Boca Juniors Stadium is a legendary venue for any football fan. However, the Buenos Aires facility has for years been too small to accommodate all the supporters of the club from the Argentine capital. Boca Juniors presidential candidate Jorge Reale has unveiled plans to build a new stadium in a different location in order to meet fans' expectations.

Iconic stadium too small for supporters' needs

Estadio Alberto J. Armando better known as La Bombonera was opened in 1940. What draws attention is above all the very unusual shape of the stadium. This is due to the extremely cramped plot of land on which it was built. Over the years, the facility has been extended by adding further tiers of seating, enabling it to accommodate 60,000 spectators. However, it was decided to reduce the capacity of the stands to 54,000 for safety reasons back in the current century. 

For the needs of the club, this number is clearly insufficient. Enough to say that Boca has as many as 315,000 registered socios. This is a definite record in Argentine football, with only Bayern Munich having a larger number of members in the world - 321,000. This is indeed an impressive result, of which the club can be proud, but at the same time, given the capacity of La Bombonera, it is also a little worrying, as only 20% of socios can attend their favourite club's matches.

© Enrique Lombardi & Asoc.

The need to modernise Los Xeneizes' arena has been talked about for years. The club's current president, Jorge Amor Ameal, after winning the 2019 elections, has set his sights on an expansion concept called Bombonera 360, which was conceived back in 2015. Its basic idea is to buy out two quarters to the east of the stadium and build new stands in place of a pavilion with boxes. This is to give the stadium a symmetrical layout. The expansion of the auditorium is to increase the capacity of the venue by more than half, to 78,000 spectators. La Bombonera is also to gain a canopy. At the moment, however, the project has not progressed.

Presidential candidate presents new vision

In 2023, Boca faces the election of a new head. One of the candidates for the position is Jorge Reale, who has just presented a new stadium concept for the club in a completely new location. Reale's plan, it must be said, is very ambitious. It envisages the construction of a blue and gold arena on a 12-hectare site on Demarchi Island, just 1.3 kilometres from the historic site at 805 Brandsen St. A few weeks ago, the candidate toured the site by helicopter and met with renowned architect Enrique Lombardi, who is responsible for the concept of the proposed facility.

Following a survey of the ground, the possibility of building a huge stadium on the island was confirmed. The new La Bomboniera would have a capacity of 112,000 spectators under a roof! In addition, it would have 444 VIP seats, 78 TV booths, 4,000 parking spaces and it would be twice the size of its predecessor.

© Enrique Lombardi & Asoc.

In order to realise this ambitious project, the new Boca Juniors authorities will have to ask the central government for a transfer of land or a long-term lease before work can begin on the proposed stadium. At the same time, it is necessary to develop, in cooperation with the city authorities, routes to reach the facility. The concept is to build three bridges with pedestrian walkways. Key to the negotiations is expected to be the possibility of hosting the 2030 World Cup matches at La Nueva Bombonera.

As for the historic Estadio Alberto J. Armando, Reale has plans for it. It wants it to be used by women's football teams, youth teams and for special matches. In addition, the project aims to generate a 'virtual circulation' between the two stadiums, which would revitalise the neighbourhood by generating more activity.

Whether La Nueva Bombonera will actually be built will be found out after this year's election for president of Boca Juniors. Reale's opponent will be the well-known former Argentine footballer and current vice-president of the club, Juan Roman Riquelme.

© Enrique Lombardi & Asoc.