Reale Arena

Verified Timeline

Lore & Background

It is the third home stadium of Real Sociedad preceded by Ondarreta (1909–1913), and Atocha (1913–1993). The external concourse area features a bust of the late Alberto Ormaetxea, the club's manager during their successful early 1980s period. Real Sociedad's Basque rivals, Athletic Bilbao, were also permitted to use Anoeta for their first home game of the 2013–14 La Liga season, as their own new ground (San Mamés) was still under construction. Four of the unofficial Basque Country team's friendly fixtures have been held at the stadium (1993, 1998, 2004, 2012). In recent years, it has also been used for concerts, and for occasional Heineken Cup rugby union fixtures by nearby Top 14 club Biarritz Olympique (based in France but very near to San Sebastian). Since the 2009–10 Top 14 season, both Biarritz and fellow Pays Basque club Aviron Bayonnais took home matches to the Anoeta, which is the closest large stadium to their towns. When the 2019–20 UEFA Women's Champions League later stages were held in the Basque Country, Anoeta hosted the final.

In Their Own Story

The stadium was officially opened on 13 August 1993 with a friendly between Real Sociedad and Real Madrid. The first goal was scored by Txuriurdin forward Loren, and the match finished 2–2. In 2015 the club announced reforms beginning in 2016, enlarging the stadium and removing the track around the field. Construction began in May 2017. When completed in October 2019, the remodelled arena would hold around 42,300 spectators. The €47 million cost was borne between Real Sociedad (€33m), the Basque Government (€10m) and the Gipuzkoa Provincial Council (€4m). The architect is Izaskun Larzabal. The first phase concluded just after the start of the 2018–19 La Liga season, requiring the club to play their first three fixtures away from home, before hosting FC Barcelona on the fourth matchday (15 September 2018). Over 3,000 additional members were admitted due to the increase in capacity. The first match with all seats in place, a capacity quoted as 40,000, was between the home side and Atlético Madrid on Saturday 14 September 2019. Real won 2–0, with the official attendance given as 33,374, a club record. Five months later, a Basque derby against Athletic Bilbao, a 2–1 win for the home side, set a new record of 36,730. Following the reconstruction, the stadium was awarded the 2020 World Prix Versailles award in the Sports category.

Reader's Guide

Anoeta's initial construction costs were said to be 3 billion pesetas (equivalent to around €21 million at the time). The stadium was officially opened on 13 August 1993 with a friendly between Real Sociedad and Real Madrid. The first goal was scored by Txuriurdin forward Loren, and the match finished 2–2. In 2004, José Luis Astiazarán, then the president of Real Sociedad, launched a project called Gipuzkoarena. Planned to be completed in 2007, it was intended to increase the stadium's capacity to 42,000, which would include the removal of the athletics track. This proposal was soon rejected by the city council and left behind. Towards the end of 2007, Iñaki Badiola, candidate for the presidency of Real Sociedad, proposed that the club buy the stadium. This was also soon rejected by the city council. In 2008, Badiola, by now the president, made another two proposals for the stadium, one of them similar to Gipuzkoarena. These proposals were to be studied by the city council, but after 20 December Badiola was no longer the club's president. Later, his successor, Jokin Aperribay, launched a new attempt to refurbish the stadium. In 2015 the club announced that it would begin reforms on Anoeta in 2016, enlarging the stadium as well as removing the track around the field. Construction eventually began in May 2017. When completed in October 2019, the remodelled arena would hold around 42,300 spectators. The €47 million cost of the project was borne between Real Sociedad (€33m), the Basque Government (€10m) and the Gipuzkoa Provincial Council (€4m). The architect is Izaskun Larzabal, who also designed many of the facilities at the club's Zubieta training complex. After the project completion, the total cost announced including some new improvements that would take place until 2020 was of €78.6 million. Depending on any issues and delays encountered, it was reported that the construction work could lead to Real Sociedad playing some matches in Bilbao or elsewhere at some point during the period. The first phase of reconstruction (involving the removal of the track and insertion of lower rows of seats on the side stands, and a completely new south end stand) concluded just after the start of the 2018–19 La Liga season, requiring the club to play their first three fixtures away from home, before hosting FC Barcelona on the fourth matchday (15 September 2018). Over 3,00

Did You Know?

• The stadium was originally built with an athletics track, which fans disliked because it created distance between the stands and the field, resulting in a 'cold' atmosphere.
• The first goal at Anoeta was scored by Real Sociedad forward Loren in a 2–2 friendly draw against Real Madrid on 13 August 1993.
• The stadium's reconstruction in 2019 increased capacity to 40,000, with the possibility of expanding to 42,300 if necessary.
• Anoeta hosted the 2019–20 UEFA Women's Champions League final.
• The stadium's external concourse features a bust of Alberto Ormaetxea, the club's manager during their successful early 1980s period.

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