Estadio Azteca

Estadio Azteca
Aztec Stadium

El Coloso de Santa Úrsula
200px
Location	Calzada de Tlalpan, 3465, Mexico City, Mexico
Public transit	Estadio Azteca Xochimilco Light Rail
Owner	Grupo Televisa
Operator	Club América
Executive suites	856
Capacity	95,500
Record attendance	Football: 119,853 (Mexico vs Brazil, 7 July 1968) Boxing: 132,247 (Julio César Chávez vs Greg Haugen, 20 February 1993)
Field size	105 m × 68 m (344 ft × 223 ft)
Surface	Grass
Construction
Broke ground	1961
Opened	29 May 1966
Renovated	1986, 1999, 2013
Construction cost	MXN$260 million
Architect	Pedro Ramírez Vázquez
Tenants
Mexico national football team (1966–present) Club América (Liga MX) (1966–present) Necaxa (1966–70 and 1982–2003) Atlante (1966–82, 1996–2001 and 2004–2007) Universidad Nacional (1967–1969) Atlético Español (1970–1982) Cruz Azul (1971–1996) American Bowl (1994, 1997–1998, and 2000–2001) NFL International Series (2005)

The Estadio Azteca (Spanish pronunciation: [esˈtaðjo asˈteka]) is a football stadium located in the suburb of Santa Ursula in Mexico City, Mexico. Since its opening in 1966, the stadium has been the official home stadium of the professional football team Club América and the official national stadium of the Mexico national football team. With an official capacity of 95,500, it is the largest stadium in Mexico and the third largest football stadium in the world.

Regarded as one of the most famous and iconic football stadiums in the world, it is the first to have hosted two FIFA World Cup Finals. In the 1970 World Cup Final, Brazil defeated Italy 4–1 and in the 1986 World Cup Final, Argentina defeated West Germany 3–2. It also hosted the 1986 quarter-final match between Argentina and England in which Diego Maradona scored both the "Hand of God goal" and the "Goal of the Century". The stadium also hosted the "Game of the Century", when Italy defeated West Germany 4–3 in extra time in one of the 1970 semifinal matches.

The stadium was also the principal venue for the football tournament of the 1968 Summer Olympics.

History

An internal view of the stadium

The Estadio Azteca was designed by architects Pedro Ramírez Vázquez and Rafael Mijares Alcérreca and broke ground in 1961. The inaugural match was between Club América and Torino F.C. on 29 May 1966, with a capacity for 107,494 spectators. The first goal was scored by Brazilian Arlindo Dos Santos and the second one by Brazilian José Alves "Zague"; later, the Italians tied the game, which ended in 2–2 draw. Mexican president Gustavo Díaz Ordaz made the initial kick and FIFA president Sir Stanley Rous was the witness.

A modern illumination system was inaugurated on 5 June 1966 with the first night game played between Spanish side Valencia C.F. and Necaxa. The first goal of the match was scored by Honduran José Cardona for Valencia. Roberto Martínez o Caña Brava became the first Mexican to score a goal in the stadium after scoring for Necaxa. The result was a 3–1 victory for Valencia.

In 1978 the stadium hosted the final of the Copa Interamericana between América and Boca Juniors of Argentina, and would host a final again in 1990 between América and Club Olimpia of Paraguay.

The Estadio Azteca is also the site in which Pelé and Diego Maradona (during the 1970 and 1986 FIFA World Cup) lifted the trophy for the last time (The Jules Rimet Trophy and the current FIFA World Cup Trophy, respectively).

Estadio Azteca has also been used for musical performances throughout its history. Michael Jackson (5 sold-out shows in 1993), U2 (in 2006 and 2011), Luis Miguel (in 2002), Elton John, Maná, Juan Gabriel, Gloria Estefan, Jaguares, Lenny Kravitz, *Nsync, Hanson, Ana Gabriel, and The Three Tenors all have become part of the stadium's main spectacle. The stadium has also been used for political events, including Mexican president Felipe Calderón's campaign closure in 2006, as well as religious events, like the appearance of Pope John Paul II in 1999.

Name

Estadio Azteca prior to a kickoff

The name "Azteca" is a tribute to the Aztec heritage of Mexico City. The stadium is now owned by Mexican TV consortium Televisa. In order to avoid people associating the stadium's name with that of its rival TV Azteca, Televisa officially changed the stadium's name to Guillermo Cañedo, a top executive, long-time football advocate at Televisa and prominent member of the executive committee of FIFA. The change took place in 1997, following Cañedo's death on 20 January 1997. However the change did not go well with the general population, who generally refused to refer to the stadium by its formally new name. Following a schism where two of Cañedo's sons, who worked at Televisa, switched camps and went to TV Azteca, Televisa quietly returned the stadium's name to its original version. Some people did not even notice, as they usually referred to the stadium as "Azteca" during the name change.

The stadium has been given the nickname "Coloso de Santa Ursula" which in English means "Colossus of Saint Ursula", due to its large structure. Santa Ursula refers to the part of town where the stadium resides in Mexico City.

Access and entrance

It is served by the Azteca station on the Xochimilco Light Rail line. This line is an extension of the Mexico City metro system which begins at Metro Tasqueña station and ends in the Xochimilco Light Rail Station.

Tickets are available, up to kick-off times, from the ticket office which is located at the front of the stadium, just down the exit ramps from the Azteca station. Tickets start from as little as 100 pesos (9 U.S. Dollars as of 2013). For bigger matches such as Club América's games against Chivas de Guadalajara, Cruz Azul and UNAM Pumas where sellouts are common, numerous touts circulate offering tickets at competitive prices.

A panorama of Estadio Azteca during a Club América match (Mexico City) vs Tecos (Guadalajara),

Monuments and memorials

Plaque commemorating the "Game of the Century"

A commemorative bronze plaque of the "Game of the Century" played between Italy and West Germany, as well as Diego Maradona's "Goal of the Century" against England.

There is also a commemorative plaque with the names of the first goal scorer in the inaugural match and in the first match played at night.

Notable events

Spectators outside Estadio Azteca

Estadio Azteca has hosted a variety of international sporting competitions, including:

Football

• 1968 Summer Olympics
• 1970 FIFA World Cup
• 1975 Pan American Games
• 1983 FIFA World Youth Championship
• 1986 FIFA World Cup
• 1993 CONCACAF Gold Cup
• 1999 FIFA Confederations Cup
• 2003 CONCACAF Gold Cup
• 2011 FIFA U-17 World Cup

Boxing

• On 20 February 1993, Julio César Chávez fought Greg Haugen in front of 132,247 spectators.

American Football

Main article: Fútbol Americano

• On 2 October 2005, the first international regular-season game in the history of the NFL was played in the stadium between the San Francisco 49ers and the Arizona Cardinals. The game was a 31–14 victory for the Cardinals and held the record of the largest crowd to attend a regular season NFL game with 103,467.

Concerts

• In March, 12, 1983 Menudo from Puerto Rico was the first band to sell out a solo concert (La Noche que El Azteca Canto) with an attendance of over 100,000 people.
• In October and November 1993, Michael Jackson finished the Dangerous World Tour with five sold out shows at this stadium, for a total of 500,000 people (circa 100,000 per show, more than any other artist or band, Mexican or International).
• On 14 May 2011, Irish rock band U2 presented the 360° Tour scoring the most-attended concert on the tour with a total attendance of 110,000 people.
• On 8 May 2012, Paul McCartney performed at the Estadio Azteca for the first time in his career, in a non-sold-out concert for 53,000 people. One of these shows was broadcast by Televisa(Canal 2).

Funeral services

• The funeral of fellow Mexican comedian Chespirito was held on 30 November 2014. Chespirito was a long-time fan of the stadium's main tenant Club America.

See also

• List of football stadiums in Mexico

Further reading

• "Magical memories live on in the vaunted Azteca" - fifaworldcup.com - FIFA

External links

• Official Site of the Estadio Azteca
• Estadio Azteca stadium picture

Preceded by National Stadium Tokyo	Summer Olympics Football Men's Finals (Estadio Azteca) 1968	Succeeded by Olympiastadion Munich
Preceded by Wembley Stadium London	FIFA World Cup Opening Venue 1970	Succeeded by Waldstadion Frankfurt
Preceded by Wembley Stadium London	FIFA World Cup Final Venue 1970	Succeeded by Olympiastadion Munich
Preceded by Camp Nou Barcelona	FIFA World Cup Opening Venue 1986	Succeeded by San Siro Milan
Preceded by Santiago Bernabéu Madrid	FIFA World Cup Final Venue 1986	Succeeded by Stadio Olimpico Rome
Preceded by Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Los Angeles	CONCACAF Gold Cup Final Venue 1993	Succeeded by Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Los Angeles
Preceded by King Fahd II Stadium Riyadh	FIFA Confederations Cup Final Venue 1999	Succeeded by International Stadium Yokohama Yokohama
Preceded by Rose Bowl Pasadena	CONCACAF Gold Cup Final Venue 2003	Succeeded by Giants Stadium East Rutherford
Preceded by first venue	National Football League Host stadium of international regular season game San Francisco 49ers v. Arizona Cardinals 2 October 2005	Succeeded by Wembley Stadium, London, England New York Giants v. Miami Dolphins 28 October 2007