Estadi Montilivi – stadium description

How did Estadi Montilivi happen?

In 1920, the football club UD Girona was founded. This club built its own football facility, Camp de Vista Alegre, which opened on July 29, 1922. In 1930, a new club was formed, Girona FC, which has played host to this facility ever since. In the late 1960s, Girona FC officials began planning the construction of a new stadium. The architect of the new arena was Josep Ros and the main contractor was the company Fomento de Obras y Construcciones. The cost of construction was just under 6.5 million pesetas.

When was the Estadi Montilivi opened?

The new facility was opened on August 14, 1970, and on the opening day the hosts lost in a friendly match against FC Barcelona 1:3. In the following two days, the first edition of the Trofeo Costa Brava friendly tournament was played at the stadium, involving Valencia CF, Espanyol Barcelona, as well as Borussia Neunkirchen from Germany and San Lorenzo de Almagro from Argentina. This tournament, with interruptions, is still played annually to this day.

What is the new Girona FC stadium like?

The new venue has been given gently profiled single-tier stands, surrounding the pitch on all sides. The covered main stand, slightly higher than the others, is located on the west side. Based on a reinforced concrete structure, it is approximately 60 m long and has been partially separated from the others, built on earth banks. The capacity of the venue was initially estimated at 17,000 spectators, although the opening match was watched from the stands by nearly 25,000 people. The stadium was given an almost identical appearance to Estadi de la Nova Creu Alta in Sabadell, near Barcelona, which had opened three years earlier.

How Estadi Montilivi compares to other LaLiga stadiums?

What was the history of the Estadi Montilivi after its opening?

In 1984, due to debt, the club sold the stadium to the city, but remained its main user. In the 1990s, the stand on the eastern side began to collapse, so it was closed and the concrete steps along almost its entire length were demolished, leaving a grass-covered earth bank.

In 2008 Girona FC, after almost 50 years, returned to the second tier of the league. Later that year, the stadium underwent an upgrade and plastic seating was installed in the auditorium. Between 2009 and 2010, the east stand was rebuilt.

In 2017, the club was promoted to LaLiga for the first time in its history. In the summer of that year, additional temporary rows of stands were added to the north and east sides, increasing the capacity from 9282 to 13 500 spectators. The additional stands on the eastern side were partially provided with a canopy. A year later, temporary stands (additional 1,000 seats) were also added on the south side.

After relegation from LaLiga in 2019, the temporary stands behind both goals were demolished, reducing the capacity to 11,200 spectators. After promotion back to LaLiga in 2022, additional rows were again added to the north stand, increasing the stadium's capacity to 13,400 spectators.