The Blue Hell Home of the Brave | |
 | |
 Children's Mercy Park from the air | |
| Former names | Livestrong Sporting Park (2011–2013) Sporting Park (2013–2015) |
|---|---|
| Address | One Sporting Way |
| Location | Kansas City, Kansas |
| Coordinates | 39°07′18″N94°49′23″W / 39.12174°N 94.82318°W /39.12174; -94.82318 |
| Public transit |  KCATA 101 |
| Owner | Kansas Unified Development, LLC. |
| Operator | Sporting Kansas City |
| Capacity | 18,467 (soccer)[1] 25,000 (concerts) |
| Record attendance | 21,650Sporting Kansas City vs.Real Salt Lake,MLS Cup 2013 |
| Field size | 120 yd × 75 yd (110 m × 69 m) |
| Surface | Natural Grass |
| Scoreboard | ThreeDaktronics Video Boards 20 by 126 feet (6.1 m × 38.4 m) 12 by 24 feet (3.7 m × 7.3 m) 14.5 by 24 feet (4.4 m × 7.3 m)[2][3] |
| Construction | |
| Broke ground | January 20, 2010 |
| Opened | June 9, 2011 |
| Construction cost | $200 million[4] ($280 million in 2024 dollars[5]) |
| Architect | Populous[6] |
| Project manager | LANE4 Property Group[7] |
| Services engineer | M-E Engineers, Inc./FSC Inc.[8] |
| General contractor | Turner Construction[9] |
| Tenants | |
| Sporting Kansas City (MLS) (2011–present) Sporting Kansas City II (MLSNP) (2018–present) FC Kansas City (NWSL) (2015–2017) Kansas City Current (NWSL) (2022–2023) | |
Children's Mercy Park[note 1] is asoccer-specific stadium inKansas City, Kansas, United States, and is the team home forSporting Kansas City ofMajor League Soccer (MLS). The stadium is located nearKansas Speedway, on the far west side of Wyandotte County, Kansas. It opened during the2011 MLS season on June 9, 2011, with a match against theChicago Fire.[10] The stadium has a seating capacity of 18,467, which can expand to 25,000 for concerts. Most SKC games attract around 21,000 spectators because of different stadium modes.[4] The stadium is Sporting Kansas City's third home venue; then known as the Kansas City Wizards, the team played inArrowhead Stadium from 1996 to 2007 andCommunityAmerica Ballpark from 2008 to 2010. In 2013, the stadium hosted theMLS All-Star Game, theUnited States men's national soccer team, andMLS Cup, and is the only stadium to host all three in the same year.[11]
Originally,Sporting Club, the team's ownership group, planned to move to southeastKansas City, Missouri on land previously occupied byBannister Mall. The redevelopment plan, calledThe Trails, was passed on December 13, 2007.[12] The last package of economic incentives, a $30 million tax rebate, was passed on November 21, 2008.
The stadium's planned site had been demolished to prepare the site for infrastructure. It was intended to open in 2011 with a capacity of 18,500 seats. However, the project was placed on hiatus due to theGreat Recession, and the stadium developer eventually sought to move the new project near the Village West retail center inKansas City, Kansas, near theKansas Speedway andCommunityAmerica Ballpark. The developer of The Trails complex sought additional borrowing authority from Kansas City, Missouri, to finance the building of the soccer stadium and its associated amateur soccer complex. However, the city was unwilling to provide the desired financing, leading the developer to seek a new site across the state line.[13]
In September 2009, the developer askedWyandotte County andKansas state officials for permission to use revenues from existingtax increment financing in theVillage West area to help finance the soccer complex.[14] On December 17, Sporting KC president, Robb Heineman provided an update on the stadium situation published on team official website and blog,[15][16] basically putting the Kansas City, Kansas location as final, pending the signature of the final agreements. On December 21, construction machinery was already on the Legends site waiting to break ground on the site.[17][18] On January 19, Wyandotte County approved the bonds to help finance the stadium,[19] and on January 20, the groundbreaking ceremony happened with Sporting's CEO, Robb Heineman, using heavy machinery to move dirt on the construction site.[20]
The opening match took place on June 9, 2011, as Sporting played theChicago Fire to a scoreless draw in front of an over-capacity crowd of 19,925.[21] The first goal would come days later during the2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup whenDwayne De Rosario converted a penalty kick forCanada againstPanama. Sporting's first goal came fromC. J. Sapong in a 1–0 win over theSan Jose Earthquakes, the club's first victory in the stadium. Sporting would finish its first regular season in the stadium with a 9–2–6 record at home. Average attendance was 17,810 for the year or 96.4% of capacity.
In the stadium's second season, Sporting KC averaged an attendance of 19,404, 105% of its capacity. That year, Sporting KC made it to the playoffs but lost to the Houston Dynamo in theconference semifinals, and won theUS Open Cup by defeating the Seattle Sounders.
In 2013, Sporting KC once again raised their average attendance. Because of their 2012 US Open Cup win, they qualified for theCONCACAF Champions League, and played games both in the MLS and in CONCACAF. Children's Mercy Park also hosted to a World Cup qualifying match between the United States and Jamaica with an attendance of 18,467, where the United States shut out Jamaica 2–0, and the2013 MLS All-Star Game betweenA.S. Roma and the MLS All-Stars with an attendance of 21,175, where A.S. Roma beat the All-Stars 3–1. Sporting KC set an attendance record of 21,650 in the playoffs when they defeated the Houston Dynamo 2–1 to advance to theMLS Cup Finals against Real Salt Lake, Sporting won in penalty kicks, the second final in two years to be hosted at Children's Mercy Park.
Also in 2013, it was announced that the 2014 through 2018NCAA Division II Football Championships would be played at Children's Mercy Park, moving fromBraly Municipal Stadium in Florence, Alabama. It was also announced that the 2015NCAA College Cup would be played at Children's Mercy Park.[22][23]
In 2015, the stadium hostedFC Kansas City's home opener against fellowNWSL sideSky Blue FC.[24][25] The stadium also hosted two FC Kansas City matches in 2016, once again serving as the team's secondary stadium.[26][27]
The stadium announced in 2016 that they are adding aSkycam, as well as robo-cams behind the goals and on top of the stadium.[28][29][30]
During aCONCACAF Champions League match againstDeportivo Toluca F.C. on February 21, 2019, a metal railing overlooking the southwest tunnel broke and caused several fans to fall. Toluca wingerFelipe Pardo was injured with a toe fracture because of the railing.[31][32]
FC Kansas City folded after the2017 NWSL season and its franchise rights were relocated toSalt Lake City, Utah, becoming expansion clubUtah Royals FC. After the2020 NWSL season, the Royals folded and its franchise rights were relocated back to Kansas City, under different ownership as an expansion team and with a temporary moniker ofKansas City NWSL. The team attempted to rent Children's Mercy Park as a home venue for the2021 NWSL season, but Sporting KC declined to rent the venue to the team, which played only one home match of itsinaugural season's home matches at the venue. The team played the rest of the season's home matches atLegends Field, a baseball stadium home to minor-league teamKansas City Monarchs[33] and a former venue for the Wizards from 2008 to 2010.[34]
During the 2021 season, KC NWSL announced plans to buildits own stadium on the Berkley Riverfront Park ofKansas City, Missouri, with the new venue expected to open before the 2024 season. After announcing the new stadium, the team announced on September 22, 2021, that it would also play all of its home matches at Children's Mercy Park from the2022 season to the new stadium's opening.[33][35] The team rebranded to the Kansas City Current on October 31, 2021, during their final match at Legends Field.[36]
Due to renovations atDavid Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium, theUniversity of Kansas football team played two home games at Children's Mercy Park in 2024. Both games are against non-conference opponents; the other games were played at Arrowhead Stadium.[37]
Children's Mercy Park hosted its first international match with the final Group C matches of the2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup. Canada and Panama played to a 1–1 draw in this match, which was followed by the stadium's first-everUSA match, a 1–0 win overGuadeloupe.
The stadium played host to its first-ever women's match when it hosted theUnited States women's team in its first match since the2011 FIFA Women's World Cup, a 1–1 draw withCanada witnessed by a crowd of 16,191.
Children's Mercy Park played host to the semifinals and final of the2012 CONCACAF Men's Olympic Qualifying Tournament.[38]
| Date | Team 1 | Result | Team 2 | Event | Spectators |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 17, 2011 |  United States | 1–1 |  Canada | Friendly | 16,191 |
| October 15, 2014 |  Guatemala | 0–1 |  Haiti | 2014 CONCACAF Women's Championship[note 2] | 3,621 |
| United States | 1–0 |  Trinidad and Tobago | |||
| October 16, 2014 |  Costa Rica | 1–0 |  Mexico | N/A | |
 Jamaica | 6–0 |  Martinique | |||
| July 22, 2016 | United States | 4–0 | Costa Rica | 2016 Olympics warm-up | 12,635 |
| July 26, 2018 |  Brazil | 1–3 |  Australia | 2018 Tournament of Nations | 10,307 |
| United States | 4–2 |  Japan | 18,467 | ||
| October 21, 2021 | United States | 0–0 |  South Korea | Friendly | 18,467 |
| September 3, 2022 | United States | 4–0 |  Nigeria | 14,502 |
On March 8, 2011, a partnership withLance Armstrong'sLivestrong Foundation was announced. The club was to donate a portion of revenues, no less than $7.5 million, to the foundation over the course of six years.[39][40] On January 15, 2013, Livestrong and Sporting Kansas City agreed to terminate the naming agreement.[41][42]
On November 19, 2015, a ten-year partnership withChildren's Mercy Hospital was announced, renaming the stadium to Children's Mercy Park.[43]
The 2013 MLS All-Star Game on July 31, 2013, between the MLS All-Stars and A.S. Roma set a record attendance of 21,175 including standing room only tickets.[44] One week later, Sporting set a new attendance record in a loss againstNew York Red Bulls on August 3 with 21,304 people.[45] On November 23, 2013, Sporting set the record once again, reaching a fire-code[46] capacity crowd of 21,650 in the Eastern Conference Final win against theHouston Dynamo.[11] Two weeks later, on December 7, the team tied the record in a penalty kick win againstReal Salt Lake in theMLS Cup 2013.[47] On June 6, 2015, Sporting set a record for regular season attendance at 21,505 in a 1–0 win overSeattle Sounders FC.[48]
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| Preceded by | Home of the Sporting Kansas City 2011—present | Succeeded by current |
| Preceded by | Host of theLamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Final 2012 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Host of theMLS All-Star Game 2013 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Host of theMLS Cup 2013 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Home of theKansas City Current 2022–present | Succeeded by current |
| Preceded by | Host of theNCAA Division II Football Championship 2014–2017 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Host of theCollege Cup 2015 | Succeeded by |