The future of Rayo Vallecano’s stadium has become one of the hottest topics in Madrid. The club is openly questioning the sense of remaining at Estadio de Vallecas, while regional authorities are pushing a very different vision for the venue’s development.

"Rayo will die if it stays on this pitch"

The conflict between the club and the Community of Madrid has reached a boiling point. Raúl Martín Presa, president of Rayo, made the matter clear in recent media appearances on DAZN and Radioestadio Noche: the current Estadio de Vallecas is an economic trap. The stadium cannot generate commercial income, so it is condemned to failure, he argues. Presa used a drastic comparison, claiming that if the team stays at the current facility, it will become a second Luis Sitjar - referring to Mallorca's decaying old stadium.

However, the president defends himself against allegations of negligence regarding maintenance. Rayo's stadium is cleaned daily; no expense is spared on cleaning, he assures, adding that pitch problems are already being resolved by an external company. In his view, it is impossible to build a facility with the required parameters and access near the Vallecas bridge, forcing a move far from the current location.

© Stephan Hoogerwaard | The president of Rayo Vallecano believes that the stadium in its current form is doomed to failure.

"The stadium will remain in its place"

The response from the land owner, the Community of Madrid, is unyielding. President Isabel Díaz Ayuso cut short speculation: The stadium will remain in its place. This is the most appropriate decision and beneficial for the neighborhood. Authorities announce a renovation focused on safety and increasing capacity, although they admit that dreams of a 40,000-seat facility are unrealistic. The goal is an additional 10,000 seats.

Temporary works are already underway - installation of barriers between the away stand, repair of roofs and facades, and the creation of historical murals. Mariano de Paco, Minister for Sports, reminds that the club has been in this location for a hundred years (the stadium was built in 1930 as a Racing Club de Madrid facility, and Atlético won its first titles here).

Problem is not location, but... sun

The architectural firm AGAS has stepped into the impasse, preparing a project on behalf of the fans proving that a new Vallecas fits in Vallecas. The architects' key discovery is the incorrect orientation of the current pitch on an east-west axis, which causes goalkeepers to be blinded by the sun in the morning.

The project proposes rotating the pitch to a north-south axis, following the example of Santiago Bernabéu, which would allow for a comprehensive modernization of the facility. This maneuver would enable an increase in capacity to 25,000 seats, which is crucial given that Rayo currently has one of the smallest stadiums in the league with a very high 90% occupancy rate. At the same time, such a reconstruction would preserve the Municipal Sports Center and the headquarters of the boxing, table tennis, billiards, and chess federations located by the stadium, and would not obstruct the view for residents of Teniente Muñoz Díaz Street.

© AGAS Architects | The project involves rotating the playing field and increasing its capacity.

Boomerangs, lasers, and big concerts

The cost of reconstruction is estimated at €40 - 50 million, and the work would take 1.5 years. The AGAS project meets President Presa's requirements: it includes 1,050 parking spaces, VIP zones, and commercial areas.

The architecture is intended to be symbolic - two stands shaped like boomerangs are meant to remind everyone that Rayo always returns. A novelty would be a red laser cutting across the stadium on match days and an under-seat air conditioning system. Importantly, the project envisions the return of concerts - in the 80s, Bob Dylan and Metallica played here.

There is also a cheaper Plan B: building additional tiers over Payaso Fofó Street without rotating the pitch (capacity 20,000), which would take only one summer. For now, however, despite fan enthusiasm and the lack of technical obstacles, a lack of political agreement blocks the start of the investment.

© AGAS Architects | A new stadium for Rayo Vallecano would meet the expectations of Rayo's president and the club's ambitions to host non-sporting events.