Moses Mabhida Stadium

Moses Mabhida Stadium
Moses Mabhida Durban Stadium.jpg
Location Stamford Hill, Durban, South Africa
Broke ground 2006
Opened 28 November 2009
Renovated 2009
Expanded 2009
Owner eThekwini (Durban Metropolitan UniCity)
Surface Grass
Construction cost R 3.4 billion
(USD $ 450 million)
Architect Gerkan, Marg and Partners Theunissen Jankowitz Durban, Ambro-Afrique Consultants, Osmond Lange Architects & Planners, NSM Designs, Mthulisi Msimang
Capacity 62,760 FIFA World Cup[1]
54,000 afterwards
Field dimensions Stadium: 320m x 280m x 45m, Arches: 100m
Tenants
AmaZulu [1]

The Moses Mabhida Stadium is a stadium in Durban, South Africa, named after Moses Mabhida, a former General Secretary of the South African Communist Party. It is intended to be a world-class multi-use stadium.

It was one of the host stadiums for the 2010 FIFA World Cup. The stadium has a capacity of 62,760[1] during the World Cup and 72,000 afterwards. The stadium is adjacent to the Kings Park Stadium, in the Kings Park Sporting Precinct, and the Durban street circuit used for the A1GP World Cup of Motorsport.

It includes an adjoining indoor arena, football museum, sports institute, and a transmodal transport station.

Contents

Stadium specifics

Moses Mabhida Stadium under construction in April 2008.
Moses Mabhida Stadium under construction seven months later, in November 2008.
Moses Mabhida Stadium under construction in January 2009.

This newly built stadium is located on the grounds of the Kings Park Soccer Stadium, in the Durban sports precinct in the suburb of Stamford Hill. The stadium had the capacity to hold 62,760[1] spectators during the 2010 FIFA World Cup. Its design allows the stadium seating to be adjusted; 54,000 for local matches or up to 80,000 for events such as the Olympic Games. It has two permanent tiers of seating, a temporary third one has been added for the World Cup.

There are 150 corporate hospitality suites with 7,500 seats.

Dimensions

Stadium: 320m x 280m x 45m

Arch

Somewhat reminiscent of the famous Wembley Stadium arch, a 350-metre (1,148 ft) long free and 105-metre (344 ft) high span arch holds up the roof of the stadium, the top of the arch rises to 106 metres (348 ft) above the pitch. The arch also represents the once divided nation coming together, inspired by the South African Flag.[2] The arch consists of a 5 x 5m steel hollow box and weighs 2,600 tonnes. A funicular carries visitors from the north side of the stadium to a viewing platform at the top of the arch, offering a view over city and ocean. The south side features a 550-step adventure walk.[3] On 24 February 2010 the world's largest swing opened at the stadium. The swing allows clients to jump off the 4th ladder rung and fall toward the pitch before being swung out in a 220-metre (720 ft) arc over the pitch.

Roof

Moses Mabhida Stadium roof consists of a 46,000 m2 (500,000 sq ft), Teflon-coated, glass-fibre membrane which will produce a translucent glow when the stadium is lit. These are attached to the arch by 95mm diameter steel cables. The roof covers 88% of the seats.

Bowl

Around the perimeter, 1,750 columns and 216 raking beams provides the main support. Around the field, 900m of retaining walls stretches 8m high. A total of 1,780 pre-cast concrete seating panels creates the bowl form. There will be over 80,000 square metres (860,000 sq ft) of floor space within the stadium structure..

Facade

Over 100 columns surround the stadium. The height of the columns varies around the stadium, but the highest is 46m. In total 15,000 square metres (160,000 sq ft) of façade will surround the stadium. A total of 550 aluminum fins will fit between the main columns. Perforated metal sheeting will be placed between the aluminum fins, where required.

Construction progress

Interior of stadium.
Date Phase Description Status
2006-07-08 1 Destruction of existing stadium, southern pavilion. Completed
2006-07-12 2 Destruction of existing stadium, northern pavilion. Completed
2006-07-23 3 Destruction of existing stadium, main pavilion. Completed
2007-04-01 4 Construction begins. Completed
2008-03-20 5 Arch construction begins. Completed
2009-01-13 5 Arch construction complete. Completed
2009-01-01 6 Aluminum façade construction begins. Completed
2009-08-01 7 Roof cable and membrane works begins. Completed
2009-11-24 Official completion. Completed

Completion

Construction of the stadium was officially completed on 24 November 2009 [4] and the first official match played there was between Amazulu and Maritzburg United on 29 November, with Maritzburg United winning 1–0 [5].

2010 FIFA World Cup

The stadium was one of the venues for the 2010 FIFA World Cup and hosted five group games, one second round game and a semi-final match [6]. During the World Cup, the stadium was referred to as 'Durban Stadium'.

2010 World Cup Schedule

Date Time (UTC+2) Team #1 Res. Team #2 Round Attendance
2010-06-13 20:30 Germany Germany 4–0 Australia Australia Group D 62,660
2010-06-16 16:00 Spain Spain 0–1 Switzerland Switzerland Group H 62,453
2010-06-19 13:30 Netherlands Netherlands 1–0 Japan Japan Group E 62,010
2010-06-22 20:30 Nigeria Nigeria 2–2 South Korea Korea Republic Group B 61,874
2010-06-25 16:00 Brazil Brazil 0–0 Portugal Portugal Group G 62,712
2010-06-28 16:00 Netherlands Netherlands 2–1 Slovakia Slovakia Round of 16 61,962
2010-07-07 20:30 Germany Germany 0–1 Spain Spain Semi-final 60,960

See also

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 FIFA.com – Durban Stadium
  2. ↑ FIFA (2010). "Durban Stadium – Durban". http://www.fifa.com/worldcup/destination/stadiums/stadium=5018127/index.htm. 
  3. ↑ "Moses Mabhida Stadium". http://www.durban.gov.za/durban/discover/2010/moses/. Retrieved 18 June 2010. 
  4. ↑ A defining moment for Durban
  5. ↑ Maritzburg win with ten men
  6. ↑ "2010 Fifa World Cup SA Fixtures". Supersport.com. http://www.supersport.com/football/fixtures.aspx?id=275&db=1&y=2010&m=7. Retrieved 2010-05-18. 

External links

2010 FIFA World Cup Stadia

Cape Town Stadium (Cape Town) • Ellis Park Stadium (Johannesburg) • Free State Stadium (Bloemfontein) • Loftus Versfeld Stadium (Pretoria) • Mbombela Stadium (Nelspruit) • Moses Mabhida Stadium (Durban) • Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium (Port Elizabeth) • Peter Mokaba Stadium (Polokwane) • Royal Bafokeng Stadium (Rustenburg) • Soccer City (Johannesburg)