History and curiosities of San Mamés

How to preserve tradition when deciding to embrace innovation? Without a doubt, this was the most difficult challenge to overcome in the design and construction of the San Mamés stadium in Bilbao, the 53,000-seat facility inaugurated in 2013, which replaced the original stadium that had hosted Athletic Club’s home games since 1913. The stadium, which will be the centerpiece of the Europa League Round of 16 return leg, will host Claudio Ranieri's Roma. 

The club shares a special bond with its fans, the city of Bilbao, and the entire Basque Country, a sentiment perfectly exemplified by the policy of exclusively signing players of Basque origin, born in Euskal Herria or raised in the youth academies of any club in the region. This rule, which could have been abandoned in 2010, was instead preserved thanks to the will of the fans. These same fans were used to calling the old San Mamés La Catedral due to a nearly religious connection with the club, a bond that was also fueled by the origins of the stadium itself, built on the site of an old chapel dedicated to Mammes of Caesarea, hence San Mamés. For all these reasons, moving to a new stadium was a risk. However, the result is sensational.

The new version of the San Mamés stadium is an architectural gem, as certified by the Best Sports Venue award won in 2015 at the World Architecture Festival and the Venue of the Year title received in 2017 at the World Football Summit. The facility, according to the official website, has a capacity of 53,331 spectators and was designed to the highest standards, namely UEFA's Elite category. It was by meeting these standards that Bilbao was awarded the Europa League final for the 2024/25 edition. It will be on this occasion that the beauty of this stadium can once again be celebrated, starting with its distinctive exterior façade: a structure that, from a distance, seems composed of triangles but is actually made using EFTE modular panels equipped with LEDs. The stadium has a rectangular layout, with soft curves at the corners, and fits perfectly into the landscape surrounding the area by the Nervión River. Athletic could have relocated from this area, but due to the desire to preserve the connection with the fans and the territory, the decision was made to build the updated version of San Mamés next to the old stadium, at a cost, according to reliable sources, between 160 and 200 million euros. The work began in 2009 and was carried out in two phases so that Athletic did not have to play a single match away from Bilbao.

The atmosphere inside is exceptional. San Mamés is one of the few new-generation stadiums that still retains the charm of older venues. The credit goes to the double-tier structure (interspersed with a smaller ring) designed solely to create a sense of pressure for both the players on the field and the viewer at home. It feels as if the fans are about to spill onto the field. The pitch itself is below street level, ensuring that the entire stadium structure doesn’t overly dominate the surrounding landscape. The lower tier seats are practically right next to the pitch, while the upper tier has a unique structure, an undulating shape that peaks in the central area, a solution designed to provide the best possible view from every point. Completing the picture is a roof made of a second set of EFTE modular panels supported by radial metal trusses that extend toward the pitch. An architectural masterpiece that has propelled Athletic Club into the future, without forgetting the territory, the fans, and the importance of history, so much so that on the day of the inauguration, a piece of the turf from the old San Mamés was planted in the center of the new stadium.