Estadio Alberto J. Armando

History

The construction of the Bombonera began in 1938 in the neighborhood of La Boca, at the initiative of the club president Camilo Cichero to meet his needs. Between that year and May 25, 1940, when it was inaugurated, Boca Juniors hosted its opponents in the Estadio Ricardo Etcheverry, a stadium owned by the Ferrocarril Oeste team. The Bombonera had two floors of stands.

The stadium was inaugurated during the presidency of the club of Eduardo Sanchez Terrero, in a friendly match of Boca Juniors against San Lorenzo, another team from Buenos Aires. Boca Juniors won 2-0, two goals by Ricardo Alarcón. The next match, this time for the official competition, was on June 2 against Newell’s Old Boys. Boca Juniors won again 2-0, with goals by Ricardo Alarcón and Bernardo Gandulla.

Between 1949 and 1953, work was carried out to add a third tier of bleachers and finalize the construction of the stadium. The electric lighting was also inaugurated in 1953.

Important modifications were planned for 1975 by President Alberto J. Armando, but had to be abandoned due to the difficult political and economic situation in Argentina during that period.

Until the 1990s, the stadium did not receive any major modifications. In 1996, under the presidency of Mauricio Macri, its capacity was increased to 57,395 seats: 2,780 in the boxes, 37,538 in the seats and 17,077 standing. For this purpose, the old boxes overlooking Del Valle Iberlucea Street were demolished and replaced by a small stand. Above this stand, the new boxes were built, this time with a metal structure. In the first games played in the new Bombonera, Boca Juniors suffered a 0-6 defeat against Gimnasia La Plata, followed by a 4-1 victory against River Plate and a 3-1 victory against Universidad de Chile.