Allianz Field

Allianz Field
	MNUFC Stadium
	Allianz Field on the opening day, April 13, 2019
Earlier names
	Minnesota United FC Stadium (until 2017)
Data
place	400 Snelling Avenue North Saint Paul , Minnesota 55104 ;
Coordinates	44 ° 57 '10.1 " N , 93 ° 9' 54.4" W Coordinates: 44 ° 57 '10.1 " N , 93 ° 9' 54.4" W.
owner	Minnesota United
operator	Minnesota United
start of building	December 12, 2016
opening	April 13, 2019
First game	April 13, 2019 ; Minnesota United - New York City FC 3: 3
surface	Natural grass
costs	250 million US dollars
architect	Populous
capacity	19,400 seats
playing area	110 × 69 m (120 × 75 yds )
Societies)
	Minnesota United ( MLS , since 2019);
Events
	Minnesota United games; CONCACAF Gold Cup 2019;

The Alliance Field is a football stadium in the US city of Saint Paul in the state of Minnesota . The name Minnesota United FC Stadium was a project name. The new football franchise from Minnesota United from Major League Soccer (MLS) plays deliver its games in the new building with 19,400 seats since the season of 2019. There is the possibility of expanding the stadium to 24,474 seats if necessary. The cost of privately financed venue amounted to 250 million US dollars . Minnesota United entered the TCF Bank Stadium of the University of Minnesota on a temporary basis until completion .

history

On March 25, 2015, Minnesota United joined the MLS as an expansion team . On October 23rd, team owner William "Bill" McGuire and Saint Paul's Mayor Chris Coleman announced plans to build a stadium in Saint Paul. The construction is part of the redevelopment of the Snelling Midway area. The groundbreaking ceremony for the construction took place on December 12, 2016 in the presence of Bill McGuire and MLS Commissioner Don Garber . Before that, power lines were laid for the work. After the ground had thawed, construction work could start in spring 2017. In addition to the stadium, other facilities such as office and residential buildings, a hotel and leisure facilities, including a gym and cinema, were built on the 34.5 ac (13.8 hectare ) site . The soccer arena was funded by the owner of Minnesota United and its partners. After completion, however, the sports facility was handed over to the city of Saint Paul.

The venue will have 25 suites and 38 boxes as well as four clubs in the stands. The stadium will be built tightly so that the spectators can follow the game from close by. The course closest to the field of play is 15 ft . Away. The greatest distance is 145 ft (about 44.2 m). The stadium was designed by Populous architects . The implementing construction company is Mortenson Construction . The architecture office S9Architecture is responsible for the master plan of the project. Most of the stadium's stands will be covered. In addition to protecting against the weather, the roof is intended to reduce the volume of the audience at events. The facade is of a tensioned, translucent PTFE - membrane wrapped. With LED lighting, the outer skin can shine in different colors. For games in the cold spring or autumn the pitch obtained from natural grass , a soil heating . A network connection is available throughout the stadium via Wi-Fi systems .

In July 2017, the insurance company Allianz Life Insurance Co. of North America , a subsidiary of the German Allianz SE , became the stadium's name sponsor for 12 years . The company did not provide any information about other conditions of the agreement such as the amount of the contract.

The stadium and facade were illuminated for the first time on October 21, 2018. Shortly before, a new attendance record was set for a soccer game in Minnesota. A total of 52,242 visitors came to the game between Minnesota United and LA Galaxy at TCF Bank Stadium. The new stadium offers less than 20,000 seats. The average attendance at the TCF Bank Stadium was almost 24,000. This could become a problem in the long run.

The stadium was officially handed over on March 1, 2019 after a construction period of 20 months. Preparations for the opening of the venue have started. A total of 2,020 workers with 650,000 working hours were involved in the construction. Eleven percent of the workers were women. Of the 19,400 spectator seats, 2,800 are so-called safe-standing seats on the south stand at the home fans, which can be used as standing as well as seating. The new stadium is located on the southern part of the approximately 14 hectare area. In the north a green area of half a hectare was created. The rainwater collection system is to reuse 7,500 m ^{3 of} water annually . The Allianz Field itself has a 2,500 m ³ tank for self-supply such as b. the lawn irrigation. The taxpayers paid nothing for the stadium itself. The city spent $ 20 million to facilitate the work, improve infrastructure and public spaces. Instead of the planned US $ 200 million, the Allianz Field cost US $ 250 million.

On April 13, 2019, Minnesota United and New York City FC met for the first official game at Allianz Field. In front of a sold out house with 19,976 visitors, the teams parted with a 3: 3. Osvaldo Alonso scored the first goal in the new home ground .

Lander games

The United States national soccer team played their first game in the 2019 CONCACAF Gold Cup at Minnesota United's new stadium on June 18. The rest of the game on the first day of Group D was played between Panama and Trinidad and Tobago.