A volcanic crater in Mexico is home to a “unique” football stadium
For a football stadium to be built in a volcanic crater is highly unusual, but this is where the referee blows the kick-off whistle every weekend on the outskirts of Mexico City.
“It’s a unique stadium. It’s nice to come here to forget your worries and relax with friends and family,” said Adrian Garcia, 32, who works as a graphic designer outside the football field.
The dormant Tijuca Volcano rises about 2,700 meters above sea level, in the verdant region of Suchimilco, southeast of the sprawling city.
About a dozen amateur league teams play in its crater on weekends. The area was previously a ceremonial center, but after it became unfit it was converted into a football stadium.
“They used to carry me here when I was a kid,” said league representative Joel Becerell.
At dawn, a heavy fog covers the soccer field, but it gradually recedes as the sun rises. A single road leads to the summit, as well as an 18-kilometre hiking trail that leads up the volcano’s forest slopes.
Goalkeeper Daniel Mancia Pena, 47, said: “It’s amazing. It’s impressive that you come here on the pitch and have such a beautiful place to play football.”
According to experts from the National Autonomous University of Mexico, there are more than 200 volcanoes, most of them inactive, south of Mexico City and on the border with the neighboring state of Morelos.
Mexico lies on the line of the world’s most seismically and volcanically active region, known as the “Ring of Fire,” where the Pacific Plate meets the surrounding tectonic plates.
Popocatebel, one of the country’s active volcanoes, is located just 70 kilometers from the capital, and caused a panic in May when it spewed ash, gases and molten rock.
(AFP)
2023-07-11 09:34:19
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