The Home of FIFA

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Festivities mark Home of FIFA inauguration

Zurich, 29 May 2007 - FIFA today (29 May 2007) marked the inauguration of its Home of FIFA headquarters with festivities in the presence of 1,300 association delegates and many invited guests from the worlds of sport, culture, politics and business. "The Home of FIFA is your home - come on in," said FIFA President Joseph S. Blatter to the representatives of FIFA's member associations during his welcome address. "It has been built on a foundation stone that contains earth from your home countries, so it is actually on your ground. We couldn't have wished for more solid foundations."

The Home of FIFA, a resplendent building that was the brainchild of Swiss architect Tilla Theus, is an administrative, training, conference, logistics and sports centre rolled into one. It is 134 metres long and 41 metres wide but stands just 12 metres high, and as such, it blends perfectly into its landscaped surroundings with three storeys above ground and a further five below. In other words, two-thirds of FIFA's headquarters are below ground level.

Samuel Schmid, the Swiss Minister of Defence and Sport, conveyed Switzerland's best wishes on behalf of the federal government. "Switzerland is happy and proud to say that the world's biggest sports federation is based here. We do all we can to make Switzerland a friendly and safe host country."

Schmid then presented a gift of an embroidered Swiss flag as a symbol of the country's links with FIFA.

Elmar Ledergerber, the Mayor of Zurich, where FIFA has been based at various locations since 1932, praised the city's excellent and close working relationship with world football's governing body. "FIFA and Zurich are, quite simply, a dream team."

Harold Mayne-Nicholls, the President of the Chilean football association, spoke on behalf of FIFA's members when he praised the governing body's work for the good of the associations. David Collins, the General Secretary of The Football Association of Wales, delivered an ecumenical message in which he gave thanks for the fact that there had been no accidents during construction work on the Home of FIFA.

Neither persistent rain nor the temperatures that had fallen considerably overnight were able to dampen the enthusiasm of FIFA's guests or the boys and girls representing 12 different countries in two separate U-14 tournaments. "Football is an all-weather sport. Rain is part and parcel of that, and in many countries, rain is even a godsend," said the FIFA President philosophically.

Planned in 2003, built between June 2004 and late April 2006, operational since May 2006 and now officially opened: the Home of FIFA was built in record-breaking time. It all started with FIFA's vision and desire not only to see all 285 of its employees united under one roof, but also to lead the way in promoting and implementing sustainability, flexibility and energy efficiency.

The Home of FIFA stands out on account of its sheer size, its transparency and its graceful elegance. The design of the outward-sloping walls, together with the slanting aluminium netting similar to that used in football itself that covers the entire building, bring life and movement into the Home of FIFA, while at the same time also providing state-of-the-art protection from the sun.

Further information from:
FIFA Media Department
media@fifa.org

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Home of FIFA facts and figures
Chronology
September 2003: FIFA acquires the property from Credit Suisse.
19 December 2003: The building permit is submitted. Signature of contract with general contractor HRS Hauser Rutishauser Suter AG.
14 May 2004: The foundation stone is laid as part of the festivities surrounding FIFA's 100th anniversary. At the same time, the building authorities approve the start of construction. The former Adolf-Jöhr-Weg is renamed FIFA-Strasse.
5 July 2004: Excavation begins.
5 September 2004: Construction of the shell begins.
21 October 2005: Topping-out ceremony.
28 April 2006: The keys are handed over.
May 2006: The owners move into the Home of FIFA.
16 November 2006: The sports centre is handed over.
29 May 2007: The official inauguration takes place on the evening prior to the 57th FIFA Congress.

Figures
Total costs: CHF 240 million
Property surface area: 44,000 m2
Dimensions of the main building: length: 134 metres, width: 41 metres, height: 12 metres
Levels: two upper levels, one ground level, five underground levels Building volume
- main building 179,600 m³
- sport centre 13,400 m³

Building surface areas
- main building 37,400 m2
- sport centre 2300 m2

Floor space utilisation
Workstations (full capacity) 250-300
Auditorium seats 210
Passenger car parking spaces 175
Floor space 8400 m2
Archive, storage and shipping 7000 m2
Technical rooms 3000 m2

Facade/netting
Netting surface area 8200 m2
Weight of steel netting 250 metric tonnes
Weight of glass 500 metric tonnes

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FIFA Organisation
The Home of FIFA
The new Home of FIFA.
Foto-net

(FIFA.com) 29 May 2007

The Home of FIFA is the headquarters of the world's governing body of football. This exceptional building by Swiss architect Tilla Theus is also symbolically the home of the international football community, of the 208 member associations and the 270 million players, coaches, referees and other participants around the world.

Administration, training, conference, logistics and sports centre in one, the building is impressive in how it blends harmoniously into its park-like surroundings. Out of respect for the environment, the forest clearings and the recreation areas were left intact.

The starting point of the project was shaped by FIFA's vision and desire to gather together all its employees under one roof, and to simultaneously promote and implement sustainability, flexibility and energy efficiency in a groundbreaking way. The Home of FIFA is impressive in its generous size, its transparency and its hovering elegance. The walls, with their purposeful sweep and the slanted, tilted aluminium strips of netting covering the structure provide the movement that is analogous to football, while at the same time offering sophisticated sun protection.

The representative character of the Home of FIFA is underlined by the selection and deployment of materials that are at the same time simple and elegant. Their properties, and especially the manner in which they were artfully processed by hand, result in a high-quality effect and radiance.

The building is sectioned according to functional principles. The head contains the foyer, the auditorium, the management offices and the lower-level conference rooms; the body of the building houses the remaining offices, as well as the lower level parking garage, storage rooms and other facilities.

With its seating areas, the foyer opens up to the inner courtyard and the outer rooms to the side, as well as to the park and the playing fields. Its quality is the generosity structured by the element of space. The objective is to make individuals feel welcomed, and large groups not feel crushed.

The auditorium hovers above the foyer, offering seating for 210 people. It is equipped with the latest audiovisual technology.
The actual core of the structure is located on the third underground level. Water and light were consciously selected - as in the foyer - to stress the conference area's importance as FIFA's nerve centre.

The large conference room, where the Executive Committee and the standing committees meet, is lit by a large crystal chandelier, whose shape was inspired by that of the football stadium. In the middle of the room, set into the lapis lazuli floor, is the foundation stone of the Home of FIFA. It consists of a concrete cube housing an oversized football, a time capsule that contains bags of earth from the countries of all FIFA associations, as well as other mementos.

Next to the conference room is the meditation room, with its glowing onyx shell that widens as it reaches towards the ceiling, which offers adherents of all religions a place for meditation and contemplation.

Light and lighting play a decisive role in the building, which is anchored by five underground levels deep into the ground. In the stairwells, light meanders support the dynamic movement of the climbing stairs and plunge the hard core of Brazilian granite into a soft light. The lift cabins glide like lanterns through the cores of the support towers.

The corridors with their chrome supports lend structure and light to the long, drawn-out form of the building. The "through-and-throughs", which are also part of the artistic lighting concept of the American James Turrell, offer secure orientation. Each corridor, whether lengthwise or crosswise, leads to the light with an unobstructed view of the surroundings. The corridors end in generous, often two-storied lounges.

In addition to the Brazilian granite, which is grey or black depending on its cut and processing, and the blue of the lapis lazuli plates (also from Brazil) strong and fresh colours set periodic accents - for example in the cafeteria, the central venue for employees during their breaks, or in the underground parking garage, with its storage space for logistics and vehicles. Visitors who come by car plunge at the entrance to FIFA's property directly into the second underground level via a long middle ramp, as do all lorries delivering or picking up materials.
The sports pitches (playing fields of artificial turf or sand, as well as a mini-field) and the fitness centre with seminar room and wellness installation inspire one to engage in sport and do one's own body some good.

The park: continental interplay
The main element of the outside landscape design is a park to the south and west of the building, which interchanges dense forest vegetation with open fields and clearings. It is accessed by a meandering footpath that leads through the various plant worlds, offering new views and impressions of the installation and the bordering surroundings.

The park is made up of a mix of indigenous and exotic vegetation, mirroring the activities of FIFA as the international governing body and organiser of global sports events.
Plants from all six "football continents" are represented. A savannah-like landscape stands for Africa, a copse of blossoms for Asia. Powerful groups of trees with an undergrowth of shrubs rise up from fields of high grass, portraying Oceania's bushland. Vegetation such as is found in mountain forests represent South America and the varied - robust and exotic - character of its landscape. Europe is portrayed by the small trees and bushes of varying height along the indigenous forest's edge, which extends the existing bordering forest onto FIFA's property and ties the campus to the surrounding landscape by overriding the visual boundary.

The theme of vegetation continues in the green courtyard that is closed to visitors. What catches the eye in this courtyard are eight sculptures, which tower like majestic old trees over the green carpet of moss and ferns and stand for the misty forests of North America.

Energy concept: ecological and economical
The Home of FIFA also sets benchmarks for the environment. The highest priority was given to an ecological and economic energy concept tied to modern facilities, which was harmoniously integrated into the nearby recreation area. Against this backdrop, FIFA decided on a zero-emissions building, whose requirements were completely fulfilled - for example by rejecting fossil fuels and CO2 emissions, and by implementing energy-efficient technologies and the optimal interplay of heating and cooling system. If the building needs to be heated and cooled at the same time, the heat pump takes heat from the cooling network and transfers it to the heating network.

At the Home of FIFA, the architect, the engineers, foremen, bricklayers and other construction professionals were not just doing their job, they were creating art, like the builders of cathedrals and other great structures in former times.