NYCFC's long-standing ambition to build a stadium across the five boroughs has taken another step forward with the unveiling of a special design element.
On Wednesday, the New York City Planning Commission voted in a binding and unanimous vote to build the stadium. The plan will now go before the New York City Council, which will hold a public hearing and then a vote. If the motion is approved and the mayor agrees, there will be an appeal process. NYCFC's plan is expected to survive all of these hurdles unscathed. Once that happens, the club will be “shovel ready” to begin construction.
“We have been on parallel paths over the last 12 to 18 months,” NYCFC CEO Brad Sims told The Athletic. “The political process is one, the design process is the second and the third is the actual clearance of the site and the redevelopment of the land. … We’ll be done by late summer,” Sims said. “All three of these processes are running in parallel and very positively.”
To celebrate the landmark, Sims and NYCFC shared updated renderings of the main entrance to the planned stadium, being built in Willets Point, Queens, next to Citi Field, home of the MLB's New York Mets, and near Billie Jean King National is to become a tennis center, home of the US Open.
When fans arrive on public transport, they will encounter what the club calls “The Cube” – a seven-story-tall, LED-lined entrance to the club’s new stadium.
Image of The Cube entrance (courtesy of NYCFC)
“You go through the whole process and think about how can we differentiate ourselves?” Sims said. “Not only among the soccer-specific stadiums in North America, but we also stand out among the other sports venues in the New York area. … I think our grand entrance through the Cube will be unlike any other feeling of arrival, of welcome at a sporting event that any of our fans have ever seen.”
The entrance will feature 11,000 square feet of LED lighting in the cube, capable of projecting videos, photos and graphic elements.
In total, the stadium project is expected to cost $780 million (all privately financed) and have a planned capacity of 25,000 people. That capacity would make NYCFC's stadium the seventh-largest among soccer-specific stadiums in the MLS, alongside Hudson River rivals New York Red Bulls.
Sims said the neighboring Mets are “good partners” with regular dialogue as the two teams work together on parking plans, game day operations, schedules and ways to revitalize the surrounding neighborhood.
“When you're in our stadium, you'll know you're in New York City,” Sims said. “Whether you're sitting near the field looking up and out, whether you're in the concourse or wherever you are in the stadium, you'll know you're in New York City.”
The stadium will be close to stops on the New York City Subway, the Long Island Rail Road and several bus lines (courtesy of NYCFC).
Sims compares the feel of the Willets Point location to that of Wrigley Field (Chicago Cubs), Fenway Park (Boston Red Sox), Craven Cottage (Fulham FC) and Selhurst Park (Crystal Palace) – stadiums on both sides of the Atlantic that fit in a neighborhood atmosphere. The club is also particularly pleased with the location's accessibility via public transportation, particularly the ease of travel from Long Island.
The area where the stadium and surrounding development will be built currently consists largely of empty lots that previously housed a number of auto repair and parts workshops. The area on the other side of Citi Field is mostly a parking lot, although Mets owner Steve Cohen has proposed a plan to convert much of the area into parkland, restaurants and community spaces.
As part of the planning process, the club spoke with other MLS teams that have recently built stadiums. They want to know what worked, what they would do differently, and what lies in between. During NYCFC's first trip to St. Louis this past weekend, Sims was treated to a three-hour tour of their new stadium.
“I think our fans are going to love it,” Sims said confidently.
NYCFC was originally announced as an MLS expansion club in 2013 and debuted in the 2015 season with the idea that the team would strike a deal to build its own soccer stadium in New York City. Until then, the plan was for the club to play at Yankee Stadium. It has taken longer than expected to finalize a land deal and begin planning for the stadium, and the club has enjoyed a somewhat nomadic 'home experience' in recent seasons. In the 2022 season alone, NYCFC played “home games” at five venues: Yankee Stadium (the team's primary location, home of the New York Yankees), Red Bull Arena (home of rival New York Red Bulls), Citi Field, Belson Stadium (home of the St. John's University) and even BMO Stadium (home of LAFC).
NYCFC still plans to debut at its new stadium in 2027.
(Photo above courtesy of NYCFC)