The Yellows’ stadium, opened in 1923, combines modernity and tradition
The Estadio de la Cerámica is one of the oldest stadiums in Spanish football. Adapting to the needs of elite football, the Yellows stadium has evolved and undergone improvements and increased in size throughout its 97 years of history, in which it has hosted games in national leagues of all levels, as well as continental games and even hosting on various occasions the Spain national team.
The Estadio de la Cerámica was opened on 17th July, under the name ‘Campo del Villarreal’ (Villarreal Pitch), although only two years later, it came to be known as ‘El Madrigal’, a name that lasted until 8th January 2017. The pitch was inaugurated with a match between CD Castellón and SD Cervantes FC, two teams from the capital city of the Castellón province.
In its history, the Yellows coliseum has undergone a number of refurbishments which have seen it increase in size. In the summer of 1952, the pitch dimensions were adjusted to match the same ones as at the Helsinki Olympic Stadium, which hosted the Olympic Games that year. The pitch therefore went from having 95m x 50m to 104m x 65m.
In the ‘60s, Villarreal built a small covers stand, and at the start of the ‘70s, the original ‘Gol Sur’ (South Stand) was built. At the end of the ‘80s, demolition on the main stand began to start construction of a new stand, which was opened on 8th March 1989 with a friendly match against Atlético Madrid.
In the last few years of last century, Villarreal carried out a significant remodelling which was key for the current structure of the Estadio de la Cerámica. The ‘Gol Sur’ was demolished on 22nd May 1998, and that was also the start of the new covered ‘Tribuna’ stand, the ‘Preferencia’ stand and the ‘Fondo Norte’ (North Stand). The work on the stadium was finished in time for the 1999/00 season.
With Villarreal CF in the top flight of Spanish football, the club continued to improve their home. The ‘Casals Grocs’ and ‘Casals Blaus’ boxes were created, as was the away stand. The club also put into place a hybrid pitch, which was a pioneering move in Spanish foobtall, as well as remodelling the benches, integrating them into the stand. These were some of the standout refurbishments that the then-named ‘El Madrigal’ underwent, before a complete modernisation, where it received the ‘Estadio de la Cerámica’ name.
On 8th January 2017, Villarreal CF unveiled the name of their stadium, which since then has been called the ‘Estadio de la Cerámica’, as a symbol that that identifies and is representative of the province of Castellón, proudly becoming an ambassador for one of the best products our region produces, as well as a showcase for this extraordinary material. In addition, with this new initiative, the club generated a new source of revenue as many ceramic tile companies from the province decided to join the project as partners, obtaining brand presence in various advertising spaces in the stadium, which brings national and international visibility. The companies that form part of the Estadio de la Cerámica are: PAMESA, PORCELANOSA, ARGENTA CERÁMICA, TORRECID and FERRO as Main Sponsors; TAU CERÁMICA, BESTILE, ESMALGLASS-ITACA and COLOROBBIA as Official Sponsors; and INCOGAS, ICA, VIDRES, GIZEMFRIT, KERAKOLL and AZULIBER as Official Partners.
