Long before the Estádio do Dragão, and even before the Antas, FC Porto played on a much more modest field on Rua da Constituição. The Campo da Constituição was the club’s home for nearly four decades, and unlike many old stadiums, it never disappeared: it remains a soccer field, now dedicated to the younger generation.
The field where FC Porto won the championship
FC Porto moved to Constituição in January 1913, after leaving Campo da Rainha, the club’s first home. To play there, it paid 350 escudos a year, according to FC Porto.
It was there that some of the club’s earliest great moments were written. The most important came in April 1939: it was in a match against Benfica that FC Porto was crowned national champion for the first time. Names like Pinga, Valdemar Mota, and Acácio Mesquita marked that season, the club recalls.
Much more than just soccer
Constituição wasn’t just used for soccer. According to the club itself, 11-a-side handball and field hockey were also played there—sports that FC Porto has since abandoned—and there were also track and field events and roller hockey, the latter taking place on an old rink.
From the Move to Antas to Dragon Force
In 1952, FC Porto moved permanently to the new Estádio das Antas, but did not abandon the old field. The major transformation came on September 4, 2008: the facility reopened as a modern complex, featuring an artificial turf field for 11-a-side soccer—which can also accommodate two 7-a-side soccer games—and a second, smaller, covered field.
Two days later, on September 6, 2008, Dragon Force—the club’s soccer school for children—was founded there. By 2024, it already had 33 schools across the country and expected to exceed 5,500 students, according to A Bola, but Constituição remains the project’s headquarters. With the renovation, the complex also gained a Members’ Store and a club store.
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