Estadio Bernabéu steals the show for Commanders vs. Dolphins: 'THIS PLACE IS BREATHTAKING'

"I grew up in a household that played soccer. I watched Cristiano, Ronaldinho, Real Madrid, Manchester United... being here now is crazy," said Frankie Luvu, linebacker for the Washington Commanders in the preview of the game against the Miami Dolphins in Madrid, Spain.

He is not alone. In recent hours, fans have been crazed about the the National Football League (NFL) landing on Spanish soil, and especially about the stage where more than 80,000 spectators will be able to enjoy the clash: Estadio Santiago Bernabéu.

"It will be pretty special for me personally, and I know the team is excited for it as well," said Kliff Kingsbury, Commanders offensive coordinator, also excited to step foot in the stadium.

On the Dolphins' side, defensive coordinator Anthony Weaver stressed the importance of "educat[ing]" his players about the importance of the stadium where they will play Sunday: "I’d have to assume it’d be like playing baseball in Yankee Stadium. That’s probably the equivalent to what we have in the U.S. It’s going to be an honor."

Felipe Formiga, Miami's vice president of international development, went even further:

"I had the opportunity to go to the Bernabéu and I almost cried, it's incredible. When you get there and you see the Dolphins all over the place, the energy is going to be incredible."

A historic stadium... like never before

The Bernabéu is the home of Spanish soccer club Real Madrid, one of the most awarded nationally, in Europe and worldwide. The squad has the most Spanish leagues (36); the most European Cups, the "Super Bowl" of European soccer (15); and the most Club World Cups (5).

Inaugurated in 1947, it is named after the president of the club that promoted its construction on Paseo de la Castellana, one of the main streets of the Spanish capital. It has recently been renamed from Santiago Bernabéu to just Bernabéu.

That was not the only change. It has just undergone a long architectural renovation. It now features a retractable roof, 360-degree video scoreboard and a folding grandstand:

In addition to Madrid matches and international soccer games, it is known for hosting massive concerts, such as two stops of The Eras Tour, Taylor Swift's record-breaking show.

For Sunday's match, Madrid will not only swap a soccer ball for a football. For example, the measurements of the two sports's fields are different, so they had to redraw both the sidelines and the inside of the field.

The locker rooms also had to be enlarged to accommodate the 53 players on each team. Another modification occurred in the press room. While for soccer, one is enough, in football each team has its own, so one more had to be constructed in the mixed area.

The merchandising was also modified, adding football products, and an NFL Museum was created highlighting the history of the sport.

Real Madrid released a video explaining some changes, and also the basic rules, to prepare the Spanish public:

Enthusiasm in the streets and on social media

In the last few days, despite the rain, Commanders and Dolphins t-shirts, caps and banners began to fill the bars, streets and transportation networks around the newly renovated mega-building.

The enthusiasm made its way to social media, where the Bernabéu had a peak in Google searches and climbed to Trending Topic on X.

Enthusiasm like that of NFL reporters Marcel Louis-Jacques ("this is phenomenal, I’m at a loss for words") and Cameron Wolfe ("iconic"), two of the many professionals and fans who took the opportunity to tour the facilities before the game:

Dolphins beat reporter Hal Habib also chimed in. After visiting "La Casa Blanca" ("The White House," as the stadium is nicknamed because of Real Madrid's jersey color), Habib responded to a user who asked if the facilities were up to American standards: "Question is if U.S. arenas are at this level. I’ve been in nice ones but this is the nicest I’ve ever visited."

"THIS PLACE IS BREATHTAKING," said the fan group Commanders Squad CLT, following a tour of the facility Saturday morning.