Estadio Gran Parque Central

Infobox Stadium
stadium_name = Estadio Gran Parque Central
nickname = "El Parque Central" (the Central Park)
Venue of the 1930 FIFA World Cup


fullname = Estadio Gran Parque Central
location = Montevideo, Uruguay
built = 1900
opened = 1900
renovated = 1911,1944, 1974, 2005
closed =
demolished =
owner = Club Nacional de Football
operator =
surface = Grass
construction_cost =
architect =
former_names =
tenants = Deutscher FK (1900-1909)
Club Nacional de Football (1910- )
seating_capacity = 22,000 (expected 35.000)
dimensions = 105 x 70 m

The Estadio Gran Parque Central, popularly known as Parque Central, is the stadium of Club Nacional de Football. It is located in Montevideo, Uruguay, near Nacional headquarters (exactly between the streets Carlos Anaya, Jaime Cibils, General Urquiza and Comandante Braga), in the La Blanqueada neighbourhood. In this stadium, Nacional plays its home games.

This stadium was one of the venues of the 1930 FIFA World Cup, and it is the grounds in which the first match in the history of the FIFA World Cup was played (when in group D the United States defeated Belgium 3-0 on July 13th, 1930). This historical fact was remembered by FIFA on two occasions: 1987 and 2005. At the same time, another match was played at the now defunct Estadio Pocitos. [http://www.fifa.com/en/news/feature/0,1451,110380,00.html]

The stadium has four main stands: Tribuna José María Delgado (North), Tribuna Atilio García (South), Talud Abdón Porte (West), Talud Héctor Scarone (East), named after famous Nacional players (like Atilio García, Abdón Porte and Héctor Scarone) and a chairman of the club (José María Delgado).

History

The Estadio Gran Parque Central is one of the most important landmarks in the history of Uruguay, not only because of its relevance in sports, but also for its bonds with the richest history of Uruguayans and their national, patriotic feelings.

Before the existence of Parque Central as a sports ground, in the exact same location (which used to be known as "Chacra de la Paraguaya"), Uruguay's national hero José Artigas was named Jefe de los Orientales (leader of the Uruguayan people) in 1811. Some authorities dispute this as the site of the "Chacra de la Paraguaya."

The beginnings

The Parque Central was opened for the practice of sports in 1900, having been the site of Montevideo's bullring until the abolition of this activity.At first,the tennants of the stadium were Deutscher Fussball Klub for their home games at the first uruguayan league championship in 1900.For 1901,Club Nacional de Football also started to play at the second field as they entered the AUF league.From that year until now, the Estadio Gran Parque Central has witnessed several championships won by Nacional (the last one in 2005/2006 season) and Uruguay national football team.

Many parts of the stadium remain unchanged since 1900, like the old "Mirador" located behind the Tribuna Atilio García stand, although the current pitch is different from the one of the beginning of the past century. The current orientation is east-west,opposite to the first one that was north-south,and there was another field in the actual place of the east stands and eastern part of the pitch.

Until 1930, the Parque Central was the main sports venue in Uruguay. It was only with the building of the Estadio Centenario that Nacional's stadium was superseded.

The 1930 FIFA World Cup

During the 1930 FIFA World Cup, the stadium hosted 6 group matches:

Group D match

Group B match

Group A match

Group A match

Group B match

Group D match

Remodellings

Burnt almost complete after the fire of 1911,it was rebuilt a couple of years later.The second remodelling of the Estadio Gran Parque Central took place in 1944. On that occasion, improvements of the pitch and the four stands were made, and more seats were added in the main stand, Tribuna José María Delgado.

Thirty years later, the Parque Central was remodelled once again due to a fire that destroyed part of the stadium.

Present situation

In 2005, through the efforts of Nacional fans and the sale of modern, special seats in the Tribuna José María Delgado stand, the Estadio Gran Parque Central was remodelled once again. The aim of this remodelling was to meet international football standards, which would allow Nacional to play home games for the Uruguayan Championship and the Copa Libertadores at its historic stadium. The present capacity is 22.000, but in following years it is expected to expand to 35.000.

External links

* [http://www.parquecentral.com.uy/ Official Website]
*

References