Estadio Ester Roa – tournament stadium description

Extremely ambitious, this stadium began as a World Cup candidate in 1957. Reconstruction of old wooden stands at Estadio Collao (Collao is the location in eastern Concepción) ended in 1962 with a continuous lower tier and upper sections along both sides. Altogether the stadium could hold 35,000 people, more than any other in southern Chile and also any outside the capital Santiago.

Ironically, despite its scale the stadium didn’t make the host list and was only used domestically at the beginning. Various clubs brought their football performances to this location, most notably Universidad, CD Concepción and Fernandes Vial. Aside from football it was also the site of major events like concerts.

However, the size proved problematic for the municipality as Collao’s structure began aging. Not only that, the city has one problem fairly unknown in some parts of Chile – heavy rainfall. Combined with wooden benches and uncovered stands this led to poor spectator conditions and rapid deterioration of the structure.

Salvation came in 2012, when the stadium was listed for Chilestadios redevelopment program ahead of Copa America 2015. Reconstruction brought complete upgrade of the building with renovated concrete, expanded upper stands, new roof and various more amenities. Thanks to the expansion its capacity is still impressive despite installing individual seats.