5 October 2007

Global Seminars & Invited Speaker Series

FOOTBALL STADIUMS, THE NEW CATHEDRALS OF THE 21ST CENTURY

Sports architecture and town planning: from the Campo de San Juan to the Reyno of Navarre

Mr. José Javier Azanza López
Chairof Navarrese Heritage and Art

reference letterProfessor Azanza began his tour of C.A. Osasuna's stadiums with a visit to the origins of football in Navarre, mentioning the first venues that hosted this sport in Pamplona at the beginning of the 20th century, among them the old placede Toros, and some land next to the averageLuna, where the players dug four holes and placed the goals that they had previously transported on a cart.

From its foundation in 1920, the red and red club alternated its matches -most of them of a friendly nature- between the Ensanche and the Hippodrome grounds. The former was located on the grounds of the Primer Ensanche, in an area corresponding to the Ramo de Guerra next to the military premises. The Municipal Sports Field of the Hippodrome was located at the exit of Portal de San Nicolás. Judging by the testimonies preserved, both showed numerous shortcomings for football internship.

The implementation of the Segundo Ensanche led C.A. Osasuna to move its activity to the Campo de San Juan. Inaugurated on May 21, 1922, it was located on the outskirts of the city, sheltered by the San Miguel Clinic, and surrounded by chalets and family villas in the mountain style. Over the course of 45 years, San Juan was able to adapt to the needs of a club like Osasuna and grew at the same pace as it did in the social and sporting spheres. Testimony to this were the successive reforms and extensions to which it was subjected, including those carried out in 1953 and 1956, which provided it with new stands and grandstands, raising its initial capacity from 4,000 spectators to the 20,000 that it hosted in its last stage.
 

Campo de San Juan
 

statusThe sale of the Campo de San Juan in 1966, at frameworkin the midst of a complicated economic situation that the club was going through, put an end not only to a page in the history of Osasuna, but also in the history of Pamplona and the customs and ways of being of its inhabitants. And it gave way to a new era for the club with the construction of the Sadar Stadium.

The Pamplona architect Tomás Arrarás, who drew up the plans for the new stadium, conceived a venue with a capacity for 23,000 spectators that maintained the spirit of the old San Juan and was as suited as possible to the idiosyncrasies of a team and a fan base like those of Osasuna. For its inauguration in September 1967, a triangular tournament was organised with the participation of Zaragoza, Vitoria de Setúbal and Osasuna.
 

Sadar-Reyno de Navarra Stadium
 

The first major refurbishment of El Sadar took place in 1989-90, with the construction of the New High Preference Stand in accordance with projectby the Catalan architect José Casals. In the mid-nineties, the stadium underwent a new intervention that provided all the seats, and gave way to successive actions that contributed to modernising its appearance. But the main novelty came in December 2005, when the stadium was renamed Reyno de Navarra, a measure that made Osasuna a pioneer in national football within the current marketing strategies used by clubs nowadays. The future remodelling of the stadium that the club is considering seeks to improve spectator safety and comfort, and to consolidate Osasuna's sporting projectamong the best teams in La Liga.

Future Reyno de Navarra Stadium