Construction Begins on Minnesota United’s New Stadium
For soccer to grow and develop the needed fan strength, the sport needs to be played in stadiums designed to showcase the beautiful game. Minnesota is rising the to challenge and has begin construction on a new soccer specific stadium.
The beginning construction stages of Minnesota United’s new stadium began on Tuesday as the Loons prepare for the transition to the top stage in American soccer. MUFC will play its home matches for the 2017 season at University of Minnesota’s TCF Bank Stadium.
MLS Soccer News: Minnesota United FC broke ground Tuesday on its privately-financed $150 million soccer-specific stadium, another step towards the club’s 2017 Major League Soccer kickoff.
The Loons’ future home will be in the St. Paul neighborhood known as Midway – a landmark that splits downtown Minneapolis and St. Paul.
MNUFC owner Dr. Bill McGuire, Major League Soccer Commissioner Don Garber and St. Paul Mayor Chris Coleman were all on hand to address attending media and supporters about the exciting day for Minnesota.
“This is a project a number of us have been passionate about for a long time. It’s extremely exciting to see it all finally coming together. We are very proud of the stadium architecture and designs, and think that this stadium will be something this community and Minnesota as a whole will take pride in.” said McGuire.
Set to open in 2018, the soccer-specific stadium will be designed by architectural firm Populous and constructed by Mortenson Construction. The stadium will seat 20,000, with pitch dimensions of 120 yards long by 75 yards wide.
“I’m obviously super excited that we’re moving forward on this project,” said Coleman. “This is going to be a transformative project for this region, and particularly for this corner of the world.”
United will begin MLS play in the Western Conference during the 2017 season.
“It’s awesome. Lot of really good people here in Minnesota and this is an important milestone in the history of our league,” said Garber. “These are the historic moments that allow us to establish a permanent foundation for the sport. I love the stadium. I loved it from the first conversations I had with Bill McGuire and his partners. I look forward to seeing it come up, and certainly look forward to the opening of the season.”
The Loons will play all of its home matches at the University of Minnesota’s TCF Bank Stadium during the upcoming campaign.
Photo Credit: Minnesota United FC
