The history of the Bello Horizonte stadium dates back to 1945, when plans to enclose and build a stadium over the football field located in the
Barzal neighborhood started being considered. By mid-May, Father Martín Preters and treasurer Manuel Calle Lombana, who later went on to become Mayor of Villavicencio, organized a fundraiser to carry out construction. The first stadium built at Barzal had wooden and cement stands, a half-laid football field and a fence, and although its original purpose was football, it also served as a public park. In 1959, the City Council approved the acquisition of a plot of land for a sports field and the construction of an olympic park, along with the sale of the football stadium, but Calle Lombana prevented the stadium's auction. By then, the stadium became known as "Macal". and was officially renamed to Manuel Calle Lombana by a resolution by the
Meta Department Assembly, issued five days after Calle Lombana's death in 1987. Two years later, due to
Centauros Villavicencio's promotion to
Categoría Primera A, renovation works were held in the eastern grandstand. In 2012, with the arrival of the city's new football club
Llaneros, a further renovation of the stadium was carried out. Those works involved the replacement of the grass playing field for an artificial surface, the recovery and modernization of the lighting system as well as the adaptation of locker rooms and press booths. The stadium's artificial turf was in use until 2019, when it was lifted and replaced by grass. The 2019 remodeling works also included the installation of an athletic track around the field and a structural reinforcement. In February 2020, the Governor of
Meta Department Juan Guillermo Zuluaga announced the renaming of the stadium to
Estadio Bello Horizonte. On 4 January 2023, Zuluaga announced a new renaming of the stadium, this time to
Estadio Bello Horizonte Rey Pelé, following a suggestion by
FIFA President
Gianni Infantino to all countries to name one stadium in tribute to Brazilian footballer
Pelé, in the aftermath of his death on 29 December 2022. == References ==