Estadio El Alcoraz is a

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

stadium A stadium ( : stadiums or stadia) is a place or venue for (mostly) outdoor sports, concerts, or other events and consists of a field or stage either partly or completely surrounded by a tiered structure designed to allow spectators to stand o ...

in the city of

Huesca Huesca (; an, Uesca) is a city in north-eastern Spain, within the autonomous community of Aragon. It is also the capital of the Spanish province of the same name and of the comarca of Hoya de Huesca. In 2009 it had a population of 52,059, almo ...

Aragon Aragon ( , ; Spanish and an, Aragón ; ca, Aragó ) is an autonomous community in Spain, coextensive with the medieval Kingdom of Aragon. In northeastern Spain, the Aragonese autonomous community comprises three provinces (from north to sou ...

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

. It serves as the

home ground In sports, home is the place and venue identified with a team sport. Most professional teams are named for, and marketed to, particular metropolitan areas; amateur teams may be drawn from a particular region, or from institutions such as sch ...

of the city's foremost professional football club,

SD Huesca Sociedad Deportiva Huesca, S.A.D., is a Spanish football club in Huesca, in the autonomous community of Aragon. Founded on 29 March 1960, SD Huesca plays in the Segunda División, having played in the Spanish top division for the first time in t ...

. It was named after the

battle of Alcoraz The Battle of Alcoraz took place between 1094 and 1096 outside Huesca, pitting the besieging forces of Peter I of Aragon and Navarre against the allied forces of Al-Musta'in II of the Taifa of Zaragoza and García Ordóñez de Nájera and Gon ...

which took place there in 1096. It is located next to San Jorge's hill and it has a capacity of 7,638 people. The architect Raimundo Bambó was in charge of stadium's design and construction. The cost of his work was covered thanks to the efforts of José Maria Mur, the club's president at that time. He was the one who suggested building a stadium and started the project, which lasted for 4 years. The stadium's cost amounted to approximately 15 million pesetas (about 90,000 euros). It was opened on January 16, 1972 with a match between SD Huesca and

Deportivo Aragón Real Zaragoza Deportivo Aragón is the reserve team of Real Zaragoza, a Spanish football club based in Zaragoza, in the autonomous community of Aragon. Founded in 1958, currently plays in Segunda Federación – Group 3, holding home matches at ...

. In 1986, with the club drowning debts, the stadium went to auction. About 200 managers and fans of the club joined to form a society that won the auction, thus rescuing the stadium from the bank's embargo. Since then it has witnessed many social and sport events. These include a

Copa del Rey The Campeonato de España–Copa de Su Majestad el Rey, commonly known as Copa del Rey or simply La Copa and formerly known as Copa del Presidente de la República (1932–36) and Copa del Generalísimo (1939–76), is an annual knockout footbal ...

match in 1990 between

and

Cádiz CF Cádiz Club de Fútbol, S.A.D., known simply as Cádiz, is a Spanish professional football club based in Cádiz, Andalusia. Founded in 1910, the club competes in the La Liga, holding home games at Nuevo Mirandilla, with a seating capacity of 20 ...

, which took place on December 13 and ended in a 0:0 tie followed by the Cádiz CF win by penalty shoot-out in the second game. As well as a match between Spain's Under-21 national football team and

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...

, which took place on June 6, 2003, and ended in Spain winning 2-0. In the 2008/2009 season, after the promotion of SD Huesca to

Segunda División The Campeonato Nacional de Liga de Segunda División, commercially known as LaLiga SmartBank for sponsorship reasons, is the men's second professional association football division of the Spanish football league system. Administrated by the Lig ...

, there were important enhancements in the stadium: roof building, extension of the central stand, reconstruction of the presidential box, changing rooms, offices, and benches. With the promotion of Huesca to

La Liga The Campeonato Nacional de Liga de Primera División, commonly known simply as Primera División in Spain, and as La Liga in English-speaking countries and officially as LaLiga Santander for sponsorship reasons, stylized as LaLiga, is the men's ...

, the stadium was expanded from less than 5,500 seats to 7,638 seats in 2018 . The stadium underwent an extensive renovation. The changes have affected the stands, VIP guests boxes and spaces, the press room, mixed zone, toilets, bars, and the parking. In 2020, El Alcoraz announced the departure of former tenants SD Huesca, and announced the new tenants in Helm FC. The club are synonymous with the “No Rules Cup” in particular due to centre midfielder, Darren Kavanagh’s tough tackling.

References

External links

Estadios de Espana
{{DEFAULTSORT:El Alcoraz Football venues in Aragon SD Huesca Buildings and structures in the Province of Huesca Sports venues completed in 1972 Sport in Huesca