Atlético Mineiro ‘MRV Arena’ taking shape

Image: Arena MRV

The year 2021 came to an end as the most momentous in the Brazilian professional football club Atlético Mineiro’s (Brazil) history on the field, but also came with several reasons to celebrate in the work that represents the club’s future: The Arena MRV is 43 percent complete and is expected to be delivered by the end of 2022. It has also generated 1,100 jobs since January 2021 in the process of the construction of the stadium and currently around 660 employees are helping to make the athlete’s dream come true.

The ‘Arena MRV’ stated that earthworks were the main work carried out and there had been no structures erected on the land for about a year. Today, with every passing day, the stadium is taking shape and impresses with the evolution of the construction in the last 12 months. During this construction stint (2021) around 2,600 tons of metallic structures and more than 1,300 pieces of bleachers have already been installed. Apart from the earthworks and the embankment, the construction of the blocks is practically finished. More than 13,000 precast concrete units help to compose the structure of both the MRV Arena and the parking lot and esplanade.

Clube Atlético Mineiro, commonly known as Atlético Mineiro or Atlético, and colloquially as Galo, is a professional football club based in the City of Belo Horizonte, capital City of the Brazilian State of Minas Gerais. The team competes in the Campeonato Brasileiro Série A, the first level of Brazilian football, as well as in the Campeonato Mineiro, the top tier State league of Minas Gerais.

The 23,000-capacity Estádio Raimundo Sampaio, more commonly known as Independência, is a football stadium located in the Horto neighborhood of Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil. It was built in 1950 for the FIFA World Cup™, held in Brazil. It serves as the home ground of Atlético Mineiro.

Atlético is building its new stadium, the Arena MRV, which will have a capacity for 46,000 spectators and is all set for a 2023 opening. The ‘Galo’ will enjoy the most technologically advanced stadium in Latin America once complete. The construction work of the plush venue is on despite COVID-19 making mincemeat out of Brazil.

The ‘Arena MRV’ further stated that with progress in the construction of structures, the focus of the work is now on the internal part, with the masonry, which started about three months ago, in addition to the electrical and hydraulic installations, air conditioning systems and fire fighting. The construction of the main containments and the detention box, an important structure of the land’s drainage system, is also being completed. One phase of the work that generates anxiety at Massa is the installation of the stadium roof, which has been receiving, for about 30 days, the coating that will give the final shape to the MRV Arena.

Stated the CEO of Arena MRV, Bruno Muzzi, “We have reached the end of another year of hard work and with reasons to celebrate all the project’s achievements. The work continues at the expected pace, we closed important partnerships and the sale of captive chairs has been a great success. Next year will be one of great expectations, but also a lot of work, so that we can deliver the work within the estimated time.”
 

Sponsorship contracts

In 2021, Arena MRV also signed important sponsorship contracts. The first to be announced was with the Italian mortar company, Fassa Bortolo, which acquired the naming rights of the space destined to receive the Atlético fans to follow the work of the Arena MRV, which officially became known as the Fassa Bortolo Experience Center.

In November 2021, Arena MRV officially announced the beginning of a partnership with ArcelorMittal, the global leader in the steel market. The multinational, in addition to being the official supplier of this important input for the construction of the stadium, will have the naming rights sector on the entire floor with boxes and lounges in the multipurpose arena, which has the ambition of being the most futuristic arena in Latin America.

ArcelorMittal S.A. is a multinational steel manufacturing corporation headquartered in Luxembourg City. It was formed in 2006 from the takeover and merger of Arcelor by Indian-owned Mittal Steel.

Another important partnership was signed with Brahma. The brand, a historical supporter of football, will be the official beer of the Arena MRV for a period of five years. In addition, Brahma will nominate the Level 1 sector of the future house of ‘Galo’. Both ArcelorMittal and Brahma are also official sponsors of the BH Festival, an event that will mark the inauguration of the MRV Arena on five dates to history starting in March 2023.
 

Captive Chairs and Fassa Bortolo Experience Center

In the wake of Atlético’s great campaign on the field, one of Arena MRV’s main assets, the sale of captive chairs was a great success in 2021: All units in Sectors I and II are sold out. The total collections from the sale of captive seats and parking spaces in 2021 alone exceeds R$121 million, an amount fully invested in the construction of the stadium.

Even though the official opening is more than a year away, in addition to being a commercial success, the MRV Arena is also a must-see for the athlete. The Fassa Bortolo Experience Center, a space with immersive and interactive experiences, designed for fans to have their first contact with Casa do Galo, received more than 25,000 visits during 2021.
 

Fans’ help sought

Massa Atleticana has been instrumental in building the MRV Arena, and in December 2021, new products are available for fans to collaborate with the dream of seeing ‘Galo’s’ own home built. One of the projects perpetuates the fan’s name at Arena MRV. Starting at R$40 per month, the athlete can have his name engraved on the ‘Mural Alvinegro’, on tiles that will be installed on the terrace walls, so that everyone knows that he helped in the construction of the Alvinegro dream.
 

Background

The Arena MRV is the currently under construction facility of the Brazilian football club Atlético Mineiro. Atlético Mineiro had played most of their recent matches in the City’s (Belo Horizonte) flagship stadium Estadio Mineirão, until it got redeveloped for the 2014 World Cup hosted by Brazil.

However, on completion of the stadium, the club had differences on the rental terms, thus moving to the smaller Estádio Independência Stadium and only using Mineirão for high-profile matches. Soon, the club announced that they were going to build a new stadium themselves, settling on a site to the West of Belo Horizonte just under 10 km from the center that they had acquired through a deal with the real estate company, MRV.

Plans for a modern 46,000-seater got approved in 2017. The stadium got designed by the local architecture firm, Farkasvölgyi, the owner being a lifelong fan of the club.

To fund the project, Atlético decided to sell their 50 percent stake in Diamond Mall, which stands on the club’s land. They intend to raise further funds by selling the naming rights of the stadium to MRV and by hosting concerts and events at the stadium.

Construction works started in April 2020 and Atlético hope to have the works completed by the end of 2022.

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