Soccer City Stadium for the World Cup in Johannesburg

Only a few days at the start of World Cup 2010 South Africa and each of the stadiums that will host matches is now ready. Five stages were made from scratch, others have undergone a complete renovation of structures, such as the Soccer City Stadium in Johannesburg by the local study Boogertman Urban Edge and Partners in collaboration with Populous.
The Soccer City Stadium, the most beautiful and modern stadiums in the world, will stage the opening match and final of World Cup 2010, respectively, next June 11 and July 11.

The project is inspired by the “pumpkin” African, known as calabash, whose aesthetic is appreciated more during the night.

The stadium is located south-west of Johannesburg, near one of the richest areas of football fans throughout the region, Soweto, home to about 40% of the population of Johannesburg. The Soccer City Stadium can be considered the cathedral of South African football. It was created in 1980 by leaders of various teams of the South Africa joined forces to fund the construction of the first international football stadium in the country which in 1990 also hosted the first public speech of Nelson Mandela after his release.

The initial capacity of the stadium, known as FNB – First National Bank Stadium, was 80,000, compared to the current 94,700 seats achieved with the restructuring that involved the use of 80,000 cubic meters of concrete, 9000 tonnes of steel concrete and 8000 tons of structural steel in addition to the displacement of approximately 120,000 cubic meters of soil.

The front shell is made of fiber-reinforced concrete panels in a choice of eight colors and two textures that refer to colors and textures of the ‘calabash’.

The outer shell is lined with panels, glazed or open, which constitute the reason for the facade and who seem to disappear when the volumes are lit inside. The facade is divided into 10 vertical strips, geographically aligned with the other 9 stages of the 2010 World Cup and the stadium in Berlin, home of the 2006 World Cup final, all the way to represent the end of this year.

The top cover, embossed with a huge circular space truss is supported by twelve concrete columns 40 meters tall, is covered with a PTFE membrane in a color similar to the sand deposits of gold in South Africa.

The Soccer City Stadium was awarded the overall building, the extensive use of concrete products, the complexity of structural and aesthetic quality of the finishes. He also won the Concrete in Architecture, for its shape, innovative and culturally identifiable by the ‘pumpkin’, which produces a realistic image of Africa in the eyes of the world.