Qatar Al Wakrah Stadium, 2022 Building Project, News, FIFA Arena Design

Al Wakrah Stadium Qatar

FIFA 2022 Sports Arena, Middle East building design by AECOM with Zaha Hadid Architects

17 May 2019
Al Janoub Stadium In Al Wakrah
Design: AECOM, in association with Zaha Hadid Architects

photo © Hufton+Crow
Al Janoub Stadium In Al Wakrah, Qatar
Inaugurated on 16 May 2019 – the first new stadium commissioned for the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar.

13 Jan 2014

Al Wakrah Stadium Building Qatar

Qatar 2022 Supreme Committee unveils concept design for Al Wakrah Stadium

Design: AECOM, in association with Zaha Hadid Architects

AL WAKRAH, QATAR: The Qatar 2022 Supreme Committee unveiled the new concept design for Al Wakrah Stadium.

AECOM, in association with Zaha Hadid Architects, have developed the new, innovative design under the guidance of the Qatar 2022 Supreme Committee.

Al Wakrah – famous for its fishing and seafaring heritage – is the proposed southern-most Host City for the 2022 FIFA World Cup™.

Located approximately fifteen kilometres south of Doha, Al Wakrah has served as a vital commercial port and a gateway to the capital throughout Qatar’s history. Al Wakrah’s tradition is reflected in the stadium design, which captures the essence of the traditional dhow, an Arabian pearl fishing boat.

The design of the stadium and the development of an approx. 585,000 m2 precinct area surrounding it will embrace the cultural heritage of Al Wakrah and the adjacent historical settlement of Al Wukair.

The stadium will have a gross capacity of 40,000. The top-tiers of the stadium will be modular, allowing the stadium’s capacity to be lowered to 20,000.

Hassan Al Thawadi, Secretary General, Qatar 2022 Supreme Committee, said:

‘Today’s announcement constitutes the first in an upcoming series of progress-related events and initiatives as we enter the early phase of delivering the promises we made to FIFA and the international football community during the bid. We are proud to reveal what we believe is a truly unique stadium design and surrounding precinct that will serve the population and act as a social hub for the community of Al Wakrah, and Qatar as a whole, during the 2022 FIFA World Cup and for the years to follow.

The stadium reflects what our country stands for from a cultural perspective. It is modern, futuristic and functional. But importantly, it remains true to Qatari heritage with the design and materials inspired by the traditional dhow boat.’

Hassan Al Thawadi, Secretary General, Qatar 2022 Supreme Committee, added:

‘We are at an advanced stage in our planning. Al Wakrah is the first of six stadiums already in the latter stages of the design process. Our committee has issued ten major tenders to the market encompassing project and design managers and stadium-operation consultants.’

After a rigorous design process, undertaken by the Qatar 2022 Supreme Committee, in coordination with its stakeholders, the local construction market will see real work and progress. Works will begin to be visible on stadium sites.

In 2014, tenders will be issued for early works, enabling works and main contractors for five stadiums. These stadia will be in different construction stages by the fourth quarter.

On Al Wakrah specifically, early works on the stadium site will begin in January, with the tender for the main contractor issued in the second quarter. Stadium construction will begin in the fourth quarter.

All construction contracts for the stadium will be issued in line with the Qatar 2022 Supreme Committee’s Workers’ Charter and Standards – developed in consultation with international human rights organizations – which will enforce best practice, in line with the government’s vision for worker welfare, and cement the tournament as a catalyst to the improvement of workers’ welfare within Qatar and the region.

AECOM Chairman and Chief Executive Officer John M. Dionisio said:

‘AECOM is honoured to play a key role in the global launch for the Al Wakrah Stadium Project, and we congratulate the Qatar 2022 Supreme Committee on reaching this important milestone in its delivery programme. We believe that the planning and design for the Al Wakrah Stadium and Precinct clearly establish an international benchmark for sports venues in the region.

We are delighted to be involved with the 2022 FIFA World Cup programme and to support the Qatar 2022 Supreme Committee in reaching its vision. This is an exciting time for Qatar, and our global team of forward-thinking sports experts is well equipped to take on the innovative challenges that a project of this calibre will demand.’

Zaha Hadid added:

‘We are excited to be working on Al Wakrah Stadium. The design expresses its context, establishing a relationship with the city and its surrounding landscape.’

Al Wakrah Stadium Design Team

AECOM:

AECOM is a global provider of professional technical and management support services to a broad range of markets, including transportation, facilities, environmental, energy, water and government. With approximately 45,000 employees around the world, AECOM is a leader in all of the key markets that it serves.

AECOM provides a blend of global reach, local knowledge, innovation and technical excellence in delivering solutions that create, enhance and sustain the world’s built, natural, and social environments. A Fortune 500 company, AECOM serves clients in more than 140 countries and had revenue of $8.2 billion during the 12 months ended Sept. 30, 2013.

More information on AECOM and its services can be found at www.aecom.com.

AECOM

image from architects

Zaha Hadid Architects:

Zaha Hadid, founder of Zaha Hadid Architects (ZHA), was awarded the Pritzker Architecture Prize (considered to be the Nobel Prize of architecture) in 2004 and is internationally known for her built, theoretical and academic work. Each ZHA project builds on their thirty years of exploration and research in the interrelated fields of urbanism, architecture and design, integrating natural topography and human-made systems.

ZHA’s project’s include the MAXXI: National Museum of 21st Century Arts in Rome, Italy and the London Aquatics Centre for the 2012 Olympic Games. Previous seminal buildings such as the Rosenthal Center for Contemporary Art in Cincinnati and the Guangzhou Opera House in China have also been hailed as architecture that transforms our ideas of the future with new spatial concepts and dynamic, visionary forms.

ZHA is currently building cultural, sports, corporate, academic, residential and infrastructure projects in across Asia, the Middle East, Europe and the Americas, in addition to national institutions such as the new Central Bank of Iraq and master-planning projects in Beijing, Bilbao, Istanbul and Singapore. ZHA’s work has been the subject of critically-acclaimed exhibitions at New York’s Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum and London’s Design Museum.

Zaha Hadid’s outstanding contribution to the profession continues to be acknowledged by the most world’s most respected institutions including the Forbes List of the World’s Most Powerful Women and the Japan Art Association’s Praemium Imperiale. In 2010 and 2011, her designs were awarded the Stirling Prize, one of architecture’s highest accolades, by the Royal Institute of British Architects.

Further awards include UNESCO naming Hadid as an Artist for Peace, the Republic of France honouring Hadid with the ‘Commandeur de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres’, TIME Magazine listing Hadid as one of the ‘100 Most Influential People in the World’ and in 2012, Zaha Hadid was made a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire by Queen Elizabeth II.

Zaha Hadid

Al Wakrah Stadium Qatar imagess / information from Zaha Hadid Architects

Location: Al Wakrah, Qatar