The new 974 Stadium in Qatar built with containers

Now that there is less than a year to go before the start of the 2022 World Cup, Qatar is finalizing the structures and stadiums prepared for the most important event on the football scene. Among these, one that has immediately caught the eye for its unusual and innovative architecture is Stadium 974, formerly known as Ras Abu Aboud, near Doha. It is the first fully demountable stadium in the history of the World Cup thanks to its modular steel structure and the use of containers for transport and can hold 40,000 spectators. Designed by Spanish firm Fenwick Iribarren Architects with the help of structural engineers Schlaich Bergermann Partner and Hilson Moran, it was conceived to achieve maximum sustainability in both design and construction. Its structure has reduced costs, cut down on waste production and consumed 40 percent less water during construction than traditional stadiums. In addition, its proximity to the coast takes advantage of local ventilation and means that artificial refrigeration systems are not used, resulting in considerable savings.

Positioned near Doha's port, opposite the spectacular West Bay skyline, Stadium 974 pays homage to the mercantile tradition of the Qatari capital. The number 974 refers both to Qatar's area code and to the number of containers used in the project. Containers that after the use of the stadium will then be dismantled and destined for other buildings around the world. Meanwhile, on November 30 it will host the first match of the Arab Cup between the United Arab Emirates and Syria and then it will be one of the arenas of the next World Cup. 

There are already seven stadiums completed for the Qatar 2022 event and, despite the considerable effort on the part of the organizers to use the event to cover up the many human rights violations that take place on a daily basis in the Arab Emirate, critical voices pushing for a boycott are accumulating. At the beginning of the year, a report by The Guardian revealed the dramatic condition of workers employed in the construction of structures for the World Cup, almost all of them illegal immigrants from India, Nepal, Bangladesh, Pakistan and Sri Lanka, and the bloody death toll, over 7000, hidden by the local government. An attempt at sport washing that also passes through operations of environmental and architectural sustainability such as the brand new 974 stadium.