
<p>The Seattle Sounders are debuting a new training facility in 2024, and they may get a new stadium, too. The Sounders’ <a href="https://www.soundersfc.com/longacres/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">training facility in Longacres</a> opens next year. The club claims it will be among the best soccer training facilities in North America. There will be a total of four pitches for the team to practice on. Two of those are natural grass, and two of those are artificial grass like Lumen Field, the club’s current home.</p>



<p>However, the club’s president did not shy away from the possibility of expanding this training facility even further. Team president Hugh Weber spoke to <em><a href="https://www.sounderatheart.com/2023/09/sounders-exploring-possibility-of-building-stadium-in-renton/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Sounder at Heart</a></em> about the new training facility that opens in 2024. He says Lumen Field is a great venue. For example, it is one of the <a href="https://worldsoccertalk.com/2022/06/16/2026-world-cup-cities-reveal-live-thread/">host venues for the 2026 World Cup</a>. Still, having a soccer-specific stadium is the ideal situation for any Major League Soccer club. </p>



<p>“Lumen Field has been a great home, but having a soccer-centric stadium is always the dream of any premier MLS club,” Weber said. “It’s always something we’re contemplating and thinking about. There’s definitely room on the site. There’s a lot of exploration that has to happen in terms of is it even a thing our fanbase would consider a positive? I’d be remiss and not honest if I said we weren’t thinking about it and how we can solve for it.”</p>



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<h2>Seattle Sounders dream of new soccer-specific stadium</h2>



<p>Longacres is 13 miles south of Lumen Field. This would be a stark contrast to the Sounders’ current home, which is effectively in downtown Seattle. Lumen Field also has a sensational atmosphere, a trait consistent across Seattle professional sports. Yet, as Weber says, soccer-specific stadiums are all the rage. </p>



<p>Only seven clubs in <a href="https://worldsoccertalk.com/mls-tv-schedule/">Major League Soccer</a> do not use a soccer-specific stadium. However, four of those seven, including Lumen Field, make up the four biggest stadiums in MLS based on capacity. The average capacity of the 22 soccer-specific stadiums is 22,140. Yet, Sounders supporters could look at GEODIS Park as inspiration, which has a capacity of 30,000 Nashville SC fans.</p>



<p>If the Sounders’ new area to the south becomes a stadium project, the club would have ample land to build one of the most popular venues in Major League Soccer.</p>



<p><em>PHOTO: IMAGO / Icon Sportswire</em></p>


Seattle Sounders explore idea of new stadium in suburbs

The Seattle Sounders are debuting a new training facility in 2024, and they may get a new stadium in the same area.

ALL POSTS TAGGED "Longacres"

Leagues: MLS

Seattle Sounders explore idea of new stadium in suburbs