Estadio Sausalito – stadium description

One rarely sees stadiums located so picturesquely. From the west this stadium neighbours a lagoon and from the east it’s surrounded by woodland hills. In fact, the east stand uses sloped land as support since the stadium was opened in 1929. Initially it was configured to feature a cycling track between curved stands and the football field.

The single-tiered stands were able to hold some 20,000 people, but crowds in excess of that number were no rarity. Record game against Colo-Colo in 1976 reportedly gathered over 30,000 people here. And aside from great domestic games, the ground also hosted the 1962 World Cup and 1991 Copa America.

Unfortunately, during the 2010 earthquake the stadium suffered severely. Roof over the main stand was removed and capacity had to be reduced to 7,000 over safety fears. That’s why complete reconstruction was ordered in 2012, as part of preparations for the 2015 Copa America and U17 World Cup in that same year.

While the stadium’s historical shape remained almost untouched (main stand is larger than used to be), nearly all concrete elements were replaced from the old stadium. Cycling track was covered by additional rows of seats, bringing fans closer to the actions.