It's been a bumper year for blockbuster building unveilings. As a useful indicator of some key current and future trends, here are 10 of the most significant architecture announcements of 2024.
Legends Tower, USA, by AO: Legends Tower, a 581-metre-tall skyscraper planned for Oklahoma City that, year if built, will be the world's tallest building outside of Asia.
Since being announced in January the project, which is being developed by Matteson Capital, has received full funding and approval from the city council. California-based architect designing Legends Tower revealed that such a lofty building had not been the original intention.
Saudi Arabia's World Cup stadiums: Saudi Arabia remains the only contender to host the 2034 FIFA World Cup, and in August it revealed all the stadiums it intends to use, including 11 set to be newly built. Among them is the Neom Stadium, incorporated into The Line skyscraper-city currently under construction in the north-west of the country. Described by the Saudi bid as "the most unique stadium in the world", its pitch will be more than 350 metres above the ground though the architect has not yet been named.
Other major Neom announcements this year included an "upside-down skyscraper" inside a mountain and a 450-metre-long bridge hotel. The region-building project continues to attract fierce criticism from human rights groups.
Foster + Partners' two-kilometre-high skyscraper: Though not an announcement – and currently unconfirmed by the architect or a developer – this was one of the biggest architecture stories of 2024.
Architecture studio Foster + Partners is designing a two-kilometre-high skyscraper in the Saudi capital of Riyadh. If completed, it would be by far the world's tallest building, more than twice the height of the 828-metre-tall Burj Khalifa in Dubai and double that of Jeddah Tower, which is currently under construction in the Saudi port city.
Senna Tower, Brazil, by Lalalli Senna: Further proof that the development of record-breaking skyscrapers is showing no sign of slowing down came from Brazil. Planned for Balneário Camboriú, a city in Brazil's southern Santa Catarina state, Senna Tower is slated to be 500 metres tall, which would make it not only South America's tallest building but the tallest residential tower in the world.
The slim, glass-clad tower has been designed by artist Lalalli Senna to reflect the "heroic journey" of her late uncle, the racing driver Ayrton Senna.
Marcus Center, USA, by Michael Green Architecture: The emergence of increasingly tall mass-timber buildings has also been a key architecture trend in recent years, and in August another wooden project seeking to go higher than any other was unveiled. Vancouver studio Michael Green Architects released plans for a development in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, that includes a 55-storey tower built principally from mass-timber elements.
If constructed, it would unseat the 86.6-metre-tall Ascent tower by Korb + Associates Architects, also in Milwaukee, as the world's tallest building made from engineered wood.
8 Canada Square renovation, UK, by KPF: Renovation has become an increasing focus for many architects in the face of concerns about the environmental impact of new construction, while the owners of large office buildings have been seeking ways to adapt their assets to suit post-Covid demands. These two trends appeared to come together when US architecture studio Kohn Pedersen Fox (KPF) unveiled plans to overhaul the Foster + Partners-designed HSBC tower in London's Canary Wharf, officially named 8 Canada Square.
Terraces will be cut into the facade of the 200-metre-tall skyscraper with new functions added, with cultural and leisure amenities introduced alongside workspaces.
Grand Stade Hassan II stadium, Morocco, by Oualalou + Choi and Populous: Architecture studios Oualalou + Choi and Populous released images of the Grand Stade Hassan II in Morocco, being constructed for the 2030 World Cup. With a planned 115,000 seats, it will become the world's largest football stadium once completed. The stadium will be covered with a giant tented roof made from an aluminium lattice.
888 Brickell, USA, by Studio Sofield and Dolce & Gabbana: Branded residential skyscrapers have emerged as a major building trend this decade. So far, luxury car brands have dominated the market, but in April, fashion house Dolce & Gabbana signalled its intention to join them. The label released renderings of a supertall skyscraper in Miami designed in collaboration with New York architecture practice Studio Sofield.
Muraba Veil, UAE, by RCR Arquitectes : Dubai has become synonymous with statement skyscrapers, and in October it was announced that yet another will be joining the Gulf city's downtown skyline. Pritzker Architecture Prize-winning studio RCR Arquitectes revealed its design for Muraba Veil, which despite being 380 metres tall will only be one apartment wide. The bottom of the apartment building will be occupied by a spa and communal space designed to have the feeling of being inside a sand dune.
La Sagrada Familia completion date: Not all the big architecture news this year was about new projects. In March, La Sagrada Familia Foundation announced that a completion date has finally been set for the famous Barcelona church designed by Antoni Gaudí. Construction is now expected to conclude in 2026 – more than 140 years after it began, and a century on from the architect's death. On completion, its 170-metre central spire will make La Sagrada Familia the tallest church in the world.
