Sports as Social Change in Mexico City
A journey through the evolution of sports complexes and their enduring impact on Mexico City's social landscape
Canchas de básquetbol del Deportivo Elías Calles (1954) by AGN, Archivos Fotográficos, Hermanos Mayo, Concentrados, Sobre HMCN 1938Archivo General de la Nación - Mexico
The infrastructure that has made it possible to practice sport has been present in national history. Here we deal with those centers that have been occupied for recreation and socialization.
Campo de fútbol (1954) by AGN, Archivos Fotográficos, Hermanos Mayo, Concentrados, Sobre HMCN 1938Archivo General de la Nación - Mexico
Sport in post-revolutionary Mexico was restricted to those who had access to public education, where it sought to generate new values, and in the private sphere to those who participated in clubs that sought professionalization under an economic interest.
Barras de gimnasia (1954) by AGN, Archivos Fotográficos, Hermanos Mayo, Concentrados, Sobre HMCN 1938Archivo General de la Nación - Mexico
Over time, public sports spaces were created. In Mexico City, land was expropriated with the aim of building sports complexes. These spaces became emblematic as the sports centers Venustiano Carranza and Plutarco Elías Calles.
Gimnasio del Deportivo Venustiano Carranza (1929) by AGN, Archivos Fotográficos, Hermanos Mayo, Concentrados, Sobre HMCN 1941Archivo General de la Nación - Mexico
Sports Venustiano Carranza
The first complex of its kind in Mexico City was the Social and Sports Center for Workers "Venustiano Carranza". Inaugurated in 1929 and represented one of the first significant efforts to provide public infrastructure to the capital for the working class.
Entrada del Deportivo Venustiano Carranza (1929) by AGN, Archivos Fotográficos, Colección Díaz, García y Delgado, Caja 29-18Archivo General de la Nación - Mexico
The complex had a gym, swimming pools, tennis, basketball and volleyball courts, baseball and football fields with grandstands, skating and dancing courts, as well as a room with a cinematograph.
Interior del gimnasio del Deportivo Venustiano Carranza (1929) by AGN, Archivos Fotográficos, Hermanos Mayo, Concentrados, Sobre HMCN 1941Archivo General de la Nación - Mexico
The inauguration had parades, gymnastic tables and the participation of the neighbors.
Partido de fútbol (1938) by AGN, Archivos Fotográficos, Hermanos Mayo, Concentrados, Sobre HMCN 1940Archivo General de la Nación - Mexico
Asturias Sports Park
In 1936 a group of Spaniards living in Mexico built the Asturias Park with the aim of having a stadium for the Asturias football team. The course had the capacity to hold 25 thousand spectators and became popular by becoming a sports complex.
Canchas de squash (1954) by AGN, Archivos Fotográficos, Hermanos Mayo, Concentrados, Sobre HMCN 1938Archivo General de la Nación - Mexico
Located in today's Calzada de Chabacano, it had volleyball, tennis, basketball, Olympic pool, diving pit, pediments, squash, gyms, bowling alleys, movie theaters and extensive green areas. With the team's demise, the park was demolished in 1963.
Atletismo varonil (1938) by AGN, Archivos Fotográficos, Hermanos Mayo, Concentrados, Sobre HMCN 1940Archivo General de la Nación - Mexico
Sports Six-Year Plan
Another venue that emerged to promote the well-being and health of the population of Mexico City was the Deportivo Plan Sexenal, named for constituting a symbol of the government program of President Lázaro Cárdenas in 1938.
Atletismo femenil (1938) by AGN, Archivos Fotográficos, Hermanos Mayo, Concentrados, Sobre HMCN 1940Archivo General de la Nación - Mexico
This complex, located in the Nextitla neighborhood of today's Miguel Hidalgo Mayor's Office, opened its doors on September 18, 1938 with facilities equipped for gymnastics, swimming, karate, diving, boxing, taekwondo, dance, figure skating and basketball.
Juego básquetbol (1938) by AGN, Archivos Fotográficos, Hermanos Mayo, Concentrados, Sobre HMCN 1940Archivo General de la Nación - Mexico
The site has also hosted university Olympics and national youth games. Today it is one of the most emblematic of the capital. The good conditions of its facilities have allowed it to be conditioned for private events and as a location for films.
Frontón Deportivo 18 de marzo (1979) by AGN, Archivos Fotográficos, Hermanos Mayo, Concentrados, Sobre HMCN 1937Archivo General de la Nación - Mexico
Sports March 18
This complex, named in reference to the day the expropriation of the oil industry was executed in 1938, began its history in 1943.
Entrada del Deportivo 18 de marzo (1979) by AGN, Archivos Fotográficos, Hermanos Mayo, Concentrados, Sobre HMCN 1937Archivo General de la Nación - Mexico
The infrastructure occurred when the Single Union of Workers of the Department of the Federal District (SUTGDF) asked the authorities to keep a property to encourage sports, although it succeeded until 1946.
Cancha del Deportivo 18 de marzo (1979) by AGN, Archivos Fotográficos, Hermanos Mayo, Concentrados, Sobre HMCN 1937Archivo General de la Nación - Mexico
To make up for the lack of budget for its maintenance, the SUTGDF organized fights and boxing matches in the gym. This has changed since 1951 when President Miguel Aleman approved a budget for its improvement.
Alberca del Deportivo 18 de marzo (1979) by AGN, Archivos Fotográficos, Hermanos Mayo, Concentrados, Sobre HMCN 1937Archivo General de la Nación - Mexico
Already renovated, the sports implemented a monthly card with a value of 1 peso to regulate access to all services: the use of swimming pool , gym, staves, tennis courts, fronton, frontenis, baseball field, arcade, green areas, soccer field and offices.
Fachada Centro Deportivo Chapultepec by AGN, Archivos Fotográficos, Hermanos Mayo, Concentrados, Sobre HMCN 0807-1Archivo General de la Nación - Mexico
Chapultepec Sports Center
The creation of this complex was the product of the Cardenista heritage since the decree of November 23, 1937 obliged credit institutions and auxiliary organizations to give facilities to their employees to stimulate sport.
Inauguración del Centro Deportivo Chapultepec by AGN, Archivos Fotográficos, Hermanos Mayo, Concentrados, Sobre HMCN 0807-1Archivo General de la Nación - Mexico
The Bank of Mexico acquired this property that housed since 1894 the Reforma Athletic Club for the practice of tennis and football. After the acquisition, the place was inaugurated by President Miguel Alemán Valdez in 1950 with the name Centro Deportivo Chapultepec.
Cancha de tenis del Centro Deportivo Chapultepec by AGN, Archivos Fotográficos, Hermanos Mayo, Concentrados, Sobre HMCN 0807-1Archivo General de la Nación - Mexico
More disciplines were incorporated and it has hosted events such as the Davis Cup and the Mexican Youth Tennis Open.
Exhibición de tiro con arco by AGN, Archivos Fotográficos, Hermanos Mayo, Concentrados, Sobre HMCN 0807-1Archivo General de la Nación - Mexico
Workers in the banking and financial sector remain the exclusive users.
Entrada del Deportivo Plutarco Elías Calles (1954) by AGN, Archivos Fotográficos, Hermanos Mayo, Concentrados, Sobre HMCN 1938Archivo General de la Nación - Mexico
Plutarco Elías Calles Sports Center
During the government of President Adolfo Ruiz Cortines, the Sports Promotion Directorate of the Department of the Federal District was created, seeking to give a new impetus to sport in the city, bringing with it the inauguration of Deportivo Plutarco Elías Calles in 1954.
Mujer practicando básquetbol (1954) by AGN, Archivos Fotográficos, Hermanos Mayo, Concentrados, Sobre HMCN 1938Archivo General de la Nación - Mexico
The Mayo Brothers recorded the suitability of the space for the practice of basketball, but it is also true that the complex was one of the first to have a velodrome in Latin America.
Niños jugando básquetbol (1954) by AGN, Archivos Fotográficos, Hermanos Mayo, Concentrados, Sobre HMCN 1938Archivo General de la Nación - Mexico
Gimnasio del Deportivo Plutarco Elías Calles (1954) by AGN, Archivos Fotográficos, Hermanos Mayo, Concentrados, Sobre HMCN 1938Archivo General de la Nación - Mexico
Since 1954 the sports used for various activities, including dances.
Frontón del Deportivo Plutarco Elías Calles (1954) by AGN, Archivos Fotográficos, Hermanos Mayo, Concentrados, Sobre HMCN 1938Archivo General de la Nación - Mexico
Located in the current Venustiano Carranza mayor's office, the extensive complex today offers baseball, soccer, frontenis, basketball, volleyball and tennis courts, while allowing you to take classes and train swimming and early aquatic stimulation.
Fachada de la Ciudad Deportiva (1958) by AGN, Archivos Fotográficos, Hermanos Mayo, Concentrados, Sobre HMCN 0780Archivo General de la Nación - Mexico
Sports City
Despite the existence of these sports complexes, the construction of the Magdalena Mixiuhca Sports City in 1958, considerably increased the sports offer in the capital of the country.
Calle principal a la Ciudad Deportiva (1958) by AGN, Archivos Fotográficos, Hermanos Mayo, Concentrados, Sobre HMCN 0780Archivo General de la Nación - Mexico
This sports center, located on Viaducto Río de la Piedad Avenue, was managed by the Sports Institute of Mexico City and was remodeled to include optimal spaces for various disciplines as part of the preparations for the Olympics of Mexico in 1968.
Alberca de la Ciudad Deportiva (1958) by AGN, Archivos Fotográficos, Hermanos Mayo, Concentrados, Sobre HMCN 0780Archivo General de la Nación - Mexico
The complex includes the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez, the Alfredo Harp Helú baseball stadium, regulatory soccer, baseball, basketball and hockey courts, swimming pools, diving pits, box and weight gyms and weapons room, as well as the Agustín Melgar Olympic Velodrome.
Clase de gimnasia (1977) by AGN, Archivos Fotográficos, Hermanos Mayo, Concentrados, Sobre HMCN 0578Archivo General de la Nación - Mexico
Guelatao Social and Sports Center
It was inaugurated in 1975 to promote sports in the center of the capital, in addition to providing service to the population, it also hosted a Pan American Games and served as a shelter for several families affected by a fire in a neighborhood of the area.
Juego de tenis de mesa (1977) by AGN, Archivos Fotográficos, Hermanos Mayo, Concentrados, Sobre HMCN 0578Archivo General de la Nación - Mexico
It hosted both sports and cultural activities. Most of the disciplines were developed inside the gym, although it also had a baseball field. Its abandonment and deterioration led it to several restructurings hoping that it can be enabled again.
Mujeres practicando Voleibol (1954) by AGN, Archivos Fotográficos, Hermanos Mayo, Concentrados, Sobre HMCN 1938Archivo General de la Nación - Mexico
The documentary heritage allows us to take a look at the momentum that encouraged public institutions, private organizations and society to give life to the first sports complexes in the capital.
Encuentro de básquetbol (1954) by AGN, Archivos Fotográficos, Hermanos Mayo, Concentrados, Sobre HMCN 1938Archivo General de la Nación - Mexico
Today most of them are home to thousands of amateur, professional athletes or those who like only physical activity to recreate and build up.
Documentary references:
AGN, Photographic Archives, Hermanos Mayo, Concentrates, Part One, envelopes: HMACN1/1938, HMACN1/1941, HMACN1/0578, HMACN1/0807-2, HMACN1/1936, HMACN1/1940, HMACN1/0780 and HMACN1/1939.
AGN, Photographic Archives, Enrique Díaz, García y Delgado, boxes: EDDG/29/18.
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