Merida - Estadio Romano - Jose Fouto

To say that football in the ancient Roman city of Merida has had a chequered history is very much an understatement. You see, three different clubs have taken on the mantle of the city’s premier team since the most successful CP Merida, went under in 2000. Even their history is littered with name changes and mergers, but they did become the first team from the region of Extremadura to reach the Primera in 1995/96. Read about CP Merida here at Wikipedia.

Estadio Jose Fouto and its original oval layout

As a result of the club's success, the local government completely rebuilt the basic stadium next the Roman amphitheatre.The original oval layout was changed for a conventional square-sided format and the project was completed with the addition of large open seated banks, which were ready in time for its La Liga debut against Real Betis.  Below is a photo of the stadium in mid-change with the north stand complete, but the track still in-situ.

With a roof added to the north side. Soon, the track was to go.

Similar to CF Extremadura, Merida had two season long stays in the top division, before a decline, albeit much more rapid than that of their neighbours from Almendralejo. You can see the amphitheatre in the background of this picture.

Rebuild complete and the stadium is ready for La Primera

Blimey! A stadium with a bit of umph. Yes Estadio Romano Jose Fouto is the second largest in the region with a capacity of 15,000. Not a bad size for a city with a population of 55,200. The comparisons with CF Extremadura don’t end with the rise and decline, their stadiums are very alike. Confined by streets that run parallel to the sides of the pitch, the main stands are quite narrow, and the majority of the seating is behind the goals. The stadium was used in September 2009, when the Spanish national side beat Estonia 3-0  in a qualifier for the 2010 World Cup. As usual, euro.stades.ch has some quality pictures of the stadium.

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