Qatari authorities selected the contractor for Al Bayt Stadium. While it may look like a tent, the price is – as was expected from the start – far from modest: €770 million.

Salini Impregilo Group has signed a contract for the construction of the Al Bayt Stadium in Al Khor, a city about 50 km North of the capital Doha. The contract is worth €770 million ($855m), of which 716 million for construction and over 53 million for operation and maintenance.

The price is high if taken into account that the stadium’s capacity will decrease from 60,000 to 32,000 after the 2022 World Cup.

The stadium, which will be completed by September 2018, will have a unique design: the project is allegedly inspired to the Bayt Al Sha'ar, the black and white tent traditionally used by nomadic people in the territory of Qatar, which is seen as symbol of hospitality for the desert travelers.

The project is supposedly the most sustainable one among 2022 World Cup stadia (according to the contractor) thanks to modern construction techniques and the use of environmentally friendly and low energy impact advanced materials.