The engineering legacy of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022™: Stadium 974 – Reuse as driving force for sustainable stadium design

Abstract

Stadium 974, located on the east shore of the Doha Bay in the municipality of Ras Abu Aboud, is the first fully demountable, transportable, and reusable stadium of its kind. Modular systems in construction have a long track record in the industry but developing and delivering an entire scheme for such a complex venue under the requirements of a FIFA World Cup Stadium was never achieved before. The basis of the innovative concept of a temporary venue is to create a highly repetitive grid of identical structural frames, supporting standardised components: bleachers, concourse slabs and modules carrying containers pre-equipped with all required functions. The venue can then be easily demounted after the event and completely re-installed in another location or repurposed into many small stadia at different locations. The structure consists of a series of steel frames resembling the appearance of a high-bay warehouse separated in different blocks, which e.g. include the stands, concourses, and sanitary fittings. All elements fit in specially modified and certified shipping containers. All individual elements can be dismantled and transported within the certified shipping containers to the next destination. This enables efficient reuse of the material and hence results in a reduced lifetime carbon dioxide footprint due to less construction material and reduced waste. This pioneering scheme posed significant challenges and constraints for the structural design, and required a comprehensive approach, from the development of suitable structural concepts to the implementation in the structural detailing. This paper describes some of those challenges and the design solutions adopted.