Castelão (Ceará)

                            "Gigante da Boa Vista"

Full name	Estádio Plácido Aderaldo Castelo
Location	Fortaleza, Ceará, Brazil
Coordinates	3°48′26.16″S, 38°31′20.93″W
Opened	November 11, 1973
Renovated	2002 – 2012
Owner	State of Ceará
Operator	State of Ceará
Surface	Grass
Capacity	67,037
Field dimensions	110 x 75 m
Tenants	Ceará Fortaleza 2014 FIFA World Cup

                                          

                                         The Estádio Plácido Aderaldo Castelo, also known as the Castelão (Portuguese pronunciation: [kasteˈlɐ̃w) or Gigante da Boa Vista, is a football stadium that was inaugurated on November 11, 1973 in Fortaleza, Ceará, Brazil, with a maximum capacity of 67,037 people. The stadium is owned by the Ceará state Government, and is the home ground of Ceará Sporting Club and Fortaleza Esporte Clube. Its formal name honors Plácido Aderaldo Castelo, who served as the Governor of Ceará from September 12, 1966 to March 15, 1971, and was a leader in getting the stadium built.

History

·         Castelão was constructed from 1969 to 1973 and was inaugurated on November 11 of that year.

·         In May 2000, the Ceará state government started to reform the stadium. The reformations were divided in three stages, and started on May 16, 2001. The first stage consisted in the recovery of the ditches, and of the bleachers junctions, as well as the recovery of the low walls. The second stage of the reformation started on July 20, 2001, and consisted in the recovery and strengthening of the stadium's physical structure. The third stage consisted in the recovery of the electrical, hydraulic, sanitary, and electronic installations.

·         The inaugural match was played on November 11, 1973, when Ceará and Fortaleza drew 0-0. The stadium's first goal was scored on November 18, 1973 by Ceará's Erandy, when Ceará beat Vitória 1-0.

·         The re-inaugural match was played on March 23, 2002, when the Brazil national team beat the Yugoslavia national team 1-0. The stadium's first goal after the re-inauguration was scored by Brazil's Luizão. The stadium's attendance record currently stands at 118,496, set on August 27. 1980, when the Brazil national team beat the Uruguay national team 1-0.

2013 FIFA Confederations Cup

Date	Time (UTC-03)	Team #1	Res.	Team #2	Round	Attendance
June 19, 2013	16:00	Brazil	2-0	Mexico	Group A	57,804
June 23, 2013	16:00	Nigeria	0-3	Spain	Group B	51,263
June 27, 2013	16:00	Spain	0–0	Italy	Semi-Final	56,083

2014 FIFA World Cup

                         Castelão is one of the venues of the 2014 FIFA World Cup, which will be held in Brazil. The stadium was redeveloped for the tournament; the reconstruction project involved the addition of a larger roof, the construction of an underground car park with 4,200 spaces, and a new lower tier. After the redevelopment, the stadium now has capacity of 67,037.[citation needed The stadium closed on March 31, 2011 for the reconstruction project, which was officially completed in December 2012. Castelão was the first of 12 stadiums being built or redeveloped for the 2014 World Cup to be completed.

Date	Time (UTC-03)	Team #1	Res.	Team #2	Round
June 14, 2014	16:00	Uruguay	Match 7	Costa Rica	Group D
June 17, 2014	16:00	Brazil	Match 17	Mexico	Group A
June 21, 2014	16:00	Germany	Match 29	Ghana	Group G
June 24, 2014	17:00	Greece	Match 38	Ivory Coast	Group C
June 29, 2014	13:00	Winner Group B	Match 51	Runner-up Group A	Round of 16
July 4, 2014	17:00	Winner Match 49	Match 57	Winner Match 50	Quarter-finals

           

Other events

·         On July 9, 1980, it was opened in Fortaleza the 10th National Eucharistic Congress. Pope John Paul II participated in the celebrations of the Congress and the Estádio Castelão received the largest public of its history: 120,000 followers. On this occasion, during Virgílio Távora's government, the stadium was reformed, and the bleachers of the inferior section were concluded.

·         Another religious celebration happened on August 13, 1995. On this occasion the archbishop of Fortaleza Dom Aloísio Lorscheider farewell gathered 50 thousand followers.

·         Several artistic shows were made at the stadium. One of the most outstanding happened on December 10, 1996 when Xuxa commanded the animation to thousands of children.