Key facts<\/h3>\n

Club: Coritiba Foot Ball Club | Opening: 1932 | Capacity 37,182 seats<\/p>\n

History and description<\/h3>\n

In the early 20th century, Coritiba played its matches at a leased site at the Parque da Graciosa. The club had built a small stadium, but by the late 1920s president Couta Pereira desired to build a proper stadium on land that the club owned.<\/p>\n

A site was found in the Alto da Gloria area and through various means loans were obtained to build a stadium. Est\u00e1dio Couto Pereira, then still named Belfort Duarte, opened on 20 November 1932 with a match between Coritiba and Am\u00e9rica.<\/p>\n

In 1948, plans were made for an almost complete reconstruction of the stadium, which was to turn into a massive concrete arena with 75,000 places. The project was vetoed though by the local state government.<\/p>\n

The idea however came to life again when in 1956 ex-player and businessman Aryon Cornelsen became president of the club. He arrived with great ambition, and the new stadium was destined to become the third largest of Brazil after Maraca\u00f1a and Morumbi<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Works on the new stadium began in January 1958 and the first stage of the project was finished by October of the same year. But then progress stalled due to bureaucratic problems, finances deteriorated, plans had to be adjusted, and in 1963 Cornelsen left the club. \u00a0<\/p>\n

The new president Evangelino da Costa Neves blew new life into the project though, and by the late 1960s both sides of the stadium had been completed.<\/p>\n

Works than shifted to the curves where two three-tiered stands were planned to be built. The first curve was completed in the mid-1970s, but it took until the 1980s for the second to be finished, more than 20 years after construction of the new stadium had begun.<\/p>\n

In the last few decades Est\u00e1dio Couto Pereira has only undergone small changes, among which a large refurbishment in 2005, which included the installation of new green and white seats and vip boxes on the main stand.<\/p>\n\n\n \t\t\n\t\t\t\t

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(photos of the present Est\u00e1dio Couto Pereira below)<\/p>\n

How to get to Estadio Couto Pereira<\/h3>\n

Est\u00e1dio Couto Pereira is located in central Curitiba, about a kilometre north-east from the city centre. One can easily walk to the stadium, and from most city centre locations this does not take more than 30 minutes.<\/p>\n

Alternatively, catch one of Curitiba\u2019s long bright-red Expresso Biarticulado buses<\/a>. Take line 203 toward Santa C\u00e2ndida and get off at stop Maria Clara. Board bus 203 at, for example, Esta\u00e7\u00e3o Central or Catedral da F\u00e9.<\/p>\n

Address: Rua Ubaldino do Amaral 37, Alto da Gl\u00f3ria, \u00a080.060-195, Curitiba<\/p>\n\n\n