The NWSL has selected CPKC Stadium, the newly-built home of the Kansas City Current, as its venue for the 2024 NWSL Championship, the league announced Wednesday. The soccer-specific stadium, which was opened in March, is the first stadium built specifically for a women’s professional sports team.
Kansas City will now host the NWSL Championship, which will air in primetime on CBS on Saturday November 23 at 8 p.m., and will stream on Paramount+.
CPKC Stadium was unveiled at the start of the 2024 season. The stadium has a relatively small capacity, with room for 11,500 fans. Coupled with the popularity of the Current — who are dominating the league with a record-breaking 17-game unbeaten streak — the venue has been sold out all season, with a 3,000-person waiting list, according to the Wall Street Journal.
The ambitious project was spearheaded by Chris and Angie Long, who co-own the team along with Brittany and Patrick Mahomes. Per the Wall Street Journal, around 40 banks declined to finance the $70 million project, with owners of men’s teams telling the Longs that it wasn’t viable.
“CPKC Stadium epitomizes the explosive growth and investment we are witnessing in the NWSL, women’s soccer and women’s sports around the world,” NWSL Commissioner Jessica Berman said in a league press release. “It was a natural choice to stage the league’s marquee event in a venue that exemplifies the profound impact of infrastructure, investment and community support on the continued development and success of our sport.”
In a league where teams who share stadiums are sometimes pushed out of venues, the new stadium gives Kansas City more control over schedules and ticketing. The Current has played most of its home games during coveted Saturday night slots, while other clubs are forced to play on Sundays or afternoons to accommodate MLS teams.
Kansas City’s consistent sell-outs make it a logical choice to host the NWSL final. However, the venue’s size has raised some concerns: Compared to CPKC Stadium’s 11,500 capacity, more than 25,000 people filled San Diego’s Snapdragon Stadium for last year’s final.
The announcement comes as the NWSL is achieving record viewership on the back of a new broadcast deal signed in November. According to the NWSL press release, attendance has already surpassed one million fans, hitting the milestone earlier in the season than previous years, and broadcast viewership is up 95% from the 2023 season.
Source Agencies
