New soccer stadium at Exhibition Place

[Hugh G. Rekshun]

The soccer equivalent of the World Junior Championships will be in Canada next summer, and it's already been decided that Portugal will be playing its games in Toronto (Italy failed to qualify) at a new stadium now being built at Exhibition Place.
http://www.corrieretandem.com/viewstory.php?storyid=6753

Odd that they are building something this big
(Aerial photograph, 800 x 534 jpg)

just for soccer, and with artificial turf. Isn't a natural grass field a requirement for international soccer? I know the newer stuff is a little better, but in my only experience with it stepping on the field at Skydome it felt like walking on sand.

And without the Argos there, isn't a stadium this big going to be empty most of the time? The old stadium at The Ex was demolished because it had become useless once the Molson Amphitheatre opened across the road at Ontario Place.

 

[crazyhorse33]

The intention of the stadium is to basically ber the new home of Canadian soccer as well as the new home of the Toronto FC which will start playing in the MLS next year, the first team in canada. As far as I know this is going to be grass turf and not artificial, however there are some artificial turfs that FIFA does allow for play.

 

[Big Michael]

It will be FIFA approved artificial turf and there will be a bubble in the winter to allow for Nat. Team training and other use.

 

[stever]

and empty year round

 

[gladheateher]

and empty year round

Your tax dollars hard at work!

 

[stever]

not unless the feds and province are involved. I don't live in toronto, where tax dollars are pissed away for useless projects.

 

[scouser1]

Hugh who is that gorgeous gal in your sig?

 

[Hugh G. Rekshun]

Girl from a video.
Since another guy asked me the same thing in a PM, I`ll put something in the lounge thread on the subject.

 

[HaywoodJabloemy]

...But who knows, maybe Soccer could work. I don't mean as a 'Canadian' thing, but its seems to be popular with many people in know...

People from Europe care about the game in their former home country, but don't have any interest in watching Canadian or American leagues. All the attempts at pro leagues here have failed badly. There might be one or two times a year when a European team will visit Toronto and drew a big crowd, but there won't be regular sell-outs of 20,000 to watch the Toronto ReachArounds against the Cleveland Steamers, or whatever the teams in this current league are called.

 

[scouser1]

People from Europe care about the game in their former home country, but don't have any interest in watching Canadian or American leagues. All the attempts at pro leagues here have failed badly. There might be one or two times a year when a European team will visit Toronto and drew a big crowd, but there won't be regular sell-outs of 20,000 to watch the Toronto ReachArounds against the Cleveland Steamers, or whatever the teams in this current league are called.

the doom and gloom naysayers of MLS have been proven wrong because they took a different approach than the defunct NASL, its no longer hey lets get the big names like Pele, Beckenbauer etc at the twilight of their career and when they retire we are left looking stupid. Their approach is definitely working sure it will never be NASCAR and the NFL, but developing local talent, keeping costs down with small soccer only stadiums is working, just check the progress of the US in the World Cup, without a real professional league you are considered a complete joke in the soccer world.

As for the multi ethnic types like myself who have a love of Liverpool, Celtic, AC Milan, Juventus or whoever I really hope they give this a chance, heck as a Celtic supporter where else do I get the chance to drive half an hour to a stadium and scream Judas and traitor when Moe Johnston is around hehehehhe

 

[slowandeasy]

People from Europe care about the game in their former home country, but don't have any interest in watching Canadian or American leagues. All the attempts at pro leagues here have failed badly. There might be one or two times a year when a European team will visit Toronto and drew a big crowd, but there won't be regular sell-outs of 20,000 to watch the Toronto ReachArounds against the Cleveland Steamers, or whatever the teams in this current league are called.

That's the problem... as soon as the people from Europe's stupid ass fathers stop talking about "back home soccer and how great everything is back home and how Canadians/American values suck", and start paying attention to what their children are doing here in Canada, we might finally get some interest here in NA Soccer, and finally develop some talent...

There are amazing players here in Canada, and there are so many kids playing soccer here, that we are bound to get better...

 

[slowandeasy]

Please dont' tell me that they are going to make the same mistakes over and over again?? They are going to put artificial turf on this new stadium???

Can anyone explain this "bubble" thing???

As far as I remember about this stadium.. there are not a lot of free days being given to the community at large for use!!!!

 

[scouser1]

its not aritifical turf its that new stuff called field turf, the players love it same kind of stuff the Argos play on, and FIFA would never allow artificial turf for one of its major tournaments

 

[slowandeasy]

its not aritifical turf its that new stuff called field turf, the players love it same kind of stuff the Argos play on, and FIFA would never allow artificial turf for one of its major tournaments

Thanks... now how about this "bubble" thing... I love open air stadiums, but lets face it, here in the great white north, it gets awfully cold watching football in October/November outdoors...

 

[Hugh G. Rekshun]

Technically field turf is artificial by definition, because it's not real grass. It's the newer type of fake stuff with a sand-like layer added that makes it an improvement over the older style Astroturf/Polyturf fields that were little more than a green carpet over a concrete floor. Almost all of the older type of artificial fields have now been replaced with field turf.

"Toronto ReachArounds against the Cleveland Steamers"... ee-ewww. I don't want to watch them celebrate after scoring a goal.