Things are happening at Argentina’s top clubs. Both River Plate and Boca Juniors are modernizing their legendary home stadiums.
The historic Argentine club Boca Juniors plans to expand its legendary stadium, La Bombonera. As club president and former national team player Juan Roman Riquelme announced on the club’s website, the plan is to increase capacity from 57,000 to 80,000 seats. Construction is set to begin during the 2026 World Cup in June and July and will take two years. The estimated cost ranges between 50 and 60 million US dollars (44 to 53 million euros).
Legendary box stand to be demolished
The blue-and-yellow Bombonera—meaning “chocolate box”—has long been characterized by its box stand on one of the stadium’s long sides. This is now set to be demolished and replaced with new standing-room-only sections and 216 new boxes.
The main part of the project is the expansion of the arena to include a fourth tier and a partial roof. The stadium is officially named after former club president Alberto José Armando; the nickname refers to its resemblance to a box of chocolates.
In addition to countless national titles, Boca Juniors have also won the Intercontinental Cup three times (1977, 2000, 2003) and the Copa Libertadores—South America’s most prestigious club competition—six times (most recently in 2007). They last won the Argentine top-flight title in 2022. Currently, after a mixed start to the ongoing half-year championship, Boca Juniors sit only 13th in the 30-team field of the domestic top division.
Maradona’s Club – River Set to Reach Six Figures
The most famous player in the club’s history is the unforgettable Diego Maradona, who played for Boca from 1981 to 1982 and from 1995 to 1997. His farewell match took place at La Bombonera in 2001.
Record champion River Plate, Boca’s great rival, announced an expansion of its stadium at the end of January. The legendary Estadio Monumental, also known as El Monumental, is set to be expanded from 85,000 to 101,000 seats by 2029 and will also be covered.