Japan’s leading independent architectural practice, Nikken Sekkei, in collaboration with the local firm Joan Pascual i Ramon Ausió Arquitectes, has won the competition for the new arena of Futbol Club Barcelona, which will maintain the structure of Camp Nou as it is while giving it the features of an altogether new stadium. The proposals for the renovation that made it to the finals were drawn up by teams of the caliber of BIG+Idom+Baas, HKS+Cox+Batlle i Roig, and Popolous+Mias+RCR. Deliberations led to a unanimous decision. Consisting of five top directors of the club, three members of the Catalonia Institute of Architects (COAC), and one representative of Barcelona City Hall, the jury deemed that Nikken Sekkei’s design for the new Barça stadium “stood out because it’s open, elegant, serene, timeless, Mediterranean and democratic.” Construction work is supposed to begin in May2017 and the building should be finished in time for the 2021-2022 season.