Chilean Primera División football club Universidad Católica (UC) has opened its new Claro Arena stadium in Santiago.
R/futebol said the 20,000-capacity stadium project cost $50 million and has become a benchmark for innovation and sustainability in Chilean football.
Club President Juan Tagle described the stadium as “first world” and comparable to the best in Europe.
Opening night was crowned with a 2-0 victory over Unión Española, with Fernando Zampedri making history by scoring the first goal in the new stadium.
The Club Deportivo Universidad Católica, also known as Los Cruzados, is a professional football club based in Santiago, Chile.
Founded in 1937, they play in the Primera División, the top-flight of Chilean football. The team has played its home games at the Estadio San Carlos de Apoquindo since 1988.
The new Claro Arena will be the first stadium in Chile to be powered by ‘Green’ energy.
Universidad Católica said that the stadium will be supported by a solar plant and incorporates various solutions such as demand monitoring, electrical vehicle charging devices, architectural lighting, and a renewed infrastructure to sustain the operation of a modern, sustainable and a 100 percent electric stadium.
In addition, other elements such as the reuse of gray water, reforestation and redesign of the exterior of the stadium, in addition to being built with green steel, green wood, will help it become the first in the region to have LEED certification.
The venue is aiming for a 70% reduction in energy and water consumption. It boasts 436 solar panels and 100% renewable energy.
It has a synthetic turf pitch saving 120,000 liters of water/day in summer, while 1,500 native trees have been planted in the area around the stadium and in a park in Santiago.
The stadium also features electronic turnstiles for crowd flow control, 200 cameras with artificial intelligence for security monitoring and an innovative visual design without high fences, using low railings for better visibility.
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