River Plate Stadium

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The Estadio Monumental Antonio Vespucio Liberti, better known as El Monumental de Nuñez or River Plate Stadium, is a stadium in the Belgrano district of Buenos Aires, Argentina. It is the home venue of Club Atlético River Plate and is named after former club president Antonio Vespucio Liberti. El Monumental is considered to be the national stadium of Argentina.

History

The first match played in this stadium was on 25 May 1938 between River Plate and Peñarol from Uruguay. River won 3-1.

The stadium was renovated several times, most notably for the 1978 World Cup, when the missing stands of one side were erected to complete the circle around the field.

Events

The Monumental, aside from being where River Plate plays as host team, is also the stadium where the Argentine National Football Team usually plays as host, in events such as the FIFA World Cup qualification.

Rugby union matches featuring the Argentina national rugby union team, Los Pumas, also take place occasionally in this field, although the Pumas more frequently play at another Buenos Aires venue, Vélez Sársfield. In addition, when an international music superstar or band comes to the country, its concert is held in this stadium, as it is the biggest in the country. Iron Maiden, Bon Jovi, The Ramones, The Rolling Stones, Madonna, Luis Miguel, Robbie Williams, David Bowie, Paul McCartney, Roger Waters, U2, Guns N’ Roses, Michael Jackson, Rod Stewart, Eric Clapton, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Slayer, Shakira, Aerosmith, The Police, Evanescence, Keane, Beck, Metallica, Kiss, Tina Turner, Franz Ferdinand, Peter Gabriel, Backstreet Boys, Bruce Springsteen, Ozzy Osbourne, Bob Dylan, AC/DC, Korn, Oasis, Black Sabbath, High School Musical have played here, among others. Local important bands such as Soda Stereo, Patricio Rey y sus Redonditos de Ricota or Serú Girán have also held their major shows at the Monumental as well. In 2007, Soda Stereo played 6 sold out shows at the stadium, having the call record of shows in a single tour.

Madonna performed 4 sold-out concerts in December 2008 as part of her Sticky & Sweet Tour: during one of these concerts, an official DVD of the tour was filmed. She holds the record for fastest sell out concert at the stadium for her first show, with 3 hours and more than 67,000 tickets sold.

River Plate Stadium Pics

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Estádio do Morumbi

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Estádio Cícero Pompeu de Toledo is a stadium in São Paulo, Brazil, popularly known as Estádio do Morumbi, or just Morumbi, because of its location in the city’s Morumbi neighborhood. It is the home ground of São Paulo Futebol Clube and its formal name honors Cícero Pompeu de Toledo, who was São Paulo FC’s chairman during most of the stadium construction, and died before its inauguration. The stadium was designed by the architect João Batista Vilanova Artigas.

Morumbi once held 120,000 seats, but now its maximum capacity is only 80,000 seats, and only 75,000 tickets are sold each game for safety reasons. The playing field measures 108.25 metres (118.38 yd) x 72.70 metres (79.51 yd).

History

In 1952, São Paulo’s chairman Cícero Pompeu de Toledo requested the city’s mayor Armando de Arruda Pereira a groundplot in the Ibirapuera neighborhood. However, the mayor refused the request, but donated a groundplot in the Morumbi neighborhood to São Paulo.

On August 15, 1952, the stadium construction started. Only eight years later, in 1960, the construction was partially concluded, and the stadium was inaugurated with a maximum capacity of 70,000 people.

The inaugural match was played on October 2, 1960, when São Paulo beat Sporting Lisbon of Portugal 1-0. The first goal of the stadium was scored by São Paulo’s Peixinho.

On March 2, 1969, shortly after the end of the São Paulo-Corinthians 2-4 match, a thunderbolt discharged close to the stadium, starting a tumult in the stadium exit doors. Because of the tumult, one of the walls collapsed, and a 40-year old Corinthians supporter named João Benedetti died.

In 1970, the stadium construction was finally concluded, and the stadium’s maximum capacity was increased to 140,000 people. The re-inaugural match between São Paulo and FC Porto drew 1-1.

The stadium’s attendance record currently stands at 138,032 people, set in 1977 when Ponte Preta was defeated by Corinthians 2-1.

In 1994, a major overhaul of the stadium started, which was concluded only in 2000. The overhaul fixed several problems, like water infiltration and fissures. A new illumination system was installed, and the safety conditions were improved. The stadium’s maximum capacity was reduced to 80,000 people.

Events

The stadium has been host to many international shows, including: Nirvana, Michael Jackson, Madonna (who performed one show at the stadium in 1993 with The Girlie Show Tour, and three shows in 2008, closing the South American leg of her Sticky & Sweet Tour), Kiss, Aerosmith, Linkin Park, U2, RBD, High School Musical and Queen.

Estádio do Morumbi Pics

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