page_title: Estádio Urbano Caldeira
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: Estádio Urbano Caldeira / History
caption_attribution_description: First game of Santos FBC
context_page_description: Estádio Urbano Caldeira, also known as Vila Belmiro, is an association football stadium located in the Vila Belmiro neighborhood of Santos, São Paulo, and the home of Santos Futebol Clube.
  The stadium was inaugurated on October 12, 1916 when Santos beat Clube Atlético Ypiranga 2–1, with Adolfo Millon Jr. scoring the first goal of the stadium. It was named in honor of Urbano Caldeira, former player, manager and chairman of Santos, in 1933. The stadium, given the nickname Vila Belmiro due to its location within the Vila Belmiro neighborhood, has been Santos' permanent residence since 1916. However, the team sometimes uses the Pacaembu Stadium located in the city of São Paulo for important games due to the low capacity of Vila Belmiro.
  The stadium underwent several expansions and renovations in the 1990s and 2000s, most notably the renewal of the irrigation and drainage systems, flood-lighting and the replacement of the field. The stadium's current highest attendance was recorded in 1964, when 32,989 spectators watched the Campeonato Paulista match between Santos and Corinthians.
context_section_description: Soon after its foundation, Santos held their training in a field located in the neighborhood of Macuco. As the field did not meet the minimum size standards to host official matches, Santos played on the "Igreja Coração de Maria" pitch in Ana Costa Avenue. The field, however, was also used by other clubs in town. In 1915, the situation reached its breaking point, when Santos had constant conflicts with other city clubs on when the field could be used, forcing the club to reject several requests for international friendlies. To solve the problem, the leaders began searching for land in the city, with a commission formed by Luiz Suplicy Júnior, Harold Cross, Sebastião Arantes Nogueira and Francisco Viriato Corrêa da Costa. On May 31, 1916, a general assembly approved the purchase of an area of 16,500 square meters, in the neighborhood of Vila Belmiro, approved by club president Agnello Cícero de Oliveira and vice-president Dr. Álvaro Ribeiro. The land acquired belonged to Companhia de Habitações Econômicas, and the field was bought from them at a price of Rs$66,660,000. The board members obtained a 10-year loan which was liquified in 1923 after paying Rs$35,000,000 in interest fees. 
  The club, however, did not obtain a nearby area belonging to Beneficência Portuguesa, since the club's finances did not favor this. It would not be acquired until 1989. The original date for the inauguration of the field was August 20; it was postponed until further notice due to the death of Dr. Álvaro Ribeiro. On October 12 of that year, the inauguration of the Vila Belmiro sports park was celebrated with several ceremonies among the members, including a march by musical corporation Humanitária, to see off playing on Macuco field. The first game was held 10 days later at 13:30 (UTC-3), against Ypiranga for the 1916 Campeonato Paulista, the competition's 491st match, which Santos won 2–1. Ticket prices were set at Rs$2 for bleacher and Rs$1 for the general public. Adolfo Millon Jr. scored the first ever goal on that stadium with Jarbas scoring the second, while Bororó scored for the visiting team. Santos was formed by: Odorico; Américo and Arantes; Pereira, Oscar and Junqueira; Millon, Marba, Tedesco, Jarbas and Arnaldo. Ypiranga was represented by Dionísio; Dario and Ferreira; Loschiavo, Jacintho and Peres II; Ary, Hugo, Bororó, Peres I and Formiga. Demosthenes de Silos was the referee for the match.
caption: Estádio Urbano Caldeira during its inauguration
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