Arena da Amazônia is located in Manaus, which is 1500km up the Amazon River in Brazil’s isolated Amazonas state bordering Venezuela, Colombia, and Peru. Costing $200 million, the stadium was designed by German-based Gmp Architekten and will hopefully leave behind a positive legacy for the isolated port city.

Given the hot and humid climate of this region, shade for spectators was imperative in the design. To cater for this, the roof wraps downward to become a façade and form a continuous ring of shelter for seating and circulation.

The structure is composed of mutually supporting cantilevers, constructed with steel hollow-core girders which function simultaneously as water drains equipped for immense tropical rains. Translucent fibreglass fabric in-fills the diagonal skeleton, and allows for natural ventilation.

The stadium is situated on a central axis linking the city and the airport and holds a capacity of 45,000 which will accommodate large international crowds in its first few years.

Given its scale and also its purpose as a prominent destination, the building serves as a landmark for the city and Amazon region.

It was believed that the stadium might not be ready in time for the FIFA World Cup as it was still under construction in February 2014, however, the stadium was officially opened on March 9, 2014.

Manaus is also the home of several of Brazil`s football clubs like Sao Raimundo Esporte Clube, Atletico Rio Negro Clube, Nacional Fast Club and America Futebol Clube.

The Arena da Amazonia will host the following 4 matches of the 2014 World Cup:

14 June 2014: England v Italy
18 June 2014: Cameroon v Croatia
22 June 2014: USA v Portugal
25 June 2014: Honduras v Switzerland