Inaugural stadium built for a women’s sports team
On Oct. 19, 2023, the owners of the Kansas City [KC] Current, a National Women’s Soccer League, announced their plans to build the Canadian Pacific Kansas City [CPKC] stadium on the Berkley riverfront, making it the first stadium built for women’s sports. For decades, women’s sports teams have been playing as guests in male athletic stadiums as there was a lack of arenas devoted to female sports.
Recently, women’s soccer has been reaching record attendance and Kansas City is on its way to be the capital of women’s soccer. Despite these record breaking views and attendance, there has never been a stadium dedicated to women’s sports teams.
The stadium was expected to cost 70 million but wrapped up at the cost of 125 million. Part of the funding for this structure came from co-owner Brittany Mahomes. Mahomes played college soccer for Iceland club UMF (Ungmennafélagid) Afturelding. Katrina Hawkins, organizer of the team’s fan club, announced that the placement of the seats will allow people to be close to the game. 11,000 people will be able to fit in the stands. The players on the field will not see any vacant stands because the construction of the field was made to appear abundant.
The stadium, CPKC, is named to honor a past women’s soccer team that was rejected by ownership. Hawkins stated that the stadium is a “concrete commitment to the future of women’s soccer”. The colors of the KC Current team, red and teal, decorate the stadium. Tickets for the upcoming season are coming close to being sold out and season tickets are more than 600 dollars.
The first ever game to be played in this stadium will happen on March 16, 2024, making an appearance on ABC News. This will also be the opening game for the NWSL season. The stadium was created envisioning a “player-first experience” and a facility that allowed female athletes to be supported by fans.
