Saputo Stadium ( French: ''Stade Saputo'') is a

soccer-specific stadium A soccer-specific stadium, mainly in the United States and Canada, is a sports stadium either purpose-built or fundamentally redesigned for soccer and whose primary function is to host soccer matches, as opposed to a multi-purpose stadium whic ...

at Olympic Park in the borough of

Mercier–Hochelaga-Maisonneuve Mercier–Hochelaga-Maisonneuve () is a borough of Montreal, Quebec, Canada located in the southeastern end of the island. History ''See Mercier and Hochelaga-Maisonneuve articles for a more detailed histories of respective areas'' Hochelaga w ...

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

, Quebec, Canada. The stadium opened on May 21, 2008, and is the current home of

CF Montréal Club de Foot Montréal () is a Canadian professional Association football, soccer club based in Montreal. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Eastern Conference (MLS), Eastern Conference. Founded in 1992 as the Mo ...

(formerly the Montreal Impact). The stadium is built on the former practice track and field site on the grounds of the

1976 Summer Olympics The 1976 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XXI Olympiad () and officially branded as Montreal 1976 (), were an international multi-sport event held from July 17 to August 1, 1976, in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Montreal ...

, while the stadium's east side has a view of Olympic Stadium's inclined tower. It has a capacity of 19,619, making it the second-largest soccer-specific stadium in Canada, after

BMO Field BMO Field is an outdoor stadium located at Exhibition Place in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Constructed on the former Exhibition Stadium site and first opened in 2007, it is the home field of Toronto FC of Major League Soccer (MLS) and Toronto Ar ...

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

Construction

The stadium cost ($ in dollars) to build, with $7.5 million paid by the Saputo family and the rest financed on a 25-year term. Saputo Stadium is now CF Montréal's administrative headquarters and also includes a training field, 34 corporate suites and full player welfare areas. The complex covers approximately . It was designed and fabricated by Dant Clayton Corporation and built by Broccolini Construction Inc. The stadium features a natural grass playing surface and was reportedly preferred over BMO Field and its then-artificial turf by members of the

Canada men's national soccer team The Canada men's national soccer team () represents Canada in international Association football, soccer competitions since 1924. They are overseen by the Canadian Soccer Association, the governing body for soccer in Canada. They have been a m ...

. BMO Field has since installed a heated and irrigated hybrid (mixed artificial and natural grass) field. Anticipating a Montreal entry into

Major League Soccer Major League Soccer (MLS) is a professional Association football, soccer league in North America and the highest level of the United States soccer league system. It comprises 30 teams, with 27 in the United States and 3 in Canada, and is sanc ...

, plans were made to expand the stadium from its initial 13,034 capacity to 20,000 to cope with the anticipated boost in attendance. The Quebec government put $23 million for the renovation and expansion of the stadium (the total cost of the stadium was therefore about $40 million). The construction plans went into effect after MLS granted Montreal their nineteenth franchise, which began play in the 2012 season.

Sports usage

The stadium welcomed its first Impact home game on May 19, 2008, a scoreless draw against the

Vancouver Whitecaps Vancouver Whitecaps Football Club is a Canadian professional soccer club based in Vancouver. The Whitecaps compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference. The MLS iteration of the club was established on March 18, ...

. The Impact's first goal in the stadium was scored by Rocco Placentino against the

Charleston Battery The Charleston Battery are an American professional association football, soccer club based in Charleston, South Carolina, and member of the USL Championship. Founded in 1993, the Battery are the oldest continuously operating professional socc ...

on June 13, 2008. This also gave the Impact its first victory in the stadium, with a score of 1–0. The Impact's first game in the newly renovated and expanded Saputo was played on June 16, 2012, against the

Seattle Sounders FC Seattle Sounders FC is an American professional association football, soccer club based in Seattle. The Sounders compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference (MLS), Western Conference. The club was established on ...

. The Impact won the game 4–1. The only official international matches played at Saputo Stadium were two matches played by

during the

2010 FIFA World Cup qualification (CONCACAF) The CONCACAF (Confederation of North, Central American, and Caribbean Association Football) qualification stage for the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa consisted of 35 national teams competing for the three berths given automatically to CONC ...

Gallery

File:Canada11.jpg, View inside the stadium prior to expansion File:Saputo Stadium in night.jpg, Saputo Stadium at night prior to expansion File:Olympique from Saputo.jpg, Stadium in 2010 prior to expansion File:2012 Impact de Montréal au stade Saputo.jpg, Home match against

New York Red Bulls The New York Red Bulls are an American professional association football, soccer club based in the New York metropolitan area. The Red Bulls compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Eastern Conference (MLS), Eastern Conferenc ...

in 2012 File:2012 Impact Montreal Stade Saputo.jpg, Goal celebration against D.C. United in 2012 File:IMFC Pre Game Montreal Impact Columbus Crew 2012-07-08.jpg, Stadium in July 2012 after expansion

References

External links

Stadesaputo.com
{{North American Soccer League stadiums North American Soccer League (2011–2017) stadiums Major League Soccer stadiums CF Montréal Montreal Impact (1992–2011) Soccer venues in Montreal Mercier–Hochelaga-Maisonneuve 2008 establishments in Quebec Sports venues completed in 2008 2008 in Montreal Saputo family

Construction

Sports usage

Gallery

See also

References

External links