La Bombonera
The Estadio Alberto J. Armando (formerly the Estadio Camilo Cichero) is a stadium located in the La Boca district of Buenos Aires. Widely known as La Bombonera (the Chocolate Box) due to its shape, with a "flat" stand on one side of the pitch and three steep stands round the rest of the stadium. It has a capacity of 49,000.
The stadium is owned by Boca Juniors, one of Argentina's most famous football clubs. The unusual shape of the stadium has led to it having excellent acoustics and the Boca support being nicknamed "La Doce" (The 12th man).
Three sides of the Bombonera are made up of traditional stands. However, the fourth side had to be built vertically, with several seating areas stacked one on top of the other, to stay within the stadium's property. La Bombonera is renowned for vibrating when fans start to jump in rhythm. In particular, the unique vertical side will sway slightly, leading to the phrase "The Bombonera does not tremble. It beats". (Spanish: La Bombonera no tiembla. Late).
The pitch at La Bombonera is the minimum length required under FIFA regulations - 105m x 68m.
As well as being the home of Boca Juniors the stadium is also used as a concert venue, with the likes of Lenny Kravitz, Elton John, James Blunt, Bee Gees and the Backstreet Boys having performed there.
La Bombonera today
La Bombonera currently has a capacity of around 49,000 and the club's popularity make tickets hard to find, especially for the Superclásico derby against River Plate.
Out of its capacity of 49,000, there are 37,538 seats, 2780 are boxes and 8,682 standing. Both its interior and exterior are lined with a number of murals painted by the artist Pérez Celis depicting many of the club's legendary players and aspects of the district's culture, such as the life of Italian immigrants. The black and white Coca-Cola advertisement banners that hang in the stadium are among the few worldwide not to use Coca Cola's trademark red, as Boca's arch rivals River Plate play in red and white. As most English Football League teams in England are sponsored with advertisement banners in their clubs colours, with also the Coca Cola logo appearing in each clubs colours at Picadilly Circus with advertisements elsewhere in England of all the logos together in one advertisement.
Diego Maradona who played for, and supports, Boca Juniors has his own executive box at the stadium.
Boca Museum
The Passion of Boca Juniors Museum (Spanish: Museo de la Pasión Boquense) was opened by Mauricio Macri, and is located within the stadium. It is on two floors an chronicles the club's rise from 1905 to the present day. One of the exhibits in the museum is a giant football with 360-degree footage of the club's fans and players at a match. The museum also includes a Hall of fame and a large mural of Diego Maradona. Also included are non-football items such as the specially commissioned blue and gold guitar played by Lenny Kravitz when he performed at La Bombonera in 2005.
La Bombonera | eTips Inc.
