Ben Guerir – As Morocco is getting ready to co-host the 2030 FIFA World Cup, the country is working on developing its stadiums’ infrastructure.
Moroccan architect Tarik Oualalou revealed today at UM6P’s fifth edition of Week of Science his visionary design for the Hassan II Stadium Casablanca.
The ambitious design aims to make the stadium one of the world’s largest stadiums and a centerpiece of Morocco’s 2030 FIFA World Cup bid.
The project represents a bold new-modeling of traditional Moroccan architectural elements while embracing environmental sustainability and community integration.
At the heart of Oualalou’s design is the concept of Morocco’s traditional tent, a universal architectural form with deep roots in Moroccan culture.
In an interview with Morocco World News (MWN), Oulalou said that “the tent is intimately Moroccan, but it’s completely universal. It exists in Mongolia, in Africa – it’s a universal form.”
During his presentation of Hassan II stadium at the event, he explained that rather than creating a conventional enclosed stadium, the stadium’s design features an innovative double-membrane covering that creates what he describes as “a world of the outside and a world of the inside.”
The stadium’s design goes beyond traditional sporting venue functionality.
“A football stadium is used occasionally. What was obvious to us was to imagine how it could serve other purposes – sports spaces, children’s play areas, a marketplace, a place that opens itself to its community,” Oualalou said.
The design is set to reflect Morocco’s hospitality and tolerance through its ambitions to show to the world that “we know how to welcome others,” no matter where they come from.
Read also: Interpol Expects Exceptional FIFA World Cup 2030 in Morocco
Despite cultural differences that exist in the world, “what matters to us when we create an architectural project is not to show how we are different, but to show the intersections we have with others, to give them entry points, moments of conversation with us” Oulalou said adding that the design will make “the American who comes, the Japanese who comes, the European who comes will find themselves in it.”
Environmental consciousness plays a crucial role in the design. In an era of ecological crisis, Oualalou pointed to the need for architecture to evolve beyond its traditional role of protecting humans from nature.
“We’re living through the sixth great extinction of this planet… Architecture must first testify for life rather than human comfort,” he explained.
The structure’s technical achievements are remarkable, featuring 36 support points for a diameter of 500 meters. Using minimal materials to enclose an enormous space, the design achieves what Oualalou calls “an almost childlike sense of wonder” in its engineering.
The project also represents a broader statement about Morocco’s capabilities in terms of modern architecture and engineering.
The Moroccan architect said that “Morocco is an immense place of invention, of experimentation, perhaps one of the great theaters where humanity can invent its place on earth in the 21st century.”
The design’s innovative use of traditional forms, environmental consciousness, and community integration, the Hassan II Stadium project signals a new trend in stadium architecture.
The architecture of the stadium demonstrates how large-scale sporting venues can be reimagined to serve their communities while respecting cultural heritage and environmental responsibilities.
The stadium is expected to be completed in time for the 2030 World Cup, should Morocco’s bid be successful.
