Medellín officials have submitted plans to the city’s Curaduría for a major renovation of Estadio Atanasio Girardot, an ambitious project aiming to increase the stadium’s capacity to 60,000 and modernize its facilities.
Project Timeline: Key Dates for Bidding and Construction
First Phase: Demolition of the Western Grandstand Roof
The city has already filed a request with the Curaduría to demolish the deteriorating roof of the western high grandstand.
“These are two fundamental steps we’ve been working towards, and we’ve already submitted the requests to the Curaduría in recent days,” said the mayor. “For example, this roof, on the western high grandstand. We all know the condition it’s in. We’ve already filed a request with the Curaduría for its demolition. I expect the first work we begin, even many days before the end of July, will be to start demolishing this roof, which is essential to begin all the exterior work, like an independent structure to add approximately 20,000 additional seats.”
In addition to the roof, the demolition of the building and tower located on the western side of the stadium is likewise planned. These interventions will clear the area for the start of the modern structure.
What Will the New Third Tier of Medellín’s Stadium Look Like?
The core of the project is the construction of a third tier that will increase seating capacity by nearly 20,000. The mayor detailed that this new grandstand will be completely independent of the existing structures. “From that point, we will begin building the third tier. To do this, we will basically demand these double portals, these structures that are like two columns with a portico on the outside of the stadium. There are 54 in total. The height of these columns varies between 40 and 50 meters, and they will have foundation piles of 18 meters below ground.”
Soil and structural studies have already been conducted and submitted to the Curaduría along with the architectural and engineering designs.
The plan envisions the current high grandstand becoming an intermediate tier, while the new structure will be the highest level of the sports venue.
Technical Details: Foundation Piles and Column Height
If the schedule is met, foundation work will begin at the end of July, becoming visible to the public. “What people will start to witness at the end of July is that we will begin with the foundations, which are piles of 18 meters, and we will start to raise this structure completely independent of what we know today as the lower and upper tiers.”
A structural vulnerability study will also be conducted on the existing grandstands to determine if reinforcements are needed. While major interventions are not anticipated in that regard, the mayor assured that the stadium’s overall conditions will be improved.
Modernizing Atanasio with an International Vision
The expansion of Estadio Atanasio Girardot aims not only to increase its capacity but also to update it to international standards in infrastructure and safety.
With an investment of approximately 750 billion pesos and an estimated completion date of December 2027, Medellín aims to solidify its main sports venue as one of the most modern in the country and the region.
If the contractual process proceeds without setbacks—pre-bids in April, bidding in May, and award in June—the stadium’s transformation will officially begin at the end of July, marking the start of one of the most important works for the city’s sports infrastructure in recent decades.
Read more: Why did the stadium Atanasio Girardot remodeling project proposed by Daniel Quintero fail?
