Zaha Hadid Architects Unveils International Football Center in China

Zaha Hadid Architects has revealed images of the new Xi’an International Football Centre, to be ready by 2023, in time for the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Asian Cup. The facility will include a stadium with a 60,000-seat capacity, along with civic, sports, and recreational spaces for the city. Providing optimum conditions for football, the Xi’an International Football Center was also designed in a way to maximize its use by future generations after the 2023 tournament. The center will welcome national and international matches as well as domestic league games, youth training academies, entertainment performances, and cultural events. Integrated within the business zone, the project takes on public spaces, recreation, and dining facilities positioned on a series of shaded south-facing garden terraces. To face Xi’an’s hot continental summer climate, a “wide perimeter roof overhangs shelter facilities within the building's envelope while the large, shaded, open-air terraces and public concourses incorporate extensive planting on all levels”. In addition, a translucent membrane over the seating protects spectators from extreme weather conditions and direct sunlight, while allowing an abundance of natural light in the project.