Mineirão · Profile

The Estádio Governador Magalhães Pinto, better known as the Mineirão, reopened to the public on 21 December 2012 after two and a half years of construction work. It came back with 62,160 seats, and the reopening was marked by a Jota Quest concert in front of about 20,000 people. The stadium is in the Pampulha district of Belo Horizonte and is owned by the Government of Minas Gerais. It first opened on 5 September 1965. Since the renovation it has been run by Minas Arena, a consortium of Construcap, Egesa and HAP Engenharia that holds a 25-year concession.

Origins and construction

Governor José Francisco Bias Fortes signed the law creating what was then called the Estádio Minas Gerais on 12 August 1959. On 25 February 1960, the Federal University of Minas Gerais lent the site to the state on a free-use agreement. The design was by architects Eduardo Mendes Guimarães Júnior and Gaspar Garreto. Work picked up pace under Governor Magalhães Pinto, who eventually gave the stadium its official name. Crews worked around the clock between August 1964 and July 1965, about eight months without a break. The nickname Mineirão, an augmentative of “mineiro”, refers to the size of the structure.

Opening and early decades

The opening match on 5 September 1965 drew 73,201 spectators. A Minas Gerais state team beat River Plate 1-0, with Buglê scoring the goal. Two days later, Brazil, represented by the Palmeiras squad, beat Uruguay 3-0 in the stadium's first international. On 4 May 1969, a derby between Cruzeiro and Atlético Mineiro drew 123,351 paying spectators. In 1976, Cruzeiro beat River Plate 4-1 at the Mineirão in the Copa Libertadores final. On 21 December that year, they drew 0-0 with Bayern Munich in the Intercontinental Cup final.

Records and continental finals

The Mineirão's official attendance record was set on 22 June 1997, when 132,834 people watched Cruzeiro beat Villa Nova 1-0 in the Minas Gerais state championship final. Of that crowd, 74,857 paid for tickets and the other 56,618 were women and children admitted free. The same year, 106,853 fans saw the second leg of the Libertadores final between Cruzeiro and Sporting Cristal, which the Belo Horizonte club won. On 15 July 2009, Estudiantes de La Plata won 2-1 at the stadium to take the South American title from Cruzeiro. Four years later, in 2013, Atlético Mineiro won their first Libertadores at the Mineirão against Olimpia.

The World Cup renovation

In 2003, Belo Horizonte's municipal cultural heritage council listed the stadium as a protected building. It closed on 6 June 2010, after Atlético Mineiro lost 1-0 to Ceará, so it could be brought up to FIFA standards. The renovation, designed by the firm GMP, added an esplanade of about 80,000 square metres that can hold more than 65,000 people. The first match at the renovated ground was played on 3 February 2013, when Cruzeiro beat Atlético Mineiro 2-1 in the state championship.

Confederations Cup and World Cup

In 2013 the stadium hosted three Confederations Cup matches, including the semi-final on 26 June, in which Brazil beat Uruguay 2-1. The 2014 World Cup brought six matches. Four were in the group stage. In the round of 16 on 28 June, Brazil knocked out Chile on penalties. In the semi-final on 8 July 2014, Germany beat Brazil 7-1 in front of 58,141 spectators, a game known as the “Mineiraço”.

Olympics and Copa América

At the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, the Mineirão staged ten football matches, six in the women's tournament and four in the men's. They included Germany's 10-0 win over Fiji on 10 August and the men's bronze-medal match on 20 August, which Nigeria won 3-2 against Honduras. At the 2019 Copa América it hosted five games. The last was the semi-final on 2 July, when Brazil beat Argentina 2-0 in front of 55,947 spectators.

Cruzeiro and Atlético Mineiro

Cruzeiro and Atlético Mineiro both played home games at the stadium from its opening, and their derby was the first match at the renovated Mineirão. The highest crowd since the renovation came on 5 December 2021: 61,573 people at the match where Atlético Mineiro celebrated winning the Brazilian championship. In 2023, Atlético Mineiro moved their home games to the Arena MRV, their own stadium, which opened that year.