River Plate’s “El Monumental” stadium or more formally known as Estadio Antonio Vespucio Liberti is the largest stadium in Argentina. It seats approximately 62,000 people and has a rich history of both club and World Cup games.
The pitch is surrounded by an Olympic regulation track giving the stadium an even larger and more spacious feel. AEP national airport is nearby and depending on the day’s flight traffic, planes may be passing by making the game day scene quite picturesque. If you are lucky enough to catch a big rivalry game (against any of the other big 5 teams in Argentina), a late stage tournament qualifier or championship match, the stadium is deafening.
Currently located in the very north of the city in the neighborhood of Nuñez, River Plate’s stadium was actually moved two times. Prior to it’s current home River Plate had a stadium in Recoleta! It was during their time there that the team got the nickname “Los Millonarios” (millionaires).
Recoleta is well known as the old money neighborhood of Buenos Aires, but the moniker came from elsewhere. The team made an investment in talent between 1931 and 1935 (a time of financial crisis might I add) that was so grand that the local scene had never seen before. It made River Plate become one of the most successful teams of it’s time attracting so many people that it was impossible to fit all the fans inside. The team had to build another stadium so the fans could see their team when they played at home!
River Plate’s first location however was much further south in Buenos Aires in a little neighborhood called… La Boca! This is actually why the rivalry of River Plate and Boca Juniors began. It all boils down to territory or proximity sometimes.
The origins of its colors are not clear (and may never be), but among the rumors one claims that they were taken from the Genovese flag (many of the Italian immigrants that arrived to Buenos Aires came from that city). Which leads us to our next fun fact: “Xeneize” (one of the nicknames for Boca Juniors fans) is the demonym of the people that come from Genova (Boom, mind = blown).
That same pattern of a red stripe on white has been the River Plate fans explanation as to why rival teams dubbed them “Gallinas” (Chickens/Hens). However, opposing fans have a more entertaining explanation. In 1966 River Plate found themselves tied in the Copa Libertadores (South American Cup) final against Peñarol following the typical two leg stage. A playoff match was arranged on neutral turf and after the first half River Plate were leading 2-0. During a River Plate conservative, defensively played second half Peñarol had destroyed them 2-4! Observers blamed their gutless decision to not attack and attempt to score more. Gallinas was born, but not commonly associated with River until their following match.
River Plate’s next game was a regular season match against Banfield. It is unclear if it was an unhappy River Plate fan or a brazen Banfield supporter, but a rooster dressed in a River Plate jersey was released upon the field. Technically a “Gallo” (rooster), the nickname “Gallinas” was sealed!
El Monumental is the stadium where the Argentinean national team tend to play most often in the country. It was at one such event where the most glorious page of Argentinian football was written. When the national team defeated The Netherlands 3-1 in an electrifying match that allowed Argentina to win its first world cup in 1978!
Every occasion that River Plate reached the finals of the Copa Libertadores (the most important continental tournament in the Americas) and the second leg was played at home, River Plate won all of them! During such occasions in ’86 and ’96 the stadium which normally fits a max of 62,000 people managed to get 86,000 fans inside!
Some of the players that made River Plate what it is today are Pablo Aimar (the favorite player of none other than Lionel Messi), Airel Ortega, Daniel Pasarella (Argentinan capitan of the ´78 squad), Gonzalo Higuain, Javier Mascherano, Alfredo Di Stefano, Mario Kempes and Enzo Francescoli (the player that Zinedine Zidane’s son is name after).
River Plate’s ticketing system is public, but follows a particular order that can cause headaches for non-members. For games hosted at EL Monumental, tickets are first issued and offered to River Plate club members (socios), then official fan club members and finally what remains goes on sale to the public. You must register in the River Plate ticketing system and jump through their hoops to seal a reservation. For big games the system often crashes and tickets will all be claimed before reaching the public sales stage. For a Superclasico…tickets have fallen short of filling the demand for the stage 1 sales for socios on multiple occasions.
If you want to skip the registering and not worry about logistics, you can buy River Plate tickets here.
The stadium is a bit far from the other popular areas of the city, but it is well worth the trip even on a non-game day. Surrounded by parks and a big avenue called Libertador, a visit to River Plate´s museum is a must! It is one of the biggest sports museums in the world. Nearby the stadium there are several points of interest. Consider:
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