Estadio José Amalfitani — Attraction in Autonomous City of Buenos Aires

Intense is the word to describe my experience here. And that’s an understatement.

I found an airbnb experience that landed us here with a group of other travelers. After crossing over from Montevideo via ferry, we rushed to our airbnb then bolted to the meet up location which was right across the train station. We grabbed a bite to eat at a local bar just around the corner from the stadium. After stuffing out faces with local delicacies and some beers, we began our walk to the stadium that took a minute cos all the local fans basically had a block party. When I tell you…..it was intense. The energy in that whole vicinity was wild. Smoke in the air. Everyone holding onto some bevy of their choosing. Cars were blocking every corner. People were straight posted. At one point, our guide told us to put our phones away and stop recording. There is security EVERYWHERE. Every person is frisked before entering. We had an easy time getting through since we were given a warning of what not to bring. There was a slight hiccup with half of our party not being able to scan their tickets, but the first half of us who got in took our seats at the front and saved a spot for the rest.

The standing only area was bananas. They played music the whole time and sang along as well. We were hearing so many bangers. To the point I was singing along in jibberish.

We had an amazing time. I didn’t get to partake in the snacks and drinks as I was super full from our snacks. They only had soda and some snacks. Alcohol is not allowed inside. I thought this to be ridiculous until I saw the whole place react to when someone from the opposite team scored. When I tell you the insults I heard were bonkers.

I know nothing about soccer so I really thought they’d win cos they scored the first goal. Boy, was I wrong.

Futbol...

Home grounds of the Buenos Aires football team, Club Atletico Velez Sarsfield where Los Pumas play their rugby matches when in the Capital of Argentina (neighbourhood of Liniers) … . Access is fair taking into account the masses (49,543) that attend when matches are played. Built in 1943 … view of the pitch all round is great with excellent lighting …, with the certain stands at very sharp inclines. The (completely) blue painted stadium has hosted various games and events ie.: World Cup 1978, Copa America, Super Rugby and Female Libertadores amongst others … . Bathrooms are a little basic and tacky, but other than that, perfect for these...

Leider weiss ich nicht mehr sicher, gegen wen Vélez Sarsfield in diesem Winter 2009 spielte. Und auch an das Resultat mag ich mich natürlich nicht mehr erinnern. Die Stimmung im Stadion war jedoch prächtig und ich war froh, auch einmal ein Spiel eines nicht ganz so prominenten Teams zu sehen. Auch Vélez Sarsfield kann auf viele treue und ebenso feurige Fans (Hinchas) zählen wie die grossen Clubs in und um Buenos Aires. Ich hatte als "Gast" überhaupt kein Problem. Im Gegenteil: Die Hinchas waren sehr freundlich zu mir und freuten sich, dass ich an ein Spiel ihres Clubs kam. Ein echtes Problem war dann, wieder zurück nach Palermo zu gelangen. Es hielt ca. 1 1/2 Stunden kein Bus mehr in der Nähe des Stadions. Taxis fuhren auch keine vorbei und es regnete leicht. Dunkel wurde es auch noch. Aber Angst hatte ich keine und brauchte auch keine zu haben. Ich wartete auch...