“Patrick Mahomes Trades Football for Soccer at Kansas City Current’s Stadium Opening
Patrick Mahomes and his wife Brittany switched gears to attend the grand opening of the Kansas City Current’s new stadium on the kickoff day of the NWSL season. Costing nearly $120 million and boasting an 11,000-seat capacity, CPKC Stadium stands as one of the world’s rare venues dedicated solely to female athletes. The couple, joined by notable figures including Current chairman Chris Long and NWSL Commissioner Jessica Berman, marked the occasion with a ribbon-cutting ceremony, followed by a thrilling match that saw Vanessa DiBernardo scoring the first goal just 22 minutes in. As Mahomes, a soccer enthusiast himself, and Brittany, a former college soccer player, graced the field, they were met with thunderous cheers from the enthusiastic crowd.”
Patrick Mahomes and wife Brittany went to the opening of the Kansas City Current’s stadium
Chris Long high-fives Mahomes as Brittany and Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas look on
The couple posted a selfie of them on the way to the game on Instagram, adding ‘KC Baby’
They made their way down onto the field to check it out before the game started
Most of the 14 NWSL teams in the league rent stadiums, or if they are owned by a Major League Soccer club, play in venues built for the men.
But the vision of the Current’s ownership group, led by Chris and Angie Long and including investors such as Chiefs quarterback Mahomes and Brittany, was to build facilities of their own.
They began with an $18m, purpose-built practice facility, then turned their attention to the stadium, where they could control standards, scheduling and, most importantly, revenue.
The predecessor to the Current, known as FC Kansas City before it folded in 2017, played at various times at a high school football stadium, a college soccer stadium and the training field of MLS club Sporting KC.
When the club reformed as the Current in 2021, it began playing in a minor league ballpark before moving a few blocks over to Children’s Mercy Park, one of the jewels of MLS but a stadium that nevertheless belonged wholly to someone else.
Season tickets have been sold out for months, and the demand for single-game seats is strong enough that some fans already are wondering when the stadium will expand. It was designed so that seats can be added in the future.
Yet the construction of CPKC Stadium – naming rights were sold to the Canadian Pacific Kansas City railway – has not been without detractors.
The 11,000-seat stadium will be christened on Saturday when they play the Portland Thorns
Season tickets have been sold out for months, and the demand for single-game seats is strong
Yet the construction of CPKC Stadium has not been without detractors amid traffic concerns
Some are concerned about property values and traffic congestion, others a lack of parking; the club recently said spots would cost $50 per match, and many fans took to social media to express their outrage.
The club hopes many take advantage of ride-share options and public transportation to alleviate the parking concerns.
Nor could the timing be better in Kansas City, where a golden age of sports is underway.
The Royals, who won the World Series in 2015, are planning to build a new downtown stadium by 2028 as part of a $2billion-plus public-private partnership.
The Chiefs are coming off back-to-back Super Bowl titles, will try to become the first team in NFL history to three-peat this coming season, and are aiming for an $800m renovation of their own at Arrowhead Stadium.
Sporting KC remains a popular draw, as do several minor league teams in the area, while the NCAA wrestling championships and Big 12 basketball tournaments will soon take place at the nearby T-Mobile Center.
