NEW YORK — The launch of New York City FC‘s Etihad Park has been delayed by half a season, now slated to coincide with the beginning of the MLS 2027-28 season.
When the team commenced construction in December 2024 for the new 25,000-seat stadium next to the New York Mets’ Citi Field, they anticipated an opening in time for the 2027 season. The updated timeline now targets a summer 2027 inauguration, coinciding with the league’s transition to a summer-to-spring schedule aligned with the majority of European leagues.
During the league’s shortened transition season in 2027, each MLS team will compete in a 14-game regular-season format, followed by playoffs. NYCFC will primarily host home matches at Yankee Stadium and Citi Field throughout that season.
Since its inception in 2015, NYCFC has held most home games at these venues, and has also played at the home ground of the rival New York Red Bulls in Harrison, New Jersey, as well as Rentschler Field in East Hartford, Connecticut.
The new stadium is also set to host soccer matches during the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.
The team’s controlling owner, City Football Group, oversees NYCFC and is also the parent company of England’s Manchester City, which renamed its venue Etihad Stadium in July 2011.