With the Al Wakrah and Al Bayt stadium designs already announced, a third design has now been unveiled for use at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. The existing Khalifa International Stadium will be renovated to bring it up to current FIFA standards, and also have air cooling features fitted.
Located in Al Rayyan, the Khalifa International Stadium was built in 1976 and was renovated for the 2006 Asian games. The stadium has also previously played host to the Asian Cup (1988, 2011) and the FIFA World Youth Championships (1995). It is expected to be the first of Qatar's proposed World Cup stadiums to be completed, in 2016, and will host the IAAF Athletics World Championships in 2019.
Following the renovation, the stadium will have a seating capacity of 40,000. A new single undulating roof will be added that will cover all the seating within the stadium. In addition to providing shade for fans, the roof will help with another means of keeping those inside cool.
As with other planned 2022 World Cup stadiums, the Khalifa International Stadium will have the air inside it cooled for the comfort of fans and the players on the pitch. Large chillers will be used to pump cool air into the stands from the top tier. The added roof will help to keep the cool air from warming up and will help to contain and direct it. The air will move down over the lower tiers and to pitch level, with older warmer air being displaced. According to Qatar's Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy, this will keep pitch temperature at an "optimal" 26 degrees Celsius (78°F).
Despite this apparently energy-hungry approach, the stadium is reportedly being built with targets of GSAS 4 Star and LEED Gold sustainability certifications, though little info on exactly how such things are going to be achieved has been revealed. The Supreme Committee tells Gizmag that the installation of the roof is one of the contributory factors to these certifications, as it will reduce the energy demand required to provide spectator and player comfort during the games.
Elsewhere, significant elements of the stadium structure will apparently reused from existing structures, helping to reduce waste, demand on natural resources and emissions associated with the extraction and production of construction materials. Highly efficient energy and water fixtures are amongst other stadium features that are said to be contributing to the certifications.
The Supreme Committee also says that public transport to and from the stadium will help in terms of sustainability, with the Sports City metro station located directly adjacent to the stadium and 2,300 parking spaces for buses available.
The video below is an introduction and history to Khalifa International Stadium.
Source: Qatar Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy