Buenos Aires: work has started on the Monumental (101,000 seats in 2029)

Work started in June 2026: the Estadio Monumental in Buenos Aires, home of River Plate and the Argentina national team, is going from 85,018 to 101,000 seats. It will host Argentina’s centenary match, the first World Cup fixture at the ground since the 1978 final.

The project

• A fifth stand and a full roof (translucent membrane and acoustic layer) carried by 100 columns, 50 of them V-shaped.
• 1,684 tonnes of steel, 17,230 m³ of concrete, foundations 16 to 27 m deep.
• $145 million, financed by a long-term international loan and a ten-year naming rights deal.
• 36 months of work, delivery in 2029.

The other two centenary stadiums

Montevideo — Estadio Centenario. The stadium that staged the first final in history (1930) is due to host the ceremony and the first centenary match. Its renovation (63,000 seats) is costed at $120 million according to the Uruguayan government (June 2026), and up to $180 million according to other estimates. President Yamandú Orsi is looking for private investors: “it is unthinkable for a country to put up all the money to build a stadium”. No start date, no contractor and no closure period have been fixed. It is the most fragile site of the tournament.

Asunción — Estadio Osvaldo Domínguez Dibb. Olimpia’s new stadium (46,000 seats, the largest in Paraguay) was approved by the city council on 29 July 2026. The cost is estimated at around $80 million, with the opening announced for 25 July 2029.

A reminder of the schedule (provisional)

The three centenary matches are planned for 8 and 9 June 2030, before the main tournament opens in Europe and Morocco on 13 and 14 June. FIFA has not yet published the full schedule.