- By Shivangi Sharma
- Tue, 28 Oct 2025 04:40 PM (IST)
- Source:JND
Saudi Arabia is set to revolutionise the sports architecture of the future with a stadium design that appears to be straight out of a science fiction film: a football stadium suspended 350 metres over the desert. Known as the "Sky Stadium," the futuristic stadium is presented as part of the Kingdom's preparations for staging the 2034 FIFA World Cup, which Saudi Arabia officially won hosting rights for in 2023.
The massive undertaking would materialise in NEOM, the USD 500 billion mega-city now rising in the nation's northwest. Reports going around social media and local media say the stadium will stand about 1,150 feet above ground, constructed over a skyscraper in The Line, NEOM's defining linear smart city of reflective, ultramodern towers that run through the desert.
Built for approximately 46,000 spectators, the Sky Stadium offers a matchday experience unlike anything supporters have ever seen. Fans would enter the stadium via high-speed elevators and self-driving transport pods. The venue is expected to break ground in 2027 and reach completion by 2032, timed to support the expanded 48-team World Cup format, making its second appearance after 2026.
Saudi Arabia is planning to build the world's first "sky stadium," officially named the NEOM Stadium, integrated into the futuristic city of The Line. It will be suspended 350 meters (1,150 feet) above the ground, feature 46,000 seats, and use renewable energy. The stadium is… pic.twitter.com/dY5hzMLxdR
— June12 Mandate (@Gen_Buhar) October 19, 2025
Green Goals In The Sky
One of the proposal's most dramatic aspects is its emphasis on sustainability. The whole complex will be powered by solar and wind energy only, in line with Saudi Arabia's efforts to become a world leader in renewable energy innovation–even as oil continues to be a mainstay of its economy.
Saudi Arabia's ambition to stage football's premier event is accompanied by a grand plan: employing sport as a metaphor for national renewal. It has already spent hugely on international sport, box mega-fights, the meteoric growth of its home football league, and now potentially hosting one of the greatest events in sporting history. But the Sky Stadium could be the most high-profile example of its Vision 2030 development campaign.
If constructed as promoted, it might be the highest-altitude large stadium ever built and a landmark closely monitored by architects and sports enthusiasts worldwide.