2014 World Cup Final Maracanã Stadium

At the conclusion of the Euro 2012 tournament, the next major tournament is the World Cup, in Brazil two years time. Brazil, as a member of the BRIC group of powerful developing countries. Not only Brazil is hosting the World Cup, but also the games of the XXXI Olympiad in 2016 in Rio de Janeiro. Brazil 2014 is being seen as the opening moment of Brazil's global prominence and they set out to host the 2014 World Cup with their hopes on the FIFA World Cup trophy. To commemorate their status as the "mecca" of football, they looked back on their rich tradition with the Maracanã Stadium. This stadium is famous for it's intimidating crowds much like the Estadio Azteca in Mexico as well as being the site of famous duels over the years. The Brazilians have recently experienced somewhat of a conflict between their traditional free flowing attacking form of football and a more pragmatic more defensive form of football. However, the the new stadium perfectly merges the two different eras together - the remnants of old Brazil with the new guard as well as an continuation of the Brazilian festival of colors and samba.

Looking at this facade, the original stadium hasn't changed at all, allowing spectators to recognize it's classical exterior as the Maracanã Stadium - yet the exterior is still modernist enough to blend in with icons in Brazil such as the Cathedral of Brasilia - notice the white skeleton outline that dominates both structures. This structure is also renovated in the exterior by adding a new walkway that emphasizes the scale and creates a space like a park that allows spectators to walk into the Stadium as well as being more convenient to pose for pictures thanks to this new plaza leading up to the Stadium.

 Looking at this stadium, it doesn't seem to be very spectacular - one does not want to change a renowned stadium too much - however the most prominent change that can be seen here aside from rearranged seating is the giant white canopy that hangs over the stadium to provide shelter from the scorching Brazilian sun but also provide a light filter to allow spectators to view the screens and brighten up the surroundings This is a classical move used in the ancient Colosseum, where the canopy performed many of the same functions. This no frills renovation makes it easy on the budget yet still retains much of it's classic aesthetics.