New York City FC is moving closer to a permanent home in Queens after a decade of roaming between stadiums.
Standing on a dirt lot Wednesday that will one day be the soccer club’s grass pitch, team officials envisioned a packed stadium with a deafening roar and surrounded by immersive LED screens. It will be the first completely solared-power stadium in the country.
The new Etihad Park, which broke ground in December in what had been sinking swamp land south of LaGuardia Airport, is expected to open for the 2027 season for Major League Soccer and be the first stadium in New York City dedicated to soccer.
“The sound under this roof and the intimidation factor will be second to none,” NYCFC CEO Brad Sims said during a tour of the stadium, now under construction. “It’s great to see what we’ve achieved and we’re thinking in the future of how incredible our home field advantage is. I feel bad for our opponents from 2027 and beyond and what they will experience. This will be the tightest, loudest and best fan experience and the marquee place to host football matches.”
The new 25,000-seat stadium is being built in the shadow of Citi Field in Willets Point, Queens. Directly across the street, Citi Field hosted a match Wednesday evening between NYCFC and Inter Miami CF, led by international star Lionel Messi, before a crowd of more than 40,000.
Brad Sims, CEO of NYC FC, on Wednesday at the construction site near Citi Field where his soccer club expects to be playing in a new stadium in 2027. Credit: Ed Quinn
NYCFC has been nomadic during its 10 years in existence, playing home games at Yankee Stadium, Citi Field and in New Jersey.
Officials said they have been planning for a dozen years to bring soccer permanently to Queens.
New York City officials approved plans last year for the privately funded $780 million stadium, which will also include about $200 million in public infrastructure and sewers.
The stadium is being built as a joint venture between NYCFC and the Queens Development Group, made up of developers Related Companies and Sterling Equities, which was founded by former Mets owner Jeff Wilpon.
The new stadium will be powered by a solar panel farm on the roof, which will also supply energy for Con-Ed. Club officials said the stadium will host the largest video screen in MLS and also host a wall of fans in a Supporters’ Section facing the opposing goal, including 3,400 safe-standing spots, a mural wall and drum platform with rooftop porch.
The stands will also include more than 100 pitch side seats on the grass and eight seats near the benches.
Most fans will enter the stadium trough what designers have dubbed “The Cube,” featuring 11,000 square-feet of LED screens showing highlights and programing, modeled after the Las Vegas Sphere. The stadium will also feature a variety of foods from New York City’s five boroughs in an area known as the City Square.
The venue is planned to support events like concerts year-round, as well as other major men’s and women’s national matches and international events, team officials said
It also includes what developers have billed as the first new affordable housing project in New York City in 40 years, with two towers of 2,500 fully affordable units set to open in April. Plans on the 23-acre development also include a 650-seat New York City public elementary school. Additional restaurants, shops and a hotel are also planned for the site.
About $200 million in public funding will pay for infrastructure and sewers as part of the affordable housing in the Queens neighborhood, officials said. It includes 220 affordable units for low-income seniors.
“We’re all coming into this together and have a plan to work together on building a community, but not overloading this community,” said Jennifer O’Sullivan, chief operating officer for NYCFC. “We don’t get an opportunity to be part of a transformational process like this too often. This is the first new neighborhood in 40 years.”
John Asbury is a breaking news and general assignment reporter. He has been with Newsday since 2014 and previously worked at The Press-Enterprise in Riverside, California.