond training plans, race times and personal records. By giving Bambas the freedom to shape the experience, New Balance supports a project that grows organically from the community rather than imposing a ready-made brand concept.
For Means, the connection is especially meaningful. As an expat, he describes Bambas as a family, making the process of designing its clubhouse more personal than a typical spatial project.
“There’s a much deeper level of care involved. As an expat, this community has become my family, so it really feels like I’m designing and building for my own family, which is an incredibly special thing to do.”
Bambas Clubhuis brings that feeling into a physical setting, creating room for runners to connect through design, conversation and shared experience. Open to the public during Amsterdam Marathon weekend, the clubhouse runs from 15 to 18 October 2026. Visitors can find activity schedules and RSVP details through Bambas Sports Club’s Instagram.
Bambas Sports Club and New Balance Open Up Bambas Clubhuis
