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Morocco’s National Authority for Public Utilities (ANEP) selected the team ahead of other big-name teams to build the 115,000-capacity Casablanca Grande Stadium, which will host the 2030 World Cup.
Paris- and Casablanca-based Oualalou + Choi and London stadium specialist Populous were awarded the job following an international design competition, which saw Herzog & De Meuron, Zaha Hadid Architects, Foster + Partners, Cruz y Ortiz, GMP Architects and HPP Architecture division.
Morocco will jointly host the 2030 World Cup with Spain and Portugal and has pledged to build a new stadium and upgrade six others as part of its preparations.
Casablanca Stadium is located in the town of El Mansuria in Benslimane, 38 kilometers north of this famous city, and will also serve as the home ground for two local clubs.
Oualalou + Choi and Populous said their winning proposal drew inspiration from traditional Moroccan social gatherings, with the stadium structure set under a majestic tent roof to create a dramatic intervention in the forest landscape.
Tarik Oualalou, design principal and founding partner of Oualalou + Choi and lead architect on the project, said: “Casablanca’s Grand Stadium is deeply rooted in Moroccan culture, with traditional and modern expressions. It is rooted in ancient and original characters: Mushem, tents and gardens, as well as Moroccan terrain and landscapes.
He added that the stadium would “embody the great tradition of Moroccan hospitality”.
No images of the designs have been released yet.
Engineering companies Maffeis Engineering, ME Engineering, Rider Levett Bucknall, Momentum and SEPSI formed the winning team.
Groundwork preparations for the 100-hectare site are underway.
Earlier this year, Populous unveiled its design for the 45,000-seat cliff-top venue for the 2034 World Cup, the Prince Mohammed bin Salman Stadium outside Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The design features LED screens covering its exterior, an “LED wall” and a retractable roof and pitch that will allow the stadium to broadcast high-definition visuals to the outdoors.
Six new permanent venues are being built for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, with practices including Zaha Hadid Architects and AECOM completing the Al Janoub Stadium in Al Wakrah, and AFL Architects and Foster + Partners completing the Lusail Stadium. Pattern Design is the lead architect for the Ahmed Ben Ali Stadium.
There has been widespread criticism of the treatment of construction workers ahead of football matches, with some estimating more than 6,500 migrant workers died in 10 years.
According to a 2022 report by Carbon Market Watch, the carbon footprint of building six permanent stadiums is estimated to be around 1.6 million tonnes of CO2e.
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