Fans walking up to Al Bayt Stadium – Al Khor City in 2022 will pass through a landscaped area similar to that at Aspire Park, and arrive at a stadium inspired by the traditional Arabian tent which will reach up 37 meters in height. Three tiers of seating will provide ample space for 60,000 spectators with the seats coloured in the black, red and white interior design of a tent, and a retractable roof in place above to provide optimal cooling conditions which will allow football to be played year-round in the arena.

Progress at Al Bayt Stadium – Al Khor City is now in full swing after successful work on the foundations and installation of the first sections of the 12-metre lower tier walls, which will carry the weight of the entire stadium structure. The proposed host venue up to the semi-finals of the 2022 FIFA World Cup Qatar™ will feature a futuristic retractable roof with mechanics similar to those used at Wimbledon’s Centre Court. The retractable roof will be able to close completely in 20 minutes.

The Al Bayt Stadium Project Director – Aspire Zone Foundation, Dr. Nasser Al-Hajeri, pointed out that work on site is progressing on different sectors. He told sc.qa: “We are now seeing the growth of the main stadium structure on site with the progress on the vertical construction.”

He added: “Other ongoing works in the stadium precinct include excavation, de-watering, installation of pipe connections and the recent setting up of the nearby tree nursery. Overall we can see that the stadium construction is advancing well and we will continue to see further progress over the coming weeks and months.”

As the stadium structure continues to rise, main structural work on one of the two player tunnels has already been completed and work is underway on the other one. A number of the stadium building columns have been put in place with the highest point reached so far being 21 metres, along with a section of the buttress wall which, once completed, will carry the next two levels of the structure reaching a total of 37 metres.

Currently there are 21 cranes on site  – including one 280-ton mega crane, and 95% of the foundation work has been completed. The next step in the construction is placing the top slab and installing the other precast elements which will shape up the venue. With the stadium expected to be finalised in 2018, samples of the seats that will fill the stadium have already arrived on site.

“A Qatari company has been appointed to design, manufacture, deliver and install the stadium seats, which will have patterns similar to those in a traditional tent which the design is based on,” said Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy (SC) Project Manager for Khalifa International Stadium and Al Bayt Stadium, Engineer Mohemed Ahmed.

He added: “The design, manufacturing and installation of the seats is set to commence next year on all three tiers. Two of them are made of conventional and precast structure and one of them is made of structural steel, which will be modular seating that will be removed after the tournament.”

The stadium design is an entirely Qatari concept, reflecting the country’s history and culture through the nomadic tents used in the region. The venue has a modular design, which includes an upper tier of removable seats. After the tournament, this upper tier will be removed and the capacity of the stadium will be reduced to 32,000 seats.

The stadium will have cooling technology thanks to a number of cooling devices distributed throughout the venue that will receive cold water from the chillers in the nearby energy centre.

A joint venture involving Galfar Al Misnad, Salini Impregilo Group and Cimolai is in charge of the main construction of the stadium and the energy center. Local contractors Bin Omran Trading & Contracting and Al Sulaiteen Agricultural & Industrial Complex are working on the precinct infraestructure and landscape, respectively.

Al Bayt Stadium is one of the eight 2022 FIFA World Cup™ stadiums currently under construction across Qatar. Safety continues to be the number one priority across all SC sites, with the SC Workers’ Welfare Standards being implemented throughout the project.