Coliseum Alfonso Pérez · Profile

The 2005 expansion, which closed off the south end with a new upper tier and replaced the flimsy roof over the west stand with a sturdier one, took the capacity of Getafe’s Coliseum to 16,500 seats. The stadium is owned by Getafe City Council, is home to Getafe Club de Fútbol and was built in 1998 in the Getafe Norte district, south of Madrid. Until October 2023 it was called the Coliseum Alfonso Pérez, after the Spain international striker born in the town. The natural grass pitch measures 105 by 70 metres.

From Las Margaritas to a new ground

Before the Coliseum, football in the town was played at the Campo Municipal de Las Margaritas, which opened on 6 September 1970 and held around 6,000 people. That ground was sold for redevelopment at the end of the 1995-96 season, and the club moved temporarily to the Estadio Juan de la Cierva, where temporary stands were installed behind both goals. The new municipal stadium cost around 801 million pesetas, almost €4.87 million. Its original layout offered 14,500 seats, split between a lower tier and three upper tiers, only one of which was covered.

Opening in the Spanish third tier

Getafe played there for the first time on 30 August 1998, on the opening day of the 1998-99 Segunda División B season, losing 1-0 to Talavera to a goal from David Soriano in the 73rd minute. The official inauguration ceremony was held on 2 September 1998. The early years brought half-empty stands: in 1999-00 the average league attendance was 4,395, or 26.64 per cent of capacity.

La Liga and the 2005 expansion

Promotion to La Liga in 2004 changed the scale of the stadium. In 2004-05, the club’s first season in the Spanish top flight, the Coliseum drew an average league crowd of 12,811, 77.66 per cent of capacity and the highest figure in its attendance record. The following year brought the work that defined its shape for two decades: the south-end upper tier and the new curved roof over the west stand, which raised capacity to 16,500.

Cup and European nights

On 10 May 2007, in the second leg of the Copa del Rey semi-finals, Getafe overturned a 5-2 first-leg defeat and beat FC Barcelona 4-0, with goals from Casquero, two from Güiza and one from Vivar Dorado. That tie earned the club its first final, lost 1-0 to Sevilla on 23 June 2007 at the Santiago Bernabéu; a year later Getafe lost the 2008 final 3-1 to Valencia at the Vicente Calderón. On 10 April 2008, in front of 14,225 spectators, the Coliseum hosted the second leg of a UEFA Cup quarter-final against Bayern Munich. After a 1-1 draw in Munich, the match ended 3-3 after extra time: Contra, Casquero and Braulio scored for Getafe, while Ribéry and Luca Toni, with goals in the 115th and 120th minutes, scored for Bayern, who went through on away goals.

Spain national team and a women’s European final

Spain played at the stadium on 5 June 2004, in their last friendly before Euro 2004 in Portugal, beating Andorra 4-0 with goals from Morientes, Baraja, César and Valerón. On 20 May 2010 the Coliseum staged the UEFA Women’s Champions League final: Turbine Potsdam and Olympique Lyonnais drew 0-0 after extra time and the German side won 7-6 on penalties, in front of 10,372 spectators. Spain returned on 7 June 2016, while preparing for Euro 2016 in France, and lost 1-0 to Georgia to an Okriashvili goal in the 40th minute, with around 14,000 in attendance.

The 2023 name change

In early October 2023, Getafe City Council, which owns the ground, decided to remove Alfonso Pérez’s name from the stadium after comments by the former player about women’s football. The change became official on 4 October 2023 and the ground was renamed the Coliseum. Alfonso Pérez was born in Getafe and played in the club’s youth teams before building his professional career elsewhere.

The redevelopment begun in 2025

The redevelopment project, designed by the IDOM studio, was presented in June 2023 and included a roof covering every seat in the stadium. Construction firm Amenabar started work in June 2025, with a build time of under 30 months carried out in phases, so that available capacity would not drop below 10,000 seats while Getafe kept playing at the Coliseum during the works.