NYCFC announce most expensive MLS stadium ever at eye-watering cost

18 April 2023 , 17:32

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NYCFC has played at Yankee Stadium since 2015 but plan on moving into a newly built 25,000 seater stadium in 2027

New York City FC has announced plans to build a 25,000-capacity stadium costing an eye-watering $780million (£627.7m) - the most expensive in the MLS - with its grand opening being targeted for 2027.

NYCFC has played at Yankee Stadium in the Bronx since joining MLS in 2015. The new privately funded stadium will be situated in Willets Point in Queens near both the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center and the New York Mets' Citi Field.

Alongside the state-of-the-art stadium, NYCFC has plans for 2,500 units of affordable housing, a 650-seat public school, a hotel and open space. It has been announced that HOK will design the venue and Turner Construction Company as the general contractor on the project.

HOK has already built some of US sports’ most iconic, new stadiums. HOK's key projects include St Louis City SC's new stadium, Hard Rock Stadium in Miami, the Little Caesars Arena in Detroit, renovations to Footprint Center in Phoenix as well as State Farm Arena and Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta. A few miles from NYCFC’s proposed new stadium, HOK also designed the new Terminal B at LaGuardia Airport.

Turner, meanwhile, has built TQL Stadium, SoFi Stadium, Lower.com Field, the Golden 1 Center, Yankee Stadium, Madison Square Garden, Levi's Stadium and currently the Intuit Dome, which will be the future home of the Los Angeles Clippers.

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"Soccer is known around the globe for its incredible in-stadium atmospheres, and we are committed to delivering a best-in-class experience for our fans in a stadium that reflects the greatest city in the world," says Brad Sims, NYCFC CEO. “Stadiums are where people come together, and we share a vision with HOK to ensure our stadium becomes a destination of soccer for our fans while playing an important part in the development of Willets Point."

Alongside the state of the art stadium, NYCFC has plans for 2,500 units of affordable housing, a 650-seat public school, a hotel and open space (Getty)

Rashed Singaby, principal and senior project designer at HOK, said: “The stadium will embody New York City's dynamism and cultural diversity and will become a vibrant example of urban placemaking.

“Our design will embrace the multi-faceted identity of Queens, Flushing Meadows and the site's industrial heritage, offering fans an unprecedented hospitality-driven game day experience while integrating into the local community as an everyday asset."

NYCFC hope to finalise the stadium design later in 2023 but the project will go through the Uniform Land Use Review Procedure approval process, with the plans being reviewed by the New York City Public Design Commission.

Technically the Mercedes-Benz Stadium and the Yankee Stadium cost more to build, but both were predominantly erected for other sports rather than MLS.

Joshua Mbu