In advance of the festivities in Houston this weekend, PST friend Matthew Doyle takes a look at some of the best stadium debuts. He highlights BMO Field, JEN-WELD Field, and LIVESTRONG Sporting Park. All good choices, but I’ll take the opening of Red Bull Arena.
March 20, 2010. The joint was packed. There were fireworks and dancers. A race car drove on the field to deliver the game ball. Reggie Bush skied a PK into the stands.
And then the game started. Joel Lindpere scored. Mike Petke (Mike Petke!) scored. Dane Richards scored (on a blast). Santos played a ready and willing adversary, running up and down the field.
A week later, the Red Bull defeated Chicago 1-0 in the stadium’s MLS debut. They would win the next two at RBA before falling apart.
But that first game was really something special. A video of the events below. Enjoy. (There are many more videos here.)
