New, modern stadium for Chivas but who's going to go?

There wasn’t much to shout about on the field during Chivas’ game against Pumas (it finished 0-0) in the Estadio Omnilife. So much so that it became impossible to miss the rows upon rows of empty red seats glaring from the screen.

The official attendance was 22,000 but in a stadium of over 45,000 and against one of the country’s best-supported teams, it must be a major cause of concern for Chivas owner Jorge Vergara.

To put it in perspective, the last game against Pumas in the Estadio Jalisco was a sell out. The capacity in that stadium is over 60,000.

Presumably to offset the decrease in ticket sales, Vergara is negotiating with the Office of Visitors and Conventions (Ofvc) to offer tourist packages for Chivas games.
Tours of the stadium and the pitch are planned, combined with tickets for games and one night in a hotel.

Ofvc believe that some 14,000 people would pay for a ticket and a room for the big clasico game when Chivas play America in Guadalajara and between 800-1,000 when Chivas play Atlas in the local clasico.

In the inauguration of the Estadio Omnilife when Chivas played Manchester United, around 20,000 of the 45,000 crowd were made up of people from outside Jalisco. Hotels in the city were at 98 percent of their overall capacity.

Two problems remain though.

Ticket prices started at 150 pesos and went up to 800 pesos for Saturday’s game against Pumas. Although lower than expected, it appeared the lower end tickets sold out with the more expensive ones nearer the pitch sparsely populated. The obvious problem is who is going to regularly buy tickets that cost 500 or 600 pesos (40-45 US dollars)? Especially if Chivas are playing Nexaca and not Pumas or Manchester United.

Secondly, the location of the stadium doesn’t help. Outside of the periferico (ringroad, beltway) to the west of the city centre, it’s extremely difficult for those that live in the centre or east of the city, where the Esatdio Jalisco is located, to get to the new stadium. Much of Chivas' traditional working class support, which let's face it create the atmosphere, comes from nearer the city centre and not the 'suburbs.'

The lack of transport infrastructure makes getting in and out of the stadium a headache.