The Al Wakrah Stadium, which will be used as part of the Qatar FIFA World Cup in 2022, will see its first action this month as it hosts the final of the Amir Cup on May 16.
One of eight venues for the World Cup, and the first to be built from the ground up, the 40,000 seat modular stadium with its distinctive retractable roof resembling the hulls of traditional Arabian fishing boats, will stage the Amir Cup match as the first step toward 2022.
“The launch of Al Wakrah Stadium is a significant step on the road to 2022,” said Thani Khalifa Al Zarraa, the stadium project manager for SC. “Its innovative and futuristic design means it is set to be one of the iconic venues during the first FIFA World Cup in the Arab world. We hope thousands of football fans across the country will join us for this landmark occasion as we celebrate the progress we have made to date and look forward to 2022 with renewed excitement.”
Located 23km from Doha city centre, the stadium boasts an innovative cooling system, equipping it for year-round use, and will see its capacity reduced to 20,000 following the World Cup thanks to a modular seating system enabling the venue owners to donate the surplus seats to developing football nations.
