The Estádio Governador João Castelo, also known as the Castelão, is a

multi-purpose stadium A multi-purpose stadium is a type of stadium designed to be easily used for multiple types of events. While any stadium could potentially host more than one type of sport or event, this concept usually refers to a design philosophy that stres ...

inaugurated on March 9, 1975, in São Luís,

Maranhão Maranhão () is a States of Brazil, state in Brazil. Located in the country's Northeast Region, Brazil, Northeast Region, it has a population of about 7 million and an area of and it is divided into 217 municipalities. Clockwise from north, it ...

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

, with a maximum capacity of 40,149 people in a three-tier configuration. The stadium is owned by the Maranhão state Government, and is the home ground of

Sampaio Corrêa Futebol Clube Sampaio Corrêa Futebol Clube, better known simply as Sampaio Corrêa or just Sampaio, was founded on 25 March 1923 by a group of young workers practicing amateur football on São Pantaleão Street, in the Centro neighborhood of São Luís, whi ...

, Moto Club and

. Its formal name honors João Castelo Ribeiro Gonçalves (1937–2016), Maranhão governor from 1979 to 1982.

History

Castelão was completed in 1982 and was inaugurated on February 5 of that year, when the Brazil national team beat the Portugal national team 3–1. The first goal of the stadium was scored by Brazil's Júnior. The stadium's attendance record currently stands at 98,720, set on September 24. 1998, when Santos beat Sampaio Corrêa 5–1 in the

Copa CONMEBOL The Copa CONMEBOL () was an annual football cup competition organized by CONMEBOL between 1992 and 1999 for South American football clubs. During its time of existence, it was a very prestigious South American club football contest, similar to the ...

References

*''Enciclopédia do Futebol Brasileiro'', Volume 2 - Lance, Rio de Janeiro: Aretê Editorial S/A, 2001.

External links

Templos do Futebol
Football venues in Maranhão Sports venues in Maranhão Multi-purpose stadiums in Brazil Maranhão Atlético Clube Sampaio Corrêa Futebol Clube Moto Club de São Luís {{Brazil-sports-venue-stub