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The home ground of Real Madrid, Estadio Santiago Bernabeu, hosted the first of two scheduled shows of popstar Taylor Swift's Eras Tour on Wednesday, May 29. The singer will perform at the Bernabeu once more on May 30.
During her concert on Wednesday, Taylor Swift seemed to be blown away by the size of the new and renovated Santiago Bernabeu.
“Wow, this place is huge. It just goes up and up and up. I haven’t got to look at a Spanish crowd in 13 years but we’re back!” the popstar said (via MadridXtra).
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The renovated Santiago Bernabeu stadium hosted its first game on September 2, 2023. The capacity of Real Madrid's home stadium has been increased from 81,000 to 85,000, making it suitable to host large-scale events.
Swift is performing in Madrid for the first time since 2011; the Bernabeu will be her only stop in Spain. She is currently on the European leg of her Eras Tour.
According to the official Eras Tour schedule, Swift will also perform in other renowned football stadiums, including Liverpool's homeground, Anfield Stadium, England's Wembley Stadium and AFC Ajax's homeground, the Johan Cruyff Arena.
Did Taylor Swift perform the Jude Bellingham celebration while performing at Real Madrid's home ground?
Netizens were quick to notice an uncanny similarity between one of Taylor Swift's iconic gestures and that of Real Madrid star Jude Bellingham's popular celebration. The Englishman is often seen stretching his arms out to celebrate after he scores.
On May 29, Taylor Swift seemed to be doing the same while performing her hit numbers at the Bernabeu. The clip going viral online shows the popstar speaking in Spanish before opening her arms out in a gesture similar to the Real Madrid star. Although fans have been speculating that Swift's celebration was in response to Bellingham's, there is no information to confirm the same.
Swift has been making the same gesture while performing as part of the Eras Tour in other stadiums as well. However, the two celebrations do have some similarities, as pointed out by netizens.
As per USA Today, the new Santiago Bernabeu was completely sold out for Taylor Swift's concerts on both May 29 and May 30. The new stadium was remodelled by architecture studios L35, Ribas & Ribas and GMP Architecten, and now includes a retractable roof and a new pitch removal and storage system.
The retractable pitch is reportedly housed in six underground levels and includes an underground irrigation system and ultraviolet lighting to maintain good quality grass. Real Madrid do not have any more matches scheduled at their home stadium this season. They are set to face Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League final at Wembley on Saturday (June 1).
