DALLAS - Hunt Sports Group Chairman Lamar Hunt announced today that the Grand Opening date for the soccer stadium at the Frisco Soccer & Entertainment Center has been delayed until August 6. The adjoining soccer park, consisting of 17 tournament-quality fields, remains on track and will be available for play in early June.
"Due to record breaking amounts of rainfall since construction began, we will not be able to meet the intended stadium opening date of June 11," said Hunt. "By delaying our opening to the week of August 6, we insure that we will be able to provide our fans with the many acceptional ammenities that the new stadium has to offer."
Hunt added, "The original construction schedule had sufficient time built in as a contingency to account for an above-average amount of inclement weather." National Weather Service records unfortunately show that the full year of 2004 was one of the five wettest in Dallas history. November 2004 was in fact the wettest similar month in Texas since 1895 and June 2004 was the wettest June since 1922.
The delayed opening eliminates the need for FC Dallas to begin the 2005 season with what would have been an MLS-record 11-match road trip. FC Dallas President & General Manager Greg Elliott said that adding to the number of season starting road matches was not an option. "The team was prepared to face the challenge of what would have been more than a two-month road trip. For competitive reasons, we were not willing to play any additional road matches beyond this already formidable task. In light of the stadium delay, we have asked MLS to move forward and schedule six home matches prior to August 6. While we will still play the majority of our matches on the road prior to the All Star break, these changes will provide our squad with a much more equitable schedule than previously anticipated. All home matches prior to August 6 will be played at the Cotton Bowl prior to our move to Frisco.
"We've done everything we can to make this an easy transition with our season ticket holders. We will immediately communicate with them regarding their options for the 2005 FC Dallas home schedule."
FC Dallas, a charter member club of Major League Soccer, will begin play in the new 21,193 seat soccer stadium on August 6, 2005. The 117-acre facility will be located at the intersection of Main Street and Dallas North Tollway in Frisco. The Frisco Soccer & Entertainment Center will accommodate Major League Soccer matches, major concerts, international soccer matches and High School football. Adjacent to the stadium will be 17 regulation-sized, tournament-grade soccer fields which will be utilized on a year-round basis. Join us as we celebrate Major League Soccer's 10th season. For more information, log on to fcdallas.net or call Mark Janko at (214) 777-0203.
