The venue was originally built for staging large music concerts. Initially called the Autódromo, it could accommodate up to 50,000 people.[4] From 2000 to 2014, it was used as a baseball stadium as well, hosting the Diablos Rojos del México and Tigres de México.[1][4] The stadium is the second-largest concert venue in Mexico City; the largest, Estadio Azteca, has a capacity of 87,523.[6]
History
In 1993, four temporary stadium seatings were placed in the banked curve of the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez due to the lack of venues for large music concerts.[7] The then-provisional field resulted as an agreement between Paul McCartney's manager, Barry Marshall, and Alejandro Soberón, the CEO of OCESA, after the concert usage of the Estadio Azteca was denied to the singer for a date on the New World Tour.[8] Four years later, it was permanently built and renamed as Foro Sol, the name coming from a popular beer brand of the Cervecería Cuauhtémoc Moctezuma group that had purchased the naming rights of the venue.[9]
Since 2015, the stadium hosts the Mexican Grand Prix and since 2016 the Mexico City ePrix, becoming part of the track and noted for its unique nature, increasing as well the circuit capacity by 25,000 spectators.[10][11]
It was announced in October 2023 that the stadium would close temporarily throughout most of 2024 for renovations.[15] News surfaced in January 2024 that the venue would change its name from Foro Sol to Estadio GNP after the renovations, following a new deal between OCESA and GNP Seguros.[16]
Usages
Baseball
A 2014 Diablos Rojos baseball match at Foro Sol
The stadium was inaugurated as a baseball park on 2 June 2000 with a match between the Tigres de México and the Diablos Rojos del México. Both teams had previously played in the Parque del Seguro Social, that was demolished in order to build a shopping mall. Tigres played the 2000 and 2001 seasons, winning the Mexican League championship back to back. The next year, Tigres moved to Puebla City and changed their name to Tigres de la Angelópolis and the Diablos Rojos remained as the park's only tenants.[17] The venue was nicknamed Infierno Solar (Solar Hell) while the Diablos Rojos were the only tenants in it.[1][18][19][20][21]
In 2014, due to the return of the Mexican Grand Prix to the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez, Diablos Rojos played their last season at the stadium, since the venue needed renovations in order to host Formula 1. Diablos Rojos moved to the smaller Estadio Fray Nano.[17][24]
Music
Notable concerts
Madonna was the first world-class act to perform at the venue for her first visit to Mexico with The Girlie Show on 10, 12 and 13 November 1993, when it was still called the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez.
British alternative rock band Coldplay performed at the stadium on 3, 4, 6, and 7 April 2022.[25] These four shows made the band the first international group in history to perform four shows on a single tour, as well as the biggest attendance in the stadium's history for an English speaking act, with 259,591 spectators.[26][27][28]
During his farewell tour, Puerto Rican rapper Daddy Yankee performed five shows on 29 and 30 November, 2, 3, and 4 December 2022, with 322,028 attendees overall. He became the first act to achieve five consecutive nights and the biggest attendance gathered at the venue.[29]
Taylor Swift performed four consecutive shows on the 24, 25, 26 and 27 of August 2023 as part of The Eras Tour, making her the first female artist to ever schedule four shows in a single tour at the stadium.[30]
^"Retornan al Infierno Solar". Ediciones Impresas Milenio (in Spanish). Milenio Diario, S.A. de C.V. 12 May 2009. Archived from the original on 21 December 2009. Retrieved 8 July 2011.
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