Whether you have caught World Cup fever or are curious about what destinations across Latin America have to offer on the sports and activities stage, there are plenty of opportunities to catch iconic sporting events or enjoy a more active holiday across Latin America—especially on Llama Travel holidays, which include time at leisure in some of the region’s best active and sporting destinations.
Mexico City
Mexico City’s Estadio Azteca is Latin America’s biggest football stadium (with a capacity of over 87,500!) and is renowned for its elevation, sitting 2,200 metres above sea level. It made history as the first venue to host two FIFA World Cup finals in 1986 after hosting its first in 1970, and in 2026, it became the first to host the opening matches of 3 different World Cup tournaments. As well as its record-breaking World Cup matches, Club América and Cruz Azul share the stadium for their games in Mexico’s top division year-round, and it is often the host venue for Mexico National Team friendlies. This means as many as 50 games a year are hosted at the stadium, and visitors can take guided tours of the dressing rooms, press conference rooms, player tunnels and dugouts on non-matchdays.
For the less football-inclined, Mexico City is also home to the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez, which has hosted the Mexican Grand Prix since 2015.
Buenos Aires
Argentina has a storied football legacy as the birthplace of global icons like Diego Maradona and Lionel Messi. The capital, Buenos Aires, is especially famous for its football culture, with lively matchday atmospheres and stadiums storied in iconic fixtures. Estadio Alberto J. Armando, known as ‘La Bombonera’, is home to Boca Juniors and is situated in the vibrant La Boca district. Estadio Mâs Monumental, known as ‘El Monumental’, on the other side of Buenos Aires, hosts home games for Boca Juniors’ local rivals, River Plate. Both are famed for their incredible atmospheres and intimidating, fierce home-support crowds, and can be toured.
Buenos Aires also has a ‘Walk of Glory’, built for the 2018 Youth Olympic Games, which is lined with statues of some of the country’s sporting greats, including basketball great Manu Ginóbili, tennis hero Gabriela Sabatini, and F1 champion Juan Manuel Fangio. A statue of Diego Maradona can be found outside of the Argentinos Juniors stadium, where he played his first professional fixture in 1976.
Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro’s Estádio do Maracanã dates back to 1950 and was, more recently, modernised for the 2014 World Cup and 2016 Olympics. It is the home stadium of Flamengo and Fluminense year-round and houses over 73,000 supporters at full capacity. It is perhaps best known for its unique roof and massive capacity, as well as for being the backdrop to historic football moments such as Pele’s 1,000th career goal and Uruguay’s 2-1 comeback to win the 1950 World Cup. Tours take place most days and spin a fascinating tale of Rio de Janeiro’s intertwined sporting and cultural history.
The beaches of Rio de Janeiro are essentially open-air gyms; Copacabana and Ipanema frequently play the role of host stadiums for beach volleyball and ‘footvolley’.
Lima
Football is Peru’s most popular sport, and its capital is home to three major teams: Universitario de Deportes, Alianza Lima, and Sporting Cristal, which are collectively known as the ‘Big Three’ because of their dominance of Peruvian football, each winning more than 20 national titles. Each team offers relatively affordable tickets to its home matches. Universitario de Deportes’ stadium, the Estadio Monumental “U”, is the biggest and perhaps most impressive of the three, boasting the largest capacity (80,000+) in Peru and the second largest in Latin America.
Lima also has a wonderful network of scenic bike trails along coastal valleys and great surfing conditions in Miraflores.
Torres del Paine
For those looking to get involved in sports & activity themselves, Chile’s 180,000-hectare national park is a wonderful option. There are many good day hikes and several multi-day trekking options around Torres del Paine, and the sharp peaks and bright lakes make for magnificent surroundings. Local gauchos (cowboys) offer scenic horse rides along rugged trails, backdropped by massive glaciers and granite spires. Some small operators offer mountain bike tours, which are a real thrill.
All Llama Travel holidays include time at leisure in these wonderful sporting cities and active destinations, as well as a choice of active excursions, so our guests have the time to explore and get involved themselves.
