Estadio Jorge Luis Hirschi

Jorge Luis Hirschi Stadium

Estadio Jorge Luis Hirschi
Estadio Uno
The stadium during a match in 2022
Address	Av. 1 no. 1150 La Plata Argentina
Owner	Estudiantes de La Plata
Capacity	32,530 [2]
Field size	105 x 68
Surface	Grass
Construction
Opened	25 December 1907; 116 years ago (25 December 1907)
Renovated	2008–2019
Reopened	2019 [1]
Tenants
Estudiantes LP (1907–2005, 2019–present) Estudiantes LP rugby (1912–30)[3] Argentina national rugby team (2024)
Website
estudianteslp.com/estadio

The Jorge Luis Hirschi Stadium (Spanish: Estadio Jorge Luis Hirschi), also known as Estadio Uno, is a football stadium located in the city of La Plata, Argentina. With a seat capacity of 35,530, the stadium is the home field of club Estudiantes de La Plata.

Because of its technological innovations and environmental sustainability, the stadium is regarded as one of the most modern venues in Argentina.^[4][5][6] The stadium is also one of the oldest in Argentina so it was established at "Paseo del Bosque" park in 1906.^[7]

The stadium is named after Jorge Luis Hirschi, who served as Estudiantes' president between 1927 and 1932, and is located on 1st Avenue between 55th and 57th Streets. It is thus also known as 1 y 57 (referring to its location on 1 and 57 streets). It was formally inaugurated on 25 December 1907. The arena was the venue where Estudiantes obtained the 1913 amateur league title, and where fans enjoyed los profesores ("the professors"), the famous 1930s offensive line of Lauri-Scopelli-Zozaya-Ferreyra-Guayta.

In its initial incarnation (1907 to 2005) the stadium held up to 28,000 people, mostly standing-room, even though security measures would reduce its actual capacity to about 22,000. Its relatively meager size made Estudiantes use Boca Juniors' Bombonera stadium for its Copa Libertadores games.

In 1906, the Estudiantes executives focused on building a venue that could be suitable for Primera División matches so it was required by the Argentine Football Association to admit club's registration with the body. It was because the original field on 19 and 51 avenues (where the Islas Malvinas Park is placed nowadays) was not in line with the requirements to host official matches. President of the club, Nazario Roberts, make the arrangements and the Government of Buenos Aires Province gave the club a land on 1 and 57 street, where a velodrome functioned.^[7][8] With a capacity for 2,000 spectators, the stadium was inaugurated on 25 December 1907.^[8]

After the pitch was remodelated, in 1911 a roofed grandstand was built. In 1937 a new lighting system was installed and the stadium became the first major venue in Argentina to host night games, inaugurated in a friendly match v Uruguayan side Peñarol.^[9] Those improvements allowed Estudiantes to participate in the Torneo Internacional Nocturno Rioplatense, a Summer tournament contested by Argentine and Uruguayan clubs.

The official grandstand, remodeled during the presidency of Pedro Osácar in the 1940s, was destroyed by fire in 1960 and then replaced by a roofed grandstand built entirely in concrete. It would be used until the venue's demolition in 2007.^[10]

In September 2005, the stadium was closed down for league games because of new safety regulations that forbid wooden stands. Even though a judicial restraining order exempted Estudiantes from the prohibition, the La Plata city government refused to comply. This situation started a rift between the club and mayor Julio Alak.

When Estadio Ciudad de La Plata was built for the city of La Plata, both Estudiantes and Gimnasia y Esgrima decided against relocating their home games. Immediately after the closure, Estudiantes requested permission for upgrading its stadium to no less than 20,000 seats plus 15,000 standing room, but the mayor refused, insisting that the new stadium should be used.

As a stopgap measure, for the 2005 Apertura Estudiantes played its home games in the nearby Gimnasia y Esgrima stadium, Estadio Juan Carmelo Zerillo, paying a rent of 10% gross income, plus an undisclosed amount for each attending season ticketholder. For the 2006 Clausura, Estudiantes moved its home games to the Quilmes A.C. venue, Estadio Centenario.

In April 2006, a new judicial order allowed the re-opening of 1 y 57, but Alak intervened again to avoid this from happening.^[11] At this point, Estudiantes management floated the idea of erecting a new stadium in the port town of Ensenada, a few kilometers east of La Plata.

In August 2006 it was reported that Estudiantes and the city of La Plata reached an agreement to rebuild the stands for a capacity of 20,000, all seated. The city stadium would be used for attendances exceeding that number.^[12] The eastern stands will feature the signage Tierra de Campeones (Land of Champions), which was used by fans since the 1960s to refer to 1 y 57.

Player Juan Sebastián Verón was instrumental in securing the new stadium agreement. Argentine journalists indicated that with this intervention (as well as a series of donations to upgrade the club's training facilities in City Bell) he is building his reputation towards a future bid for the club presidency,^[13] which in fact happened when Verón was elected president of the club in 2014.^[14]

On October 20, 2006, Estudiantes announced that, during the renovation work, it would use the city stadium for home games, as Coprosede (the football security authority) would not grant security clearance for Estudiantes to play home games at Estadio Centenario in Quilmes.^[15] Estudiantes fans also became less apprehensive about the city stadium after the historic 7–0 win over Gimnasia in October 2006, and the championship celebrations that took place in the stands, two months later.^[16]

The stadium during its reconstruction in 2017

Inauguration of the stadium in November 2019

Demolition works were completed during July 2007, after some delays caused by municipal red tape. Construction was scheduled to proceed smoothly, as the club had a budget surplus resulting from strong ticket sales and the proceedings from the transfers of José Ernesto Sosa and Mariano Pavone.^[17]

The stadium was expected to be re-opened for the 2019–20 season,^[18] which finally happened on 9 November 2019 with a big celebrations. The first official match after the reopening was on 30 November 2019 when Estudiantes played vs Atlético Tucumán (1–1 tie).^[1]

In April 2024, it was announced that the stadium would host one match of the Argentina national rugby union team during their participation in the 2024 Rugby Championship. Argentina played vs Australia, being the first time the national rugby team played in the venue.^[19][20] The stadium had hosted rugby matches since 1912, when Estudiantes registered with the Argentine Rugby Union. Rugby was a regular sport until 1930 when the department was closed.^[3]

The stadium was named after Jorge Hirschi (1889–1970), regarded as the most prominent figure in the history of the club. Hirsch was the n° 44 member of the club soon after it was founded in 1905. Hirschi was also player of the club at the same time he played rugby for Estudiantes during the time the club had a section for the practise of that sport.^[21]

Playing as right winger or centre forward, Hirsch was the topscorer of the team that promoted to Primera División in 1911. He played for Estudiantes until 1914 when he retired from football. By those times he got a degree in medicine, moving to La Pampa Province where he worked as doctor and then returning to his home town.^[21]

In 1927 Hirsch was elected president of Estudiantes, being in office until 1932. During his presidency, Estudiantes' number of members increased from 300 to 8,000. After leaving the presidency of the club, Hirsch started a political career, being major of La Plata during a brief period in 1932.^[21]

The stadium carries Hirsch's name since 1970 after an initiative by then president of the club Marianao Mangano. Although the club had proposed other names for the stadium during its reconstruction (such as "Tierra de Campeones" or "Osvaldo Zubeldía"), the stadium kept its original name.^[22]

Since its reopening in 2019, the Jorge Luis Hirschi stadium has hosted the following concerts:

• List of football stadiums in Argentina
• Lists of stadiums

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Estadio Jorge Luis Hirschi.

• Official website
• Google Maps aerial view looking North. The technical school is bottom right. Avenue 1 runs NW-SE near the stadium, and is covered by two rows of linden trees. Estudiantes' stands are to the left. East of the stadium is La Plata's bosque park. Panning right, Gimnasia's stadium becomes visible, less than 1 km to the east of Jorge Luis Hirschi Stadium.
• Panoramic video of stadium taken after the 2006 championship and before the start of demolition works.
• Picture of stadium

34°54′42.93″S 57°56′19.66″W / 34.9119250°S 57.9387944°W / -34.9119250; -57.9387944