- Estádio da Madeira
Estádio da Madeira, formerly named Estadio Eng. Rui Alves and informally known as Estádio da Choupana is a football
stadium inFunchal ,Madeira ,Portugal . It is currently used mostly for the home matches ofC.D. Nacional , one of twoBWINLIGA teams located in Funchal (The other being fierce rivalsC.S. Marítimo ).The stadium is currently able to hold 5,500 people and was built as a one-stand 2,500 seat stadium in 2000, when Nacional moved in. Previously they played their home games at the local municipal stadium, the
Estádio dos Barreiros .In January 2007, after a period of construction costing €20million, the stadium was expanded to 5,500 by the opening of another stand. The stadium currently has only two all-seated stands which run the entire length of the pitch. The two ends of the field are occupied by tall fencing.
On
June 1 ,2007 , the stadium was renamed to Estádio da Madeira after the club reached an agreement with the local government. The name symbolises the fact that the stadium is the most modern sports venue on the island ofMadeira , though not the biggest. That position is held by the municipal stadium, theEstádio dos Barreiros , home to Nacional's rivals Marítimo.The stadium is located within the Cidade Desportiva do C.D. Nacional (C.D Nacional Sport City), which also includes training pitches and the currently under construction Cristiano Ronaldo Academy Campus, named after the club's most famous player. The Sport City is located in the north of Funchal, high in the mountains in the Choupana district.
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