With "athletic promotion and a capital increase in its pocket," La Liga side Eibar is "now facing an important new challenge," increasing the capacity at its Ipurua stadium, which has a capacity of 5,000, according to Borja Rodríguez of MARCA. Per La Liga financial regulations, the small-budget club had to raise its "share capital" by €1.7M ($2.3M) to compete in the upcoming La Liga season after it earned on-field promotion. On Wednesday, the club reached the $2.3M required to compete in the upcoming season. Eibar is now proposing to increase its stadium capacity by 1,000. The "area surrounding the facility makes it very difficult to expand, but there is now a plan to reach a capacity of at least 6,000." The "efforts will focus on the north stand, which currently holds just 720 fans." The project is expected to take five months "and will not be completed until after the end of the year" (MARCA, 7/16). In Madrid, Gorka Pérez reported Eibar finished first during the Spanish second division's '13-14 season despite having the lowest budget in the league, at €3.9M. The club "now faces the challenge of competing in La Liga" (EL PAIS, 7/15).
