That they had to leave their beloved Estadio Vicente Calderón, still hurts a little with the supporters of Atlético Madrid. But this illustrious club is so deeply rooted in the Spanish capital, that there's still lots of football hotspots to discover.
Spaciously set up, far out of town (near airport Barajas) and hypermodern. Not really things football purists usually get excited for, but to be fair, the Wanda Metropolitano really has its charm. For a big stadium there's a quite a good atmosphere, the stands are close to the pitch and the acoustic is great. The extraordinary roof construction makes the stadium very imposant and recognizable. Also, there's a lot of classy details in and around te stadium. The name of the street (Avenida de Luis Aragonés) is historically justified, but also the giant bronze bear from the club crest is beautiful, right in front of the main entrance. (The bear picks from a strawberry tree, just like in Madrid's coat of arms.)
Even though the stadium is brand new and located at a mostly empty area, there's still some bars nearby, at the west side of the stadium. Cross the Avenida de Luis Aragonés and walk towards the city. El Rincon de Calderón (Calle de Etruria) is a small diner in the club's colours, just like Gastro Atléti nearby around the corner (Calle la Ilíada). Bar Akelarre and Bar Manolo are simple bars, but you feel the love for football and the rojiblanco in everything.
The demolition of the legendary Estadio Vicente Calderón, fully disappeared now, meant the demise of a lot of bars around the Paseo de los Melancólicos as well. One of those was is Taberna El Chiscón de la Ribera (Calle San Epifanio 7), across the street of the old stadium.
Still, this whole area is qualified as holy ground for Atlético fans, and this place in particular too. This was the café where supporter Margarita Luengo once picked a bouquet of carnations from a vase, twelve white, and twelve red. At a corner kick, she threw them lovingly to Milinko Pantic, her favorite player. It resulted immediately in a goal. Still to this they, at every home game the old lady lays down a bouquet of carnations at the corner flag, a tradition that has moved with the club to its new stadium too.
It's a famous anecdote: when Fernando Torres once struggled with his form at Atlético Madrid, he once went to grab a hamburger at Hamburgueria Don Oso (Calle de Meléndez Valdés, Madrid). Suddenly, he started scoring again. Superstitious as he was, Don Oso became a fixed ritual for El Niño Fernando Torres when he wasn't scoring. The diner, part of a small chain, still exists. It's not quite haute cuisine, but for anyone who's down for some fastfood, it's really recommended.
Don't be surprised if you walk into famous Uruguayan striker Luis Suárez at La Mano de Pablo, a Uruguayan restaurant at Calle de Frómista 14 in Madrid. A typical meat restaurant, which is good affordable as well. Diego Godín loved to come here as well, during his spell at Atlético.
Atlético Madrid player Marcos Llorente, who came from arch rivals Real Madrid and is a great-nephew from Real legend Francisco 'Paco Gento', is into food as well. 'Naked & Sated' is a small chain of businesses where you can eat healthy food. The stakes of bumping into Llorente aren't very high, but he really is business partner in these good restaurants. They have three locations, with the one at Calle Estébanez Calderón close to Estadio Santiago Bernabéu.
A real popular restaurant under (former) players of Real and Atlético is Restaurante Asador Casa Juan, at the Calle de la Infanta Mercedes. You only have to check the loads of pictures on the wall (or when you're at home, their Instagram feed). But we truly recommend a visit, because of the outstanding meat they have.
If you want to spot players of Atlético on a night out? Try restaurant Ten Con Ten, a little north of the city center. But don't forget to bring serious cash.
You can easily buy tickets for upcoming games on the website of the Atlético Madrid. The lower you sit, the more impressive the Wando Metropolitano is.
The Wanda Metropolitano is on the eastern edge of Madrid, along the ring road of the Spanish capital, so you can easily get there by car. Our choice is the metro: metroline 7 stops right in front of the stadium, at station Metropolitano.
Images: Shutterstock, BSR Agency
