After recently opening the most modern stadium of United Arab Emirates, now London-based Pattern office gets to design the World Cup venue in Al-Rayyan.

Pattern gets its second Arab stadium within months of designing their first one. The Hazza bin Zayed Stadium was opened in January and is United Arab Emirates’ most impressive football ground. Now the 5-year-old London architectural office gets to design one of Qatar’s 2022 World Cup venues.

Existing Ahmed bin Ali Stadium is located outside Al Rayyan, near the western highway leading to Doha.

Its current capacity is 22,000 on single-tiered stands. Before the FIFA tournament it’s expected to get a new temporary upper tier that would get it beyond the 40,000-mark.

An important feature is the ‘digital wrap’, stadium’s new skin that is supposed to become one of the world’s largest screens. Initial concept was drawn by German office of Albert Speer in Qatar’s bid book sent to FIFA, now it’s time for a final plan of the stadium. An overview may be seen below.

Ahmed bin Ali Stadium is Qatar’s second one to be awarded for final design. It was preceded by Al Wakrah Stadium, designed last year by Zaha Hadid and Aecom.

Further design team appointments to the remaining 10 stadiums - including the 86,000-seat Lusail stadium, which will host the 2022 World Cup final - are expected soon, starting this month.