NEW YORK, NY — New York City Mayor Eric Adams, New York City Councilmember Francisco Moya, Queens Borough President Donovan Richards, and New York City FC officially broke ground on Etihad Park, New York’s first professional soccer-specific stadium and Major League Soccer’s (MLS) first fully-electric stadium across the nation. In addition to the stadium — which will be operational by the 2027 MLS season and is being entirely privately financed by New York City FC — this project will also deliver retail, food and beverage facilities, office space, and “City Square,” a plaza for community uses and events.
“New York City FC committed 10 years ago to build New York City’s first-ever, soccer-specific stadium in the five boroughs, and [this] groundbreaking of Etihad Park in Willets Point, Queens, brings us one step closer to delivering that promise to our fans and our city,” New York City FC Vice Chairman Marty Edelman said.
Etihad Park’s groundbreaking comes approximately a decade after New York City FC was founded. During that time, the club has been committed to growing the sport of soccer across New York City. In addition to winning MLS Cup in 2021, the club has built more than 50 mini-pitches and provided free soccer programming to thousands of youth through the club’s nonprofit foundation, City in the Community. The construction of Etihad Park will deliver not only a new home for the club’s First Team, but also a home for City in the Community, enabling the nonprofit to expand its reach and provide opportunities in soccer to even more youth across the city of New York.
Etihad Park is one piece of Adams’ Willets Point transformation, which will deliver 2,500 affordable homes — the city’s largest 100 percent affordable new housing project in 40 years — over 40,000 square feet of public open space, a 250-key hotel, a 650-seat public school, and neighborhood-serving, ground-floor retail shops that will create good-paying jobs for community residents.
“This is a historic moment for New York City FC, Major League Soccer, and everyone who has believed in the promise of soccer in America,” MLS Commissioner Don Garber said. “We’ve always known that a world-class soccer stadium belongs in New York City. Congratulations and thanks to Mayor Adams, Councilman Moya, Borough President Richards, the New York City Economic Development Corporation, club ownership, staff, players, and fans of New York City FC on making Etihad Park a reality.”
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“Driven by New York City FC’s vision and ambitions, the new stadium will be an unequivocal celebration of diversity, community, and soccer,” said Rashed Singaby, Principal and Senior Project Designer at HOK. “We are proud to celebrate this important milestone with the team, the city, and our project partners and look forward to seeing the stadium come to life as a centerpiece for the vibrant Queens community and a benchmark venue for the beautiful game.”
This historic plan will bring significant long-term economic opportunity to a community that has long been underserved. The entire project is expected to generate $6.1 billion in economic impact over the next 30 years, creating 1,550 permanent jobs and 14,200 construction jobs. Last month, Adams announced a project labor agreement (PLA) with the Building & Construction Trades Council (BCTC) for infrastructure work in the Willets Point District. The infrastructure work governed by this PLA will support over 500 jobs. New York City FC will also incorporate community programming and outreach through its City in the Community foundation. City Square, a 35,000-square-foot multi-use space located inside the primary entrance of the stadium, will serve as a community programming space operated by New York City FC during non-gamedays.
The new 25,000-seat stadium will make New York City a national soccer capital, laying the groundwork for the next chapter in New York City FC and MLS history. This is also the first fully privately financed major league sporting facility constructed in New York City in generations. J.P. Morgan arranged private financing for the stadium.
