Estadio Hernando Siles

La Paz Olympic Stadium Estadio Hernando Siles is Bolivia's largest sports complex. It has a capacity of 42,000 seated spectators and is named after Hernando Siles Reyes, the 31st President of Bolivia 1926–1930. The stadium is located in the Miraflores borough of La Paz, at an altitude of 3,637 metres above sea level, making it one of the highest professional stadiums in the world. The Stadium was opened in 1931 with a match between The Strongest and its classic rival, Universitario, with The Strongest winning 4-1. It is the home ground of three Bolivian league football clubs, Club Bolivar, The Strongest and La Paz F.C..

The stadium has been the site of the most glorious achievements in Bolivian football history, including Bolivia's victory in the 1963 South American Championship and Bolivia's 1993 defeat of Brazil in a World Cup qualifying match, which was Brazil's first loss in a World Cup qualifier. Among legendary footballers who have played in the stadium are Pelé, Maradona, Chilavert, Ronaldo, and Zamorano.

Controversy involving the FIFA Altitude Ban

Until May 2007, FIFA, football's international governing body, accepted the stadium as a World Cup Qualifying venue despite protests from visiting teams that the altitude gives the Bolivian national team an unfair advantage against opponents who only have a few days to acclimatise before playing. On May 27, 2007, FIFA declared that no World Cup Qualifying matches could be played in stadiums above 8,200 feet (2,500m) above sea level [http://fifa.com/en/media/index/0,1369,138541,00.html?articleid=138541] . Some, including Bolivian President Evo Morales, reacted by claiming the new measure discriminated primarily against the high-altitude nations in Latin America, specifically those in the Andes region [http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/29/sports/29soccer.html] . The "Hernando Siles" became a symbol of the Bolivian struggle against FIFA banning on games in the altitude. After a month of campaigning against the ban, FIFA raised the altitude limit from 2500 meters to 3000 meters on June 27, 2007. The next day, FIFA also announced a special exemption for the Estadio Hernando Siles, allowing the stadium to continue holding World Cup Qualifiers despite its high elevation [http://soccernet.espn.go.com/news/story?id=442254&cc=5901] .

cite news
url=http://fifa.com/en/media/index/0,1369,138541,00.html?articleid=138541
title=Focus on 57th FIFA Congress
publisher=FIFA.com
date=2007-05-27
accessdate=2007-05-29

cite news
url=http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/29/sports/29soccer.html
title=Anger Echoes in South America After FIFA Bans Games at Altitude
publisher=THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
date=2007-05-28
accessdate=2007-05-29

cite news
url=http://soccernet.espn.go.com/news/story?id=442254&cc=5901
title=FIFA excludes La Paz from altitude ban - report
publisher=Reuters
date=2007-07-28
accessdate=2007-07-29