The Estadio Tecnológico was a multi-purpose stadium located in Monterrey, Nuevo León, Mexico, located on the campus of the Monterrey Institute of Technology and Higher Education (ITESM). It hosted football and American football games during its 67-year existence, from 1950 to 2017.

Estadio Tecnológico
El Tec
The stadium during a Monterrey match in 2008. The Cerro de la Silla mountain range is seen in the background.
Map
LocationEstadio Tecnológico, Junco de la Vega, Tecnológico, Monterrey, Mexico
25°39′08″N 100°17′11″W / 25.652250°N 100.286417°W / 25.652250; -100.286417
OwnerMonterrey Institute of Technology and Higher Education
Capacity36,485[3]
Field size105 by 68 metres (115 yd × 74 yd)
SurfaceGrass
Construction
Opened17 July 1950
Demolished3 July 2017[1] partially.
ArchitectFederico Velasco[2]
Tenants
Borregos Salvajes (ONEFA) (1950–2016)
C.F. Monterrey (1952–73, 1980–2015)
Fundidores de Monterrey (LFA) (2017)

Starting 2017, the stadium was demolished. The venue was replaced by the Estadio Borregos, completed in April 2019. The new stadium can seat 10,000 people and was designed for American Football and football games.[4]

History

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Construction of a new stadium to house the Borregos Salvajes American football team began in August 1949. A society raised half a million pesos in 17 days in order to break ground, with Constructora Maiz Mier as the general contractor.[5]

The stadium was formally opened on July 17, 1950 by Mexican President Miguel Alemán Valdés.[6] Originally, it seated 20,000 spectators. In 1965, a new upper deck was added on the west side to bring the stadium's capacity to 33,600; this expansion was celebrated with a match between C.F. Monterrey and FK Vojvodina, champions of Yugoslavia, which the locals won 2–1.[5]

The north end zone's "horseshoe" was added in 1986 to bring the stadium's capacity to 38,000 seats for its use in the 1986 Mexico FIFA World Cup.[7] In the early 1990s, luxury boxes were added which reduced the capacity to its current figure.

In 1991, the first tartan athletics track in Mexico was installed in the Estadio Tecnológico.[8] The original blue track was replaced with a more traditional red color in 2002.[9]

By the mid-2000s, with the Estadio Tecnológico being the second-oldest venue in Liga MX at the time behind Estadio Azul in Mexico City and manager Miguel Herrera declaring it "obsolete",[10] C.F. Monterrey began exploring plans for a new stadium. Administration at FEMSA, which owned the club, said that although they had presented plans to Monterrey Institute of Technology and Higher Education (ITESM) administration to add 8,000 seats by lowering the field and eliminating the athletics track, these had not been approved, and so they began planning for a new stadium at a site known as La Pastora. Additionally, the proposed expansion would have aggravated the already troublesome parking situation in the neighborhood and could have affected the view from the stadium's suites.[11]

In February 2014, it was announced that the stadium would be demolished after its largest tenant, C.F. Monterrey, moved to Estadio BBVA Bancomer in 2015. The stadium is to make way for an urban redevelopment project known as Distrito Tec, which will include new academic buildings for the ITESM, a new sporting complex known as the Centro Deportivo Borrego, and a new American football stadium for the Borregos Salvajes.[12] Demolition, however, was postponed to 2017.[13] In an event in March, the Borregos flag that had flown over the stadium was lowered to be raised again at the dedication of the new Estadio Tecnológico, planned for September 6, 2018[14] to coincide with the 75th anniversary of the ITESM. As part of the project, an artificial turf field will be laid down for a temporary venue in which the Borregos Salvajes will play the 2017 college football season.[15]

On April 29, 2017, the Estadio Tecnológico opened to the public once more for a farewell ceremony attended by more than 12,000.[16] Two women's soccer matches on June 10, one between the national teams of Mexico and Venezuela and a friendly between the women's teams of Tigres and Monterrey, were the final events held in the stadium[17] before demolition began on the 29th.[18]

Tenants

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C.F. Monterrey

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From 1952 to 1973 and again from 1980 to 2015, the Estadio Tecnológico was home to one of Monterrey's most important soccer clubs, Club de Fútbol Monterrey (known as the Rayados). The club began playing its home matches at the Estadio Tecnólogico upon its revival as a Second Division squad in 1952—the first Rayados match saw them lose 3–1 to Veracruz[6]—and remained there until 2015, except for a period between January 1973 and September 1980 when they played at the Estadio Universitario, home to rival club Tigres UANL.[19]

In 1977–78, with preparations for the 1977 CONCACAF Championship underway at the Estadio Universitario,[5] both Tigres and Rayados played at the Estadio Tecnológico, including the first Clásico Regio derby held in the stadium;[20] it would be the first of 42 meetings between the two clubs venue, with the final fixture being a 2–2 draw in October 2014.[21]

Monterrey won league titles in 1986 (Mexico 1986) and Apertura 2010 in the venue, as well as the Copa MX in 1991 and the CONCACAF Champions League in 2012–13.[6]

The final Monterrey soccer fixture in the Estadio Tecnológico was played on May 9, 2015, a 2–2 tie against Pumas. The club began playing at the Estadio BBVA Bancomer in time for the Apertura 2015 tournament.[22]

International soccer

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International soccer came to the Estadio Tecnológico on several occasions.

The 1983 FIFA World Youth Championship marked the first FIFA event at the Estadio Tecnológico. The venue hosted five games, including three group stage fixtures, a quarterfinal and a semifinal.[23]

Three matches of the 1986 FIFA World Cup were played at the Estadio Tecnológico, pitting the England national team against Portugal, Morocco and Poland.[12]

Borregos Salvajes

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The Estadio Tecnológico was initially built to house the university's American football team, which played in the Estadio Tecnológico through the 2016 season. During that time, the Borregos Salvajes won 22 national titles. On several occasions, they won the title in the Estadio Tecnológico, with the first such championship coming in 1993.[5] The final Borregos Salvajes game in the stadium took place on November 4, 2016, when the Borregos beat the team representing the ITESM Campus México 28–0.[24]

1986 FIFA World Cup

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Date Time Team #1 Res. Team #2 Round Attendance
3 June 1986 16:00   Portugal 1–0   England Group F 23,000[25]
6 June 1986   England 0–0   Morocco 20,200[26]
12 June 1986   Algeria 0–3   Spain Group D 23,980[27]

Other events

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The Estadio Tecnólogico before a Rayados game in 2005

Estadio Tecnológico hosted the 2016 World University American Football Championship. The stadium also hosted the Fundidores de Monterrey professional American football team of the Liga de Fútbol Americano Profesional in its 2017 season. The club's final game of the regular season, played on April 9, 2017, was the final American football match at the venue.[6] Additionally, track and field events were held in the stadium, such as the Galatlética 2005, which featured Ana Gabriela Guevara and Tonique Williams.[13]

Several concerts also stopped by the Estadio Tecnológico, beginning with a visit by Bon Jovi in February 1990 for two shows on the New Jersey Syndicate Tour. On February 12, 2006, the Irish rock band U2 opened the 4th leg of its Vertigo Tour at the Estadio Tecnológico, to a crowd of 42,000. In 2010, the Black Eyed Peas played the Estadio Tecnológico in what turned out to be the final concert in the stadium.[19]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Rosales, Jorge (3 July 2017). "Iniciaron la demolición del estadio Tecnológico". mediotiempo (in Spanish). Retrieved 11 July 2017.
  2. ^ Esparza, José María (30 April 2017). "Estadio Tecnológico termina su era tras 67 años de ser sede de Leyendas". El Porvenir. Retrieved 13 May 2017.
  3. ^ "Estadio Tecnológico - Soccerway". Nl.soccerway.com. 2012-08-29. Archived from the original on 2016-08-16. Retrieved 2017-06-03.
  4. ^ "¡Todo listo! Conoce el nuevo Estadio Borregos del campus Monterrey". tec.mx (in Spanish). Retrieved 2019-07-21.
  5. ^ a b c d Chávez Córdova, Ángel (17 July 2000). "¡Felicidades Estadio Tec!". El Norte.
  6. ^ a b c d "FUNDIDORES DESPEDIRÁ AL ESTADIO TECNOLÓGICO". LFA. 8 April 2017. Archived from the original on 19 April 2017. Retrieved 13 May 2017.
  7. ^ CONADEIP Press Department (5 November 2016). "Borregos México en el Estadio Tecnológico". Zona Neutral. Archived from the original on 3 June 2017. Retrieved 13 May 2017.
  8. ^ Notimex (22 September 2016). "Estadio Tecnológico, sede del deporte en zona regiomontana". 20 Minutos. Retrieved 13 May 2017.
  9. ^ Vargas, César; Piña, Juan Ramón (18 July 2002). "Remozan pista sintetica del Estadio Tecnológico". El Norte.
  10. ^ Vargas, César (18 October 2006). "Le hacen el feo al Uni". El Norte.
  11. ^ "Ven remoto 'hundir' el Tec". El Norte. 2 August 2008.
  12. ^ a b Víctor López, Tomás (17 February 2014). "Estadio Tecnológico será demolido". La Afición. Archived from the original on 18 February 2017. Retrieved 13 May 2017.
  13. ^ a b Dávalos, Manuel (7 May 2015). "El estadio Tecnológico dirá adiós hasta el 2017". El Horizonte. Archived from the original on 3 June 2017. Retrieved 13 May 2017.
  14. ^ "Dan adiós al Estadio Tecnológico". Medio Tiempo. 11 March 2017. Archived from the original on 12 March 2017. Retrieved 13 May 2017.
  15. ^ Almaraz, Marco (26 January 2017). "Tendrá Borregos instalaciones de lujo". El Norte. Retrieved 13 May 2017.
  16. ^ Notimex (5 May 2017). "Emotivo adiós al Estadio Tecnológico: será demolido para nuevo complejo deportivo". Pulso SLP. Archived from the original on 3 June 2017. Retrieved 13 May 2017.
  17. ^ "Tri femenil se impone a Venezuela". Info7. 10 June 2017. Archived from the original on 15 June 2017. Retrieved 29 June 2017.
  18. ^ Aguirre, Alejandro. "A horas de iniciar demolición del TEC". Playmakers MX. Archived from the original on 1 July 2017. Retrieved 29 June 2017.
  19. ^ a b Adrián Velázquez, Óscar; Ruiz, Elliott (28 April 2017). "¡Adiós al Estadio del Tec!". Periódico ABC. Archived from the original on 10 May 2017. Retrieved 13 May 2017.
  20. ^ Morales, Javier; Vanegas, Fernando (7 June 2003). "Estadio Tecnológico: Espera un título – Clausura 2003. Semifinales: Rayados – Tigres". El Norte.
  21. ^ López, Tomás Víctor (25 October 2014). "Rayados rescata un punto en el clásico regio". Archived from the original on 19 January 2015. Retrieved 13 May 2017.
  22. ^ "SE DESPIDE MONTERREY DEL TEC Y TORNEO". Tiempo Real. 9 May 2015. Archived from the original on 3 June 2017. Retrieved 13 May 2017.
  23. ^ FIFA (1983). "Technical Report, FIFA II World Youth Championship" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2015-09-06. (Part 2 Archived 2015-09-06 at the Wayback Machine)
  24. ^ "Borregos Salvajes liquidaron 28–0 al Tec México". Medio Tiempo. 4 November 2016. Archived from the original on 5 May 2017. Retrieved 13 May 2017.
  25. ^ "Match report Portugal - England". FIFA.com. Fédération Internationale de Football Association. Archived from the original on February 28, 2016. Retrieved 10 July 2018.
  26. ^ "Match report England - Morocco". FIFA.com. Fédération Internationale de Football Association. Archived from the original on February 18, 2015. Retrieved 10 July 2018.
  27. ^ "Match report Algeria - Spain". FIFA.com. Fédération Internationale de Football Association. Archived from the original on April 27, 2015. Retrieved 10 July 2018.