“Four men in uniform are studying the Stade Alassane Ouattara Ebimpe with their arms folded. They are locals and their uniform is a combination of floral-patterned shirt, jeans and flip-flops. Such is their fixation, it seems as though they are waiting for what has been called the most advanced football arena in Africa to express itself, maybe even take off and fly away. The stadium certainly looks like a spaceship, one that was landed incongruously on the red earth of semi-rural Abidjan, Ivory Coast’s de-facto capital. It is not a machine-beast, lumpen or identikit, but an architectural wonder with subtleties, such as a roof that curves and swoops around its giant bowl like an ocean wave or a skateboard rink. Below, enormous coliseum-style pillars support a fascia that includes latticing reflective of the Ivory Coast’s tricolour flag. …”
The Athletic