Estadio Olímpico Metropolitano

Estadio Olímpico Metropolitano is a multi-purpose stadium in San Pedro Sula, Honduras. It is currently used mostly for football matches and also has facilities for athletics. The stadium has a capacity of 37,325.[1]

Estadio Olímpico Metropolitano
Full nameEstadio Olímpico Metropolitano
LocationSan Pedro Sula, Honduras
OwnerMunicipality of San Pedro Sula
Capacity37,325
Field size105 x 68
SurfaceNatural

thumb

Grass
Construction
Built1995–1997
Opened25 September 1997
Tenants
Honduras national football team
Marathón
Real España

History

It was built in 1997 for the sixth edition of the Central American Games held there. This stadium was built by Jerónimo Sandoval, mostly known by "Chombo Sandoval", he was the organizer of the 1997 Central American Olympic Games in San Pedro Sula, which caused many controversies. After its completion the stadium became the largest in the country dispatching Estadio Nacional's of that title. It has been the home for Honduras national football team since the 1998 FIFA World Cup qualification, with Estadio Nacional hosting some games on and off. Upon Sandoval building the stadium, he noticed that the front of the stadium displayed a large "H" by coincidence. When this was discovered, the figure was painted blue to represent the colours of the Honduras national football team.[2]

Before leaving office, San Pedro Sula's former mayor, Oscar Kilgore, attempted to change the name of the stadium to José de la Paz Herrera, a prominent Honduran football coach and only coach at the time that had taken Honduras to a World Cup. The move was heavily opposed by Club Deportivo Marathón and eventually abandoned.[3]

Matches
  • First League game: March 1, 1998. Olimpia 3-2 Marathón with winning goals from Denilson Costa, Dolmo Flores and Rudy Williams. For Marathón, Juan 'Montuca' Castro and Jaime Rosales.

References
  1. Garcia, Vito (2013-03-21). "El Estadio Olimpico Metropolitano, la caldera del futbol catracho". La Ciudad Deportiva. Archived from the original on 2014-11-06. Retrieved 2014-12-27.
  2. Honduras national football team
  3. "Stadiumlist.com". Archived from the original on 2017-04-25. Retrieved 2017-04-24.


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