Zapopan

Zapopan is the most dynamic municipality in the state of Jalisco and one of the most vibrant in all of Mexico. An inseparable part of the Guadalajara metropolitan area, it combines in one territory the region's deepest religious and cultural tradition — the Basilica of the Virgin and the mass Romería procession on October 12 — with a cutting-edge technology economy that has attracted the world's leading multinationals and earned it the title of Mexico's Silicon Valley. It is in that creative tension between past and future that Zapopan's identity is built.

In the sporting arena, Zapopan hosts one of the most recognizable stadiums in the Americas: Estadio Akron, home of Club Deportivo Guadalajara (Las Chivas), with a bold architecture that makes the stands emerge from the ground itself, covered by 70,000 m² of natural grass. That venue, with a capacity of nearly 50,000 spectators, will host matches at the FIFA World Cup 2026, cementing Zapopan as a global top-level sporting stage. But the city is not only about spectacle: its 89 municipal sports units, more than 460 sports spaces and facilities, and sustained investment of over 925 million pesos in sports infrastructure form a civic practice network that is the foundation of its international recognition.

In 2025 Zapopan hosted the launch of the American Sports Week — the continent's largest civic sport event — and in 2026 ACES America designated it American Capital of Sport 2027, following in the footsteps of Guadalajara (2020) and León (2023). That recognition certifies what the city already lives: a sporting model that combines high-competition infrastructure with inclusive programs for all citizens, articulated by a municipality committed to sport as public policy and social right.