Soccer fans will soon be saying adios to AutoZone Park, and hello to a brand new stadium dedicated completely to soccer.
On Tuesday, Memphis 901 FC and the City of Memphis announced plans to build a new, 10,000 capacity stadium within Liberty Park. Odell Sports & Entertainment Studio and LRK will partner to design the stadium, which will be built on the site of the Mid-South Coliseum.
The stadium will have 7,500 fixed seats, as well as suites, clubs, and large covered gathering spaces to accomodate large parties and special events. The new stadium will also be able to host other special events, including concerts and additional long-field sports. 901 FC’s new home is expected to be ready in time for the start of the 2025 USL Championship season.
“When we launched our football club in 2019, we had two dreams,” said 901 FC sporting director Tim Howard. “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. 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.”
Alongside the new stadium, 901 FC will develop two adjacent state of the art soccer fields, which will act as 901 FC’s training home along with potential academy, League 2, and a women’s professional teams.
It is a huge statement of intent for 901 FC, which currently shares AutoZone Park with the MiLB Memphis Redbirds. Having its own dedicated stadium will allow the team to grow its brand and provide one of the best match-day environments in the USL.
901 FC kicks plays its first ever home playoff match at 7 p.m. this Saturday, October 22, against Detroit City FC in the quarterfinals. Memphis locked up the 2nd seed in the Eastern Conference after finishing the regular season with a 3-0 away win against FC Tulsa last Saturday.
The new stadium is part of Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland’s $684 million plan to renovate sports stadiums in Memphis, including the FedExForum, Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium, and AutoZone Park. Strickland plans to ask the state of Tennessee to invest $350 million towards the plan.
