Qatar unveils 2022 World Cup stadium design

Qatar 2022 FIFA World Cup’s local organising committee unveiled the design for Lusail Stadium, the venue at which the opening and final games of the quadrennial extravaganza will be held. The 80,000-capacity venue will be the largest stadium during the tournament, which will kick off on 21 November 2022 and be the first to take place in the Arab world.

Located 15km north of central Doha, Lusail Stadium will form the centrepiece of the new ultra-modern Lusail City, the construction of which is 90 per cent completed. The Qatar 2022 World Cup will be held from November 21 to December 18 as in a break from tradition, the tournament was controversially pushed back to a winter window because of the scorching summer temperatures in the tiny Middle East country. FIFA President Gianni Infantino had said that the tournament had massive potential to break down cultural stereotypes and bring people together through football.

The organisers are building only eight stadiums for the one-month tournament and are promising to deliver the completed venues two years before the kick off. As well as being situated in the heart of the city of the future, the area in which the Lusail Stadium is being built holds significant cultural and historical significance for the country, as it was once the home of the founder of modern Qatar, Sheikh Jassim bin Mohammed bin Thani Al Thani.

Construction of the stadium, which is being delivered by a joint venture comprising Qatari firm HBK Contracting Company and China Railway Construction Corporation, is already well underway. With the substructure complete, concrete superstructure and infrastructure works are progressing in all zones, while internal works have commenced in the west stand. Construction of the stadium is set to be completed in 2020.