Memphis 901 FC and the City of Memphis announced late yesterday its plans to construct a new 10,000-person, soccer specific stadium within Liberty Park. The proposed stadium will feature 7500 fixed seats, plus suites, clubs and large covered gathering spaces for viewing parties and special events. The new home for Memphis 901 FC is planned to open in time for the 2025 USL Championship season and a year prior to the World Cup slated for 2026 in North America.
The design of the new stadium will also allow for outdoor concerts, large scale events, and other long-field sporting events. The proposed stadium will replace the existing Mid-South Coliseum structure located along Early Maxwell Boulevard.
“When we launched our football club in 2019, we had two dreams. The first was to compete at the highest level and win a USL Championship. Today, we are proud to be in the playoffs for our second consecutive season, this time as the second seed,” said Tim Howard, Sporting Director of 901 FC. “The second goal was to build a proper soccer stadium with a world class pitch for our club that rivals that of Louisville or any of the great new venues being built in the United States and Europe for soccer. Today we move closer to that dream.”
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Designed by Odell Sports & Entertainment Studio & local architect LRK, the 901 FC Stadium will first and foremost, pay homage to the Coliseum and tie into Memphis’ rich music history. In addition to the new stadium at Liberty Park, 901 FC will invest in two state of the art soccer fields adjacent to the site which will serve as the training home for 901 FC along with a potential academy, League 2 and a Women’s professional team.
The new stadium is across the street from a brand-new sports and events facility which opens this year. This new venue will include 16 indoor basketball courts, 32 indoor volleyball courts, seating for 3,500 fans within the 227,000 square foot facility. It is also adaptable for other sports like wrestling, gymnastics, cheerleading and futsal. The Center will include a cafe and concessions area as well as three outdoor turf fields.
The Liberty Park campus represents iconic destinations including the Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium and Tiger Lane, the Children’s Museum of Memphis and the Kroc Center and is growing to include a $200 million mixed-use development.
The city’s request comes after Nashville’s recent approval for $500 million from the State to rebuild the Tennessee Titans’ stadium. According to local outlets, Mayor Jim Strickland announced that Memphis will ask the state legislature for $350 million toward a $684 million plan to build or extensively renovate four professional and college sports facilities.
Mayor Strickland told the council he expects the investment will have an economic impact on Memphis and Tennessee of more than $21 billion over 15 years, according to an analysis by Younger & Associates, the firm that produced economic impact studies for the Tennessee Titans. The city will also need to ask the state legislature to authorize an option for the City of Memphis hotel/motel tax at 5%, and extend FedExForum sales tax rebate deal through 2053 and extend a car rental tax through 2053.
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