Further recognition for Hazza Bin Zayed Stadium
August 13,2015
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Iconic Al Ain landmark shortlisted for international architecture honour.

Hazza Bin Zayed Stadium, the iconic landmark on Al Ain’s skyline which first opened to the public in January 2015 has been shortlisted for another award.

The Stadium, designed by Pattern Design of London, has been nominated in the sport category for completed buildings for the World Building of the Year award. The results will be announced in early November at the World Architecture Festival being held this year in Singapore.

In February, the building, which is home to Al Ain FC, was named Stadium of the Year 2014, by a website special sing in football arenas, while, in May this year. the main contractor, BAM International, won Stadium Contractor of the Year award at the World Stadium Congress 2015, which was held in Qatar.

The 25.000-seat FIFA class football facility introduced a new approach to sports architecture in the Gulf region, by embedding Al Ain’s identity into the very fabric of the design. Part of this identity is defined by the local desert climate and landscape and there is a specific focus on the date palm, reflecting the city’s rich oases.


Patterns design was inspired by the rotating fractural geometry of the dale palm frond and the architects used the latest parametric technology to create an outer fade to reflect this. This facade also acts as a passive cooling device. Shading the building during the heat of the day while allowing fresh air to flow, thus creating comfortable spectator conditions.

Its roof is the first example in the region that is specifically designed for solar protection. Most stadium in the Gulf are based on the European model of a drip-line roof. Which has been developed for wet climates and is therefore redundant in arid parts of the world.

The architects also took inspiration from the Arabic head-dress and created a sinuous and gravity-bending parasol roof that shades the pitch and spectators during a match while allowing enough sunlight on the natural grass pitch during the day lo allow it to flourish.

The apparent levitating form of the roof allows all spectators an unobstructed view of the action and intensifies the atmosphere within the ‘bowl‘ during matches.

Lead designer on the Stadium was Dipesh Patel who is also the Practice Director of Pattern Design. He founded the architecture company in 2009 as an experimental design­ focused practice. dedicated to exceeding client expectations.. He explained: ..Pattern Design is a young architectural company and the Hazza Bin Zaid Stadium is actually our first completed building.

“To be shortlisted for the World Building of the Year award by the World Architectural Festival is an immense achievement for us. It took our client, Al Ain Club Investment Company a lot of faith to give our young company this opportunity,” he said.

“We are very proud of the building and hope the football fans and people of Al Ain love it as much as we do.” he added.

The company has also designed the National Gymnastics Arena which was used during the inaugural European Games held in Baku in June this year. The company was also awarded the design for the 40.000-seat Al Rayyan Stadium and Precinct in Qatar. one of the venues for the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

Hazza Bin Zayed Stadium, the iconic landmark on Al Ain’s skyline which first opened to the public in January 2015 has been shortlisted for another award.


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