Fútbol in Buenos Aires: Soccer Tickets & Stadium Tours

Argentina’s passion for fútbol is contagious.

When the national team plays the cheers and groans echo across the city as an entire population celebrates or mourns in unison.

So if you’re planning a trip to the land of Maradona and Messi, you’ll want to see Buenos Aires soccer in person.

But you may be surprised that can be a bit harder than you’d initially expect.

Tickets go to members of each team who are in regular attendance.

Scalpers exist but you may easily end up with a fake.

Wandering the barrios where the football stadiums are can also be a risky endeavor as some stadiums are in riskier areas.

This is one of those situations where it’s really best to put it into the hands of experts and go on an organized tour or use an authorized vendor you can trust.

Here are some of the best and safest ways to see fútbol in Buenos Aires like a porteño.

About Fútbol in Buenos Aires: Soccer Tickets & Tours

The Buenos Aires soccer season is from late-January through early-August, give or take a few days depending on the year.

28 participating teams all confront each other in a single round robin tournament, click here to see dates and match ups for the 2023 season.

As mentioned earlier, getting tickets isn’t as easy as logging into Ticketmaster and swiping your Mastercard.

To experience soccer in Buenos Aires, check out the following tours and experiences to avoid getting into a sticky situation or accidentally purchasing fake scalper ticket.

Homefans: A Fully Local Experience

Homefans is the best way to get Buenos Aires futbol tickets and have a complete experience.

If you book a game or two with Homefans, use my code SOLSALUTE to save 10% on your ticket.

I’ve gone to a few games with them so far, like the season opening game for Boca Juniors, the Huracan-San Lorenzo superclasico, and my local neighborhood’s smaller team, Platense.

For each game, we met up with our host and local fan (hincha) about two hours before game time.

We started with a pregame, watching fans hype themselves up drinking a few beers and having choripan while singing the canciones de cancha (fan songs).

The game itself was a great experience and I’m glad we were with locals who knew there way around the stadium.

Each game was different because the local fan themselves creates the experience.

I recommend reading the reviews and comparing options when picking your game.

Also, don’t ignore the “smaller” teams.

I REALLY enjoyed my Huracan experience with Sofia even more than Boca!

The passion for these teams is just as high and you can spend a fraction of the price you’d spend at Boca or River Plate, something to keep in mind if you’re on a budget.

If you book a game or two with Homefans, use my code SOLSALUTE to save 10% on your ticket.

It’s never cheap to go to a soccer game in Buenos Aires but that’s because it’s not easy to get these tickets.

With Homefans it’s worth the money. It really is a complete and save experience.

Tour the Stadiums

Whether you’re visiting out of season or simply can’t swing the cost of visiting an in-person game, a tour of the stadiums is a great alternative.

River Plate and Boca Juniors both offer guided tours.

You’ll see the infamous cancha (field), locker rooms, and if you’re really lucky, maybe you’ll spot a player!

This guided tour is ideal for true soccer fanatics as it includes both major teams’ stadiums with transport between the two (they’re on opposite ends of the city).

Other Tour Providers

Other third party sites offer safe and secure experiences to see the best teams out there, Boca or River Plate.

If you want to see a smaller team or get the best prices, I still recommend Homefans above. But if for some reason they don’t work out for you, these two options are here as well:

• Boca Juniors – See the city’s most infamous team safely with a local via Airbnb Experiences.
• River Plate or Boca Juniors – Viator is the most popular tour aggregate site offering the best of the best tours out there, here you can book tickets with included transfers to either a Boca or River game.

It is undeniably expensive but you get what you pay for.

Going to an Argentina fútbol game is no easy task if you don’t know what you’re doing.

Police checks, rowdy crowds, and rough neighborhoods (for some teams) can make going with a local who knows the best option.

Argentina Futbol Vocabulary

Want to blend right in with the locals?

Google translate will only get you so far, and when it comes to Argentine slang it will get you nowhere.

Here are a few fun words to learn before going to a Buenos Aires soccer game:

• Futbol: Soccer (starting with the obvious for those of us yanquis)
• To cheer for your team: Alentar
• Fans: Hinchas
• The field: La Cancha
• Football hooligans: Barra bravas
• Goal: Goooooooool
• Incredible Goal: GOLAZO!
• To Win: Ganar
• Blow Out: Paliza
• To Loser: Perder
• Defeat: Derrota
• El Mundial: World Cup

Unique Expressions to sound like a Porteño:

• Pecho frío – Someone who chokes under pressure, literally “cold chested”
• Colgarse del travesaño – To play defensively, literally “to hang from the goal post”
• El (defensor) no para ni el bondi – He couldn’t even stop the bus

Who’s on the field?

• Team: Equipo
• National team: La Selección
• Referee: El Árbritro
• Goalkeeper: Arquero
• Forward: Delantero
• Midfielder: Meriocampista
• Defender: Defensor
• Captain: Capitán