PICTURE OF THE DAY....

WEMBLEY STADIUM













If you've read the newspapers recently, i'm sure most of you knew that the FA Cup match between Manchester United F.C. & Chelsea F.C. was played yesterday at the new Wembley Stadium in London. Before continuing with this post, i just have to say....CONGRATULATIONS to Chelsea F.C. for a great match... ^_^V


The new Wembley Stadium, was designed by architects HOK Sport and Foster and Partners with engineers Mott MacDonald and was built by Multiplex. It was funded by Sport England, WNSL (Wembley National Stadium Limited), the Football Association, the Department for Culture Media and Sport and the London Development Agency with a whopping amount of £ 798 million.

What is so special about the new Wembley Stadium???..

Arch

The 133 metre tall arch that sits above the north stand. The steel arch is 315 metres long and is the longest single roof structure in the world, being visible right across London. (13 miles or 21 km away). The arch ensures there are no pillars in the new stadium which could obstruct the view of fans

Sliding Roof & The Pitch

The roof is retractable and closes in 15 minutes to keep spectators sheltered while allowing sun to reach the entire pitch. The pitch has a Sub-Air system whereby warm air is pumped into the soil to prevent freezing and encourages root growth. On top of that, the turf is of fibre reinforcement to prevent roots getting "cut up". (lay man's term: prevents the grass from dislodging when the ball is kicked)

The Bowl

The new design enables all spectators to sit in a single bowl rather than four separate stands. Full capacity of the stadium is 90,000 spectators

Construction

1. 90,000 seats
   
2. 3.2 million cubic feet of concrete and 23,000 tonnes of steel were used
3. The roof alone weighs 7,000 tonnes.
4. The roof is over 11 acres
   
5. Encloses 4,000,000 m3 (cubic metres)
6. 2,618 toilets
7. 35 miles or 56 km of heavy-duty power cables
8. The total length of the escalators is 400 metres (1310 feet)
9. Each of the two giant screens in the new stadium are the size of 600 domestic television sets
10. The stadium has a circumference or 1km
11. You could drive a cross-channel train through the Wembley Arch

Conclusion

Lastly, the Wembley Stadium is one of the many amazing structures built by man. The future of football stadiums would be like the stadium astro seen in the TV commercials, where the stadium is airborne...XD.


References:

1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wembley_Stadium
2. http://www.wembleystadium.com/brilliantfuture/thenewdesign/
   

Post by Law Law, SABD