Inside Atletico Madrid’s matchday from above – and the way the stadium’s ‘crown jewels’ work
EXCLUSIVE Atletico Madrid’s Riyadh Air Metropolitano is a modern marvel of a football stadium – and Daily Star Sport was given a closer look at how it all works
Atletico Madrid’s stadium is a modern marvel
Atletico Madrid’s Riyadh Air Metropolitano is one of those stadiums that TV simply cannot do justice. The atmosphere can be suffocating and, combined with the Spanish heat, has a habit of melting away teams.
But the Metropolitano is not simply a fortress for Diego Simeone’s side. Rising on the southern outskirts of Madrid, it is also a striking example of modern stadium design.
Last month, as the La Liga season drew to a close, Daily Star Sport was given a behind-the-scenes tour to discover the inner workings of a venue that has pushed the boundaries of what a modern football stadium can – and should – be.
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The Metropolitano opened back in 2017, but even after the new stadium opened, club officials had a dream of turning the roof into a giant LED display – a dream that would eventually manifest as the “sky ribbon”.
The Sky Ribbon wraps around the top of the stadium as a continuous LED display visible from every corner of the ground. On matchdays, it can show substitutions, attendance figures and other key information.
Its use is not limited to football, either. Touring artists staging concerts at the Metropolitano can also take control of the system, allowing the display to become part of the show and transforming the stadium into an immersive entertainment venue.
But making that vision a reality proved far from straightforward. The display had to withstand powerful wind loads and move naturally with the stadium’s roof structure.
Engineers eventually designed 112 bespoke steel frames, each tailored to the roof’s unique shape, while more than 11,000 LED strips were fitted to custom-built supports.
With the stadium continuing to host matches and concerts throughout construction, Atleti were forced to create a temporary assembly factory inside the ground.
Nicknamed “the toaster”, it became the hub where thousands of components shipped from South Korea were pieced together before installation.
The whole process was shared on the club’s YouTube channel in a short documentary: Looking to the Sky. And such a massive project needs tech facilities that are just as big,
Rene Abril, the club’s head of technology and digital development, joked that the ground has more in common with banks than other stadiums – thanks to its two data centres that help control Sky Ribbon.
However, the real heartbeat of the operation comes from the control centre. Behind a sprawling glass window overlooking the pitch, staff manage what content appears on the Sky Ribbon.
It’s not just matchday that the technology is used – members of the club can have their stats flash up on the electronic boards that surround the stadium and line the tunnel when taking a tour.
The future is now for Atleti – and it’s not a surprise that other clubs are looking towards the Metropolitano for inspiration.
This season, UK fans can watch LALIGA live via Premier Sports, or on Disney+ for each Saturday 8pm kick off.
