The Mestalla Stadium is the home of Valencia CF and is one of the oldest stadiums in Spain.
On the 101st anniversary, I signed up for the Mestalla Forever Tour. A hat-trick of football stadiums visited:
In 1998, I watched FC St Gallen play Lausanne at the Wankdorf.
In May 2022, I visited the Estadio Azteca in Mexico City, which hosted the 1970 and 1986 World Cups. It will also be one of 3 stadiums in Mexico hosting the FIFA World Cup 2026.
And now, I get to visit the Mestalla Stadium home of Valencia CF.
With a seating capacity of 49,430, it is the 8th largest football stadium in Spain.
It opened on 20 May 1923 with a friendly match between Valencia and Levante FC, the latter formed in 1909, making it the oldest football club in Spain.
Valencia won that first match, 1-0.
It must have been some sort of fluke. The day I chose to go a backpack was the Mestalla Stadium check this out, May 20 2024.
Mestalla Forever Tour
Tickets for the Mestalla Forever Tour cost 15.30 Euros (2025).
The club was formed in 1919 and was known as Valencia FC, but was changed after the Spanish Civil War to Valencia CF (Valencia Club de Fútbol).
Having a pre-tour beer near the stadium:
Doing the Mestalla Forever Tour on its 101st anniversary:
The stadium hosted 3 games in the 1982 FIFA World Cup when the stadium was known as the Luis Casanova Stadium.
Spain played all 3 of their first-round matches in Group 5 at the Mestalla, the 3rd of which was when Northern Ireland beat Spain 1-0, to win the group with the winning goal, scored by Gerry Armstrong.
The stadium’s name was changed in 1969 to Luis Casanova Stadium to honour club president Luis Casanova Giner.
The name was later changed back to The Mestalla, in 1994.
Backpacking the Mestalla Stadium in my 2022/2023 MK DONS home shirt, 101 years since Valencia CF had played its first game in the stadium, 20 Mayo 1923:
Home Team Dressing Rooms:
The pitch at the Mestalla Stadium:
The dugout:
Souvenir football boots:
The football shirts of Valencia CF:
The press room where managers are interviewed after the match:
Nomadic Backpacker emerging from the tunnel at the Mestalla Stadium:
Some of the trophies that Valencia CF has won. They have won 6 league titles, 8 cups, 1 Super Cup of Spain, 3 UEFA Cups, 2 Super Cups of Europe and 1 UEFA Cup Winners Cup:
The future of the Mestalla Stadium
A new stadium, the Nou Mestalla, is being built. Work started back in 2007 and ground to a halt in 2009, due to financial reasons, but as of January 1, 2025, construction is underway again and is set to open in 2027.
The Nou Mestalla will have a seating capacity of 70,044 and is located just north of the old town.
The Estadio de Mestalla will be demolished.