The Azteca stadium in Mexico City has a size and dimensions that will amaze anyone who sees it. It has a total capacity of 105,064 people, same population as Ourense (Galicia) and it's currently the home stadium for the National Mexican team and the soccer team “America”.
The Azteca stadium is currently owned by Grupo Televisa, a company dedicated to media. Its construction began in 1962 with the purpose of hosting the World Cup that took place in Mexico in 1970. Since that day, it became the most sacred Mexican football stadium. It is built on the rocky surface of the Xitle volcano within the “Old Ejido of Santa Ursula”, which is an old Mexican town.
In order to build this stadium, 800 operators, 35 engineers, 18 technicians and 10 architects were required. Regarding the construction, they needed 200 tons of rolled steel profile, 100,000 tons of concrete and 8,000 tons of rods, among other materials. Initially, it had a budget of 95 million of Mexican pesos, but in the end, more than 200 million pesos were spent.
The construction was completed thanks to clubs like America, Atlante and Nexaca which spared the
20% of their income to the completion of the stadium.
Finally, the Azteca Stadium was inaugurated on 29th May 1966. Nowadays, it has the dimensions of 105 x 68 m. Since its capacity is of 105,064 people, it means that it can fit 6,300 more spectators than Camp Nou (FC Barcelona’s stadium), which is the largest stadium in Europe.
It contains 631 boxes and is currently divided into three different levels: Special numbered seats, VIP numbered seats and standard seats. In conclusion, it possess state of art facilities and a parking lot for over 5,300 vehicles.
The Azteca Stadium's list of records and curiosities is amazingly long. It is the only stadium that has hosted two finals of a FIFA World Cup (Mexico '70 and Mexico '86). It is also said to have accommodated the most exciting match of football’s history, the semifinal facing Italy against Germany in 1970, today known as "The Game of the Century".
If that was not enough, great football players such as Pele played several times in this field. Furthermore, the famous goal that Diego Armando Maradona scored with his hand, known as the "Hand of God", also took place in the Azteca Stadium. Additionally, it is the World Cup stadium with more games played, a total of 19, and it also hosted the Olympic Games.
However, it hasn’t only held sport events, as it has also received musical stars like Michael Jackson, Elton John, Lenny Kravitz, The Black Eyed Peas, U2 and even the visit of Pope John Paul II. Even more, the Argentine singer Andres Calamaro has dedicated a song called "Coloso de Santa Ursula"
to this stadium.
