Soccer City

Παγκόσμιο Κύπελλο Ποδοσφαίρου 2010: θα διοργανωθεί στη Νότια Αφρική (σε 10 διαφορετικά στάδια).

Soccer City, Johannesburg: το στάδιο όπου θα λάβει χώρα ο μεγάλος τελικός.

Χωρητικότητα: 95.000 θεατές.

Αρχιτεκτονικός σχεδιασμός: Boogertman & Partners

Σχεδιαστική ιδέα: "A football stadium like an “African Pot” (calabash) that shines in typical African colours"

“We struggled for a long time to find a cladding material which could create the idea of a clay pot. Initially, we were going to use aluminum but the tenders came back too expensive. By pure chance, we managed to find a product which is an extruded concrete panel, made up of laminated concrete layers and fibre-glass reinforcing”.

The panels measure 1,2x1,8m and are only 13mm thick. Six different colours have been used, varying from ochre to brown and red.

Through its excellent eco-profile, the energy consumption of fibreC is significantly lower compared to alternative façade products: The production of fibreC has 40% less global warming potential than fibre cement panels or aluminium sheets.

Just south of Johannesburg, towards Soweto, Soccer City is built on the dark red soil of a defunct gold mine. Indeed, the hills that separate Soweto from South Africa's largest city are man-made, built from the refuse of one of the world's largest (and now fully plundered) treasure sites. More than £70m will be spent improving transport around Johannesburg; the current plan is to ferry most fans between the city and the stadium on high-speed buses tethered together in long crocodiles.

Temperatures at the tournament are expected to be cool. Keeping with theme, a museum inside the stadium will be dedicated entirely to African pots.

There are currently 50 murders a day in South Africa, a country described as "a killing field" by its own security minister in November. Will the 500,000 visiting football fans be at risk? "The fact is that the most peaceful time in Africa is before, during and after football matches," tournament organiser Danny Jordaan said in December, suggesting that here football soothes rather than aggravates the average fan.

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