Featured image credit: Daniela Veiga/Atlético Mineiro/CC BY-NC 2.0/Edited for size
Campeonato Brasileiro Serie A football club Atlético Mineiro christened its new Arena MRV stadium on Sunday with a 2-0 win over Santos.
A goal in each half from Paulinho secured the three points for Atlético at the 46,000-seat stadium.
Atlético welcomed around 9,000 fans to a test event at Arena MRV back in April, but Sunday’s fixture marked the first competitive match at the venue.
The club had been playing matches at the Mineirão before making the move to Arena MRV. Earlier this month, Atlético detailed plans for a series of initiatives to mark the transition to the new stadium, with fans invited to share their thoughts using the #CasasDoGalo (Home of the Roosters) hashtag on social media.
Atlético broke ground on the project in April 2020 and the stadium was originally expected to be completed last year, but delays in construction pushed the opening date back.
Although Atlético debuted at Arena MRV with a win, there were reports of complaints about Wi-Fi access during the match. Brazilian news outlet Globo also reported that some supporters had restricted views in areas of the stadium, while there were issues with transport and parking.
Arena MRV has invested in Wi-Fi 6E infrastructure provided by Cisco and Nexa Tecnologia. The technology is similar to that employed at NFL venues such as SoFi Stadium and Allegiant Stadium.
The match also had to be paused momentarily as a part of the pitch had become loose and needed to be put back into place. Atlético plans on changing the natural pitch for artificial turf next year.
Atlético’s next home match is against Botafogo on September 16.
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