Al Bayt Stadium – Construction

Continuing with our Qatar updates….not on football…but on Qatari environment. Let’s look at Al-Bayt Stadium.

Al-Bayt Stadium is a retractable roof football stadium in Al Khor, Qatar, intended to be used in time for matches in the 2022 FIFA World Cup, which began on November 20, 2022.

The stadium’s construction contract was awarded to Qatari contractor Galfar Al Misnad, Webuild S.p.A. and Cimolai in 2015.

In January 2020, the stadium received sustainability certificates of green design, construction management and energy efficiency.

The stadium is located about 50 km away from Doha.

Construction

Let’s take a look at the construction.

The Al Bayt Stadium in Qatar is one of eight stadia being used in the 2022 FIFA World Cup and is the second largest stadium after Lusail Stadium.

The stadium was designed by Dar Al-Handasah.

Following the World Cup, it is expected to be reconfigured into a 32,000-seat stadium.

Excess seats will be removed from the upper tier and donated to other countries or placed on the infrastructure planned for the 2030 Asian Games.

The vacated space will then be converted into a five-star hotel, shopping mall and another sports facilities.

The tent-like structure has four stands, each of whose exterior walls and peaked roofs are covered in poly-tetra-fluoro-ethylene (PTFE) woven fiberglass membrane.

The exterior part of the PTFE membrane is coloured in traditional black, white and red colours to further reference Qatar’s nomadic people’s tents. A retractable roof connects the four stands to enclose the stadium.

Capacity                      68 895

Construction                 09/2015 – 2019

Cost                             € 770 million

Design                         Albert Speer & Partner GmbH, Dar Al-Handasah

Contractor                   Salini Impregilo Group, Cimolai, Galfar Al Misnad

The body of the building is designed in such a way that it allows cooling in summer and keeping warm in winter.

The massive structure of the retractable roof (1,600 tons) is connected with ventilation systems so that the stands and the back-up facilities could offer the optimal temperature for spectators and players.

The roof closes and opens in approximately 20 minutes. Stadium and the rectangular square around it sit on the 14-meter high circular platform that was artificially created.

The interior of Al Bayt Stadium is dominated by red, and some of the seats are arranged in sadu patterns.

The three-tier stands can accommodate 68,895 spectators, which is about 25,000 more compared to the Qatari hosts’ application submitted to FIFA in 2010.

The entire upper level of 28,000 seats is temporary and will be dismantled after the 2022 World Cup.

There are 1000 seats for press representatives at the facility. The entire stadium covers an area of approximately 200,000 square metres and is surrounded by a park the size of which is comparable to an area of 30 football pitches.

After the end of the 2022 World Cup, the upper tier will be dismantled and the space will be transformed into a 5-star hotel. A shopping centre, restaurants, gym and other amenities are also to be built at the stadium.