Pele lifted the World Cup here in 1970; Maradona followed in 1986, four days after scoring both the Hand of God and the Goal of the Century on the same afternoon in this bowl. The stadium the world knows as the Estadio Azteca - renamed Estadio Banorte in March 2025 under a naming-rights deal with the Mexican bank - stands on Calzada de Tlalpan in the Santa Ursula district of southern Mexico City, 2,200 metres above sea level. Architects Pedro Ramirez Vazquez and Rafael Mijares Alcerreca designed the colossus, which opened on 29 May 1966 and grew to hold 115,000 before the 1986 tournament. It remains the largest stadium in Latin America and the first to host two World Cup finals, along with the 1968 and 1986 Olympics-era events, the 1993 boxing record crowd of over 132,000 for Julio Cesar Chavez, and decades of Club America, Cruz Azul and El Tri history. The Banorte name arrived with the money for its biggest rebuild. Closed from May 2024, the stadium underwent a renovation financed by a 2.1-billion-peso loan from the bank, repaid over twelve years: capacity lifted to about 87,500, every seat replaced, new video screens and LED systems installed, locker rooms and a players' tunnel rebuilt beneath the suites, and a hybrid turf pitch laid. It reopened on 28 March 2026 with Mexico drawing Portugal. The timing was no accident - the stadium is staging five matches at the 2026 World Cup, including the tournament's opening game on 11 June, making it the first venue to host matches at three World Cups. Under FIFA's clean-branding rules it competes those weeks as "Estadio Ciudad de Mexico," but to fans it will only ever be the Azteca, the Coloso de Santa Ursula. Beyond football the bowl has hosted Michael Jackson, U2, NFL regular-season games and papal masses. Visitors reach it via the Xochimilco light rail's Estadio Azteca stop off the Tlalpan corridor; altitude, afternoon sun and the sheer scale of matchday crowds all reward arriving early and hydrated.

Type: Stadium / Arena

Address: Calzada de Tlalpan 3665, Mexico City, Mexico

Website: https://www.estadiobanorte.com

Capacity: 87523

Opening Date: 29/05/1966

Serves Food

Accessible