In June of this year, efforts between the public sector (represented by the District Institute of Recreation and Sports) and the private sector (represented by Sencia) to modernize El Campín finally materialized. Edgar Cardona, the project director, and Jaime Luque, CEO of Sencia, shared the details of this significant investment.

What will modernization include?

The project, which encompasses not only the renovation of the football stadium but also the construction of new facilities such as a hotel, hospital, and a gastronomic zone, will begin in October of this year. With the vision of transforming the capital into a tourist center, Jaime Luque and Edgar El Pote Cardona announced that 167,000 square meters of the complex will be renovated, creating 4,500 direct jobs. We want to give Bogotá a cultural identity, said Jaime Luque.

The stadium’s new capacity will be 46,500 seats. The renovation will be carried out in phases. The first phase will involve the demolition and construction of the eastern stand, set to begin in February 2026. The northern and southern stands will follow in May 2027. A year later, work will move to the western side, focusing on the installation of the roof, which will take about three months. The stadium is expected to be completed and operational by December 2029.

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A major opportunity for Bogotá

This project will be carried out under a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model, where the district provides the property, and Sencia is responsible for the investment, estimated at $2.4 billion. The beauty of PPPs is that through economic incentives from the private sector to generate more revenue, the entire value chain is activated. There will be more concerts, more football matches, increased commerce, expanded entertainment options, and more brands will want to get involved. All these activities will generate higher tax revenues for the city, and the economic impact will be much greater, said Edgar Cardona.

Following trends seen in major football stadiums in Spain, England, and the United States, the renovation of El Campín aims to make the venue self-sufficient enough to host concerts and other events on non-match days. One of the main innovations will be the adaptation of the southern stand, which will be retractable, as will the stadium's roof.

It was ultimately decided that the concession period will last 29.2 years, ending around December 2053. However, it is important to clarify that the concession does not transfer ownership of the property to the private company. The concession does not grant us ownership. The stadium belongs to the city and will continue to belong to the city, concluded Jaime Luque.

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