One of the greatest stadiums in Brazil, Castelão, is also known as Estádio Governador Plácido Castelo or Gigante da Boa Vista, translating into English as “Big Castle”. The stadium has a capacity of accommodating 63,903 spectators, and serves as the home ground for Ceara Sporting Club and Fortaleza Esporte Clube.
History
Castelão was constructed from 1969 to 1973, and was inaugurated on November 11 of 1973. The inaugural match was played between Ceará and Fortaleza on the same day, which ended in a 0-0 draw.
Major Matches
The stadium's attendance record currently stands at 118,496, set on August 27, 1980, when the Brazil national team beat the Uruguay 1-0.
Three games of the 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup were played in this stadium during the month of June. Amongst this was the semi-final in which the world champions Spain beat Italy in the penalty shootouts.
Castelão was one of the venues of the 2014 FIFA World Cup. It hosted four group matches, a round of 16 matches and a quarter final. The most exciting amongst these, especially to the home crowd was the quarter finals in which, the hosts, Brazil beat local rivals Colombia 2-1 to grab spot in the semis.
Controversies
Before the FIFA Confederations Cup in 2017, two fans were murdered during a game which was played between the local rivals Ceara and Fortaleza. The fans wearing Ceara jerseys were shot dead.
It was speculated that this incident was due to the fierce rivalry which exists between both of these clubs which at times manifests in the form of fan-violence. Over 180 people have been detained in the Castelao over charges of vandalism, and these derby matches see a peak in these crime rates.
