AFCON 2023 : DISCOVER THE ARCHITECTURE OF THE SIX STADIUMS
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17/8/2024
A TOUR OF THE STADIUMS AND HOST CITIES
On January 13th, 2024, the soccer world will converge towards Côte d’Ivoire for the start of the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations. Who will defeat Sadio Mane's team, whose team earned the medal in style in 2022? Twenty-four teams will travel throughout Côte d’Ivoire and compete to try to dethrone the Lions de la Teranga. Côte d’Ivoire, Burkina Faso, Guinea, Senegal, Nigeria, Guinea Bissau, Cabo Verde, Mali, Mauritania, and Ghana are the qualified teams that will represent West Africa.
This 34th edition is the first significant competition the West African country will host since the 1984 African Cup of Nations. The host country started a building race to provide the stadiums hosting the games in the chosen host cities: Bouake, Korhogo, San-Pedro, Anyama, Yamoussoukro, and Abidjan, its business capital. While soccer fever slowly grows in the continent and beyond, we take you on a tour of the six cities that will host those exciting games to admire the architecture of the official stadiums.
ALASSANE OUATTARA OLYMPIC STADIUM - ÉBIMPÉ
The Alassane Ouattara Ebimpé stadium is the country's most prominent sports complex, with 60,000 seats and one of the largest in the sub-region. The result of Ivory-Chinese cooperation, it was built over four years by the Beijing Institute of Architectural Design.
Its modern design has the form of a bird nest, made of a white folding structure with an uneven roof form, creating a visual dynamism. Sixty-one meters high, the three-level arena has covered stands and a natural grass pitch. The exterior of the Stadium is surrounded by columns topped by a diamond-shaped element, which is decorated with orange and green patterns reminiscent of the country's flag. Its facade presents the Stadium's name in white letters, surrounded by two heads of elephants, the animal symbol of the country. This modern and large-scale architectural project won the 2019-2020 gold medal of the Structural Great Wall Cup Award for high engineering quality.
Named after the village where it is erected, the Ebimpe stadium is the first step of a future Olympic city that will be built around this Stadium on an area of 287 hectares. The initiative will feature a 4-star hotel, a 5,000-seat auditorium, and a center for sports medicine research. It is poised to establish itself as a leading sports and leisure hub in Africa, accommodating various sports such as athletics, rugby, and football. The Ebimpe stadium, also nicknamed the Arc de Triomphe, will host the Opening Ceremony and game and the big final on February 11th. After the tournament, it will be the official Stadium of the national team, the Elephants.
The Ebimpe stadium is in Anyama, a suburb 25 km North of Abidjan. An agricultural area of the region, its land grows kola, banana, pepper, and tropical fruits. The surroundings mix urban and natural landscapes with numerous forests, and the National Park of Adjin and the Adjin Laguna, located between Bingerville in the south and Brofodoumé in the north, offer a natural space close to the capital.
PEACE STADIUM (STADE DE LA PAIX) - BOUAKE
The Peace Stadium (Stade de la Paix) was built for the 1984 African Cup of Nations, the first and only taking place in Côte d’Ivoire, a year in which the Cameroon team won. The Stadium has been renovated as part of the refurbishment effort for the 2023 African Cup of Nations, including an extension, with a capacity increasing from 25000 to 40000 seats, making it the second biggest Stadium of Côte d’Ivoire.
The Stadium's form is one of an oval crown with a cross-section of 24 steps. Its orange seats, white structure, and green grass recall the colors of the Ivorian flag. The Stadium presents a framework above the stands, a raised arch supported by wide panels all around the stracture (charpente au dessus des tribunes arc surélevé, portée par de larges panneaux tout autour de l'oval). / With its 14,52 hectares of superficies, the complex includes an ultra-modern lawn, a changing room, an infirmary, a press room, an official dressing room, a warm-up room, and protective gates.
The Peace Stadium is located in Bouake, the Capital of the Bandaman district valley and the second largest city in Côte d’Ivoire. Bouake is a commercial crossroads in Côte d’Ivoire and presents a big market and the famous Place de la Paix, which gives its name to the Stadium. The city is renowned for its local crafts, such as the potters of Tano Sakassou and the Baoule loincloth weavers. The town's natural landmarks are the Kossou Lake, Côte d’Ivoire's largest lake, and the Comoe National Park, a Unesco World Heritage Site since 1983.
"LA FELICIA" FÉLIX HOUPHOUËT-BOIGNY STADIUM - ABIDJAN
Nicknamed the « Félicia,» the Félix Houphouet Boigny Stadium is the oldest in Côte d’Ivoire. Located in the heart of Abidjan, in the Plateau district, it is surrounded by the iconic skyscrapers of this business neighborhood. The Administrative Towers, the Postel Tower 2001, and the CAISTAB building all benefit from a view of the Stadium.
Built in 1960, before the country's independence, it was initially called Géo André Stadium. The Stadium was used during the 1984 African Cup of Nations. It was subsequently wholly renovated and renamed the Stade Félix Houphouët-Boigny, after the founder of the Ivorian nation and its first Head of State.
The Stadium has a rectangular form surrounded by an orange cover. A steel structure roof protects its seats. The roof is slightly rounded and partly supported by triangle-shaped elements, creating a geometrical effect on the global Stadium. Following its most recent renovation, done by Portuguese company Mota-Engil, the Félix Houphouët-Boigny stadium has a capacity of 40,000 seats and a hybrid artificial turf. It includes four covered grandstands painted in the national colors, a press room, a doping control room, a VIP room, a treatment room, referees' offices, a massage room, four changing rooms, and a 16.50 x 5.70-meter video screen.
Located along the Lagune Ebrié borders, the Plateau and its Laguna are some of the country's symbols. There, you can enjoy the numerous cultural options of this vibrant city, from art spaces to restaurants and bars. The Little Paris presents other architectural gems like the Saint-Paul Cathedral and the Pyramid.
CHARLES KONAN BANNY STADIUM - YAMOUSSOUKRO
The Yamoussokro Stadium is located in the political capital of Côte d’Ivoire and is the birthplace of its first president. Named after the ex-Prime Minister and ex-BCEAO director, the Stadium can welcome up to 20,000 soccer fans.
Built on a total surface area of 24.66 hectares, it presents a rectangular form, topped by an elevated single ring-shaped steel structure. Following a design competition, this multi-purpose Stadium was developed by the French studio SCAU architecture studio, which is also responsible for the Stade de France in Paris. It includes a West tribune, several parking lots, and a natural grass lawn. The firm's design concept embeds three of the four spectator stands below ground level. Positioned atop the hill, the west stand encompasses the Stadium's amenities such as changing rooms, dining areas, press facilities, and offices. The architects aimed to create a stadium that combines grandeur with simplicity, ensuring Côte d’Ivoire projects a powerful image during televised games.
Less known than Abidjan, Yamoussokro is a lovely green space and a place to discover part of Ivorian architectural history: the Basilica of Our Lady of Peace, the tallest Christian building, designed by The great builder Pierre Fakhoury, whose firm is also responsible for the new Abidjan Exhibition Center. The Felix Houphouet-Boigny Foundation and the President Hotels are prime examples of the Modernist architecture that can be found in the city. Yamoussokro is also characterized by its wide roads, which were inspired by the Champs-Elysees Avenue, and the scene of numerous national events and celebrations. With more than ten lakes, Yamoussokro is full of nature. The famous Three Caymanns Lake, where more than 200 creatures live, caymans, crocodiles, and alligators, offers a surprising show during feeding time, while the Abokouamekro Game Reserve is a center for biodiversity in Côte d’Ivoire. Yamoussoukro's many green spaces make for a perfect place to relax between the Afcon's games.
AMADOU GON COULIBALY STADIUM - KORHOGO
Korhogo is the 4th city to welcome the African Cup of Nations games. The Stadium was built in 2018 and is named after the late prime Minister. It is one of the most recent stadiums in Côte d’Ivoire. Similar to the Ebimpé Stadium, the building of the Amadou Gon Coulibaly Stadium is the result of collaboration with Chinese constructors. Built by the China National Building Material (CNBM) as a contractor and designed by the EGPI France.
It presents a fully covered stand area and a natural grass play area. Covering 20.17 hectares of land, the imposing Stadium has a rectangular form and rounded roof structure. The auditorium features plastic seats arranged in a pattern reflecting the colors of the national flag, creating a vibrant mosaic. The venue boasts a single-tier stand which can host up to 20,000 spectators. These stands are sheltered by a roof that rises higher on the east and west sides to accommodate the box building. The complex includes a media center, an athletics track, and a broadcast compound.
The municipality of Poro holds a unique place in the Ivorian cultural landscape, with expertise in sculpture and crafts, with the waraniéné weavers. The world-renowned Senoufo masks and canvasses of Korhogo are some of the region's symbols and can be admired at the Gbon Coulibaly Musuem. With its vast natural area and ancestral traditions, the city of Korhogo is a unique opportunity to discover part of the deep and authentic Ivorian culture.
LAURENT POKOU STADIUM - SAN PEDRO
Located in the coastal city of San Pedro, the Laurent Pokou Stadium is the only Stadium named after a soccer player. It pays homage to the late Laurent Pokou, a native of Abidjan. Pokou was the best goal striker in two editions of the AFCON: in 1968 during the Afcon in Ethiopia and in 1970 in Soudan. Twicetop scorer and African Ballon d'Or winner, the player and trainer strongly marked the history of African soccer. The official AFCON 2023 ball is also named after him.
Built by the Chinese construction group China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation (CCECC) and local company Omni Travaux, the Stadium occupies 23 hectares of space in the city. With its rectangular form, the 20,000-seat arena presents a half-moon-shaped roof made of concrete on each side of its seat area. Two screens are placed on the open roof areas at the curves of the Stadium. Behind the stands, four floodlighting masts rise at the corners. The Stadium's architecture incorporates regional motifs, including features reminiscent of oil palms, while the seats mirror the colors of the national flag. The terrain has a natural grass pitch, and the complex includes conference and media centers.
350 km from Abidjan, on the Western side of the Ivorian coast, San Pedro is a resort destination for many Ivorians. Its harbor is the center of cocoa bean exports, which makes it a critical region for the economy of Côte d’Ivoire. It has many beaches, like Monogaga and Grand-Béréby, perfect for a stop at the beach to enjoy the charms of Côte d'Ivoire
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