Stade 26 Mars

The Stade 26 Mars is set down in Yirimadio, Commune VI. There is a sense that the stadium exists in a separate pocket of the capital, insulated by the tarmac and the river.

Built for the 2002 Africa Cup of Nations, the structure was designed to host the final, a match where Cameroon beat Senegal 3–2 on penalties. That night shifted the focus from the local clubs, Stade Malien and Djoliba AC, to the national team, though the domestic leagues still use the pitch. The surface is natural grass, worn down by the dry season but kept in play.

The capacity is a matter of how you count. The figures sit around 50,000 or 55,000, a number that swelled when standing areas were allowed. A renovation in January 2022 smoothed out the rough edges, adding LED lighting and VIP boxes to meet international standards, but the scale remains imposing. The name refers to the 1991 uprising that brought down the Traoré dictatorship, a history that sits heavy on the concrete. The ground hosts political rallies and concerts as often as it hosts matches, a public square that happens to have goalposts.