Estadio Sixto Escobar

Estadio Sixto Escobar is a multi-purpose stadium in San Juan, Puerto Rico. It is currently used mostly for soccer matches.

Estadio Sixto Escobar
LocationAvenida Munoz Rivera
San Juan, Puerto Rico 00901
Capacity9,400
OpenedNovember 12, 1935
Tenants
Cincinnati Reds (Spring Training) (NL) (1936)
Miami Marlins (IL) (1961)
Copa de Puerto Rico (2000)
River Plate Puerto Rico (USL Pro) (2011-present)

History

The stadium was opened on November 12, 1935. The Cincinnati Reds conducted spring training at the stadium in 1935 and 1936.[1] In April 1938, the Legislative Assembly of Puerto Rico voted to name the stadium and surrounding park in honor of Sixto Escobar, a Puerto Rican professional boxer who became Puerto Rico's first world champion.[2] A statue of Escobar stands on the grounds.

The Miami Marlins were transferred to San Juan for the 1961 season and opened the season at Sixto Escobar Stadium. Attendance was poor and the team was moved to Charleston, WV on May 19, 1961. The Cangrejeros de Santurce of the professional Liga de Béisbol Profesional Roberto Clemente moved out to the newly constructed Hiram Bithorn Stadium in 1962.

Many events of the 1979 Pan American Games were held at the stadium.

In 2000 it hosted all six matches of the inaugural Copa de Puerto Rico soccer tournament.[3] The Copa featured a mix of club and national teams and was hosted by the Puerto Rican Football Federation and the Puerto Rico MNT.[4] The international competition was played over the course of a week's time, consisting of three nights of double-headers. The MLS side, Tampa Bay Mutiny were the winners.[5]

In 2011 the stadium was repaired and improved to accommodate the new tenant soccer team River Plate Puerto Rico,[6] but the club never played there.

References
  1. Alan Gould (1936-02-11). "Majors' Spring Training Under Way Officially". The Meriden Daily Journal. p. 4. Retrieved 2011-03-06.
  2. "Escobar To Be Honored; Stadium in Puerto Rico Will Be Named for Champion". New York Times. 1938-04-14. p. 33. Retrieved 2011-03-02.
  3. "Mutiny set for three games in Puerto Rico". St. Petersburg Times. February 22, 2000. Retrieved 25 April 2017.
  4. El Huracan Azul PR (9 March 2015). "Puerto Rico vs Tampa Bay Mutiny (Partido Completo)" – via YouTube.
  5. "Copa Puerto Rico (San Juan) 2000". rsssf.
  6. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2010-08-27. Retrieved 2010-08-18.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)


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