MyJHB
Stuff from Johannesburg
Advertorial: Ethel Kuuya: Visionary Leader, Founder and CEO of Advisory Kulture, and Author, Pioneers a New Era of Leadership with …
MyPR: Call for Application – School Advisory Board Members: Opportunity closing date: Thursday 31, December 2020 Opportunity type: …
Johannesburg in the news: Land reform advisory panel: SA requires clarity on implications of policy change: JOHANNESBURG – The …
Johannesburg in the news: Traffic Advisory: N12 Section 20 Temporary Closure: N12 Westbound eMalahleni West/Ogies (Exit No. 524) …
While the original stadium was built in 1989, its current iconic form was the result of a massive reconstruction for the 2010 FIFA World Cup. The design, led by the architectural firm Boogertman + Partners, is deeply rooted in African symbolism. Its exterior is modeled after a calabash, the traditional African gourd or “melting pot.” The facade is composed of thousands of fiber-cement panels in eight different earth-toned colors, mimicking the fire and earth used to kiln the traditional pot. At night, the stadium is illuminated from below, creating the visual effect of a glowing fire beneath the “pot,” a symbol of the warmth and hospitality of the African continent.
The stadium’s capacity is a staggering 94,736, making it the largest stadium in Africa and the fourth largest in the world. But its significance transcends its scale. The site is a “theatre of history.” In 1990, just days after his release from 27 years of imprisonment, Nelson Mandela delivered his first speech to a massive, roaring crowd at the original FNB Stadium. It was here that he effectively signaled the beginning of the end of Apartheid. Decades later, in 2013, the same stadium hosted his memorial service, bringing the world together in a final farewell to “Madiba.”