Jesse James
The good folks in Doha, Qatar, are gearing up for the 2022 World Cup. Soccer’s most prominent event will occur in the country this year, and architect Ibrahim M. Jaidah has designed a building to honor the moment. Dubbed the Iconic 2022 building, the design was built in the shape of 2022 in Doha. The structure was built at Doha Sports City opposite the Khalifa International Stadium, which is set to host games during the World Cup. Iconic 2022 was created for developer Nasser bin Hamad Al Thani by Jaidah, the chief architect of the Arab Engineering Bureau.
Jaidah stated: “The project is unique because it started with a simple idea,” adding, “Sheikh Nasser said to me: ‘Ibrahim, I have a challenging idea for you,’ and showed me a 2022 sketch.” The building is formed from four blocks, each with a stone facade arranged around windows to appear like a number two or zero. The number-adorned blocks are connected by a two-story podium.
The ground floor features cafes and restaurants while a sports center and health clubs sit on the level above. Offices for several sporting bodies occupy the rest of the space above. Along with the front of the building depicting the number 2022, the number can be seen in aerial shots. The architect went further to add, “We started with how to transform the project from just an idea to a complete design and how it serves the purpose behind its creation.” He continued, “On the day I started working on the architectural design, I noticed that many photos of stadiums are taken from above, so I wanted to design even the roof in the shape of 2022.”
The hope is that the building will be a monument to mark Qatar hosting the World Cup. Al Thani stated: “We had a design option inspired by the World Cup trophy,” he explained. “But, the trophy does not belong to Qatar – the year 2022 belongs to us.” He went on to say, “We wanted to create a building related to the year and the generation that made the tournament happen. I want the building to stand as a beautiful memory.” The 2022 FIFA World Cup will be hosted in eight stadiums across the country and will kick off this November.
Check out the stunning building in the images below and find out more about the design from Ibrahim M Jaidah. In the meantime, keep it locked with The Culture Curators for more outstanding architecture and design coming very soon.
Photos via Ibrahim M Jaidah
