Allianz Field (St. Paul, Minnesota)

Allianz Field is the football stadium in St. Paul, Minnesota, home to the Minnesota United FC Major League Football (MLS). The 19,400-seat stadium was designed by Populous and opened on April 13, 2019, during the third MLS season. It is located off Interstate 94 and Snelling Avenue, with transit connections provided by the Metro Green Line.

Basic information

Arena capacity: 19,400 spectators 

Address: Snelling Ave 400, St. Paul, MN 55104, USA. 

GPS coordinates for the navigator: 44 ° 57′10 ″ n. 93 ° 9′54 ″ w. 

Year of construction: April 13, 2019 

Cost of construction: 200 million dollars 

Field: lawn 

Seating Plan Allianz Field

Minnesota FC Bench and Visitor Bench

• FC Minnesota Bench — the sideline of the FC Minnesota is in front of Field Club 3 and Field Club 4;
• Visitor Bench — The side line of the visiting team is opposite Field Club 7 and Field Club 8.

Support section

The Alliance support section extends through sections 20-24. All seats in the fan sections are publicly available, and fans in these sections are encouraged to stand and sing throughout the match.

Where to buy tickets?

Adult tickets cost about 30 to 60 dollars, which is an average of NRL. Despite attracting a large number of people, tickets seem to be easily available even in the last few days preceding the game. Despite the fact that this is not a cheap occupation and is by no means an ideal stadium, if you are conquering with food and travel, Anzac Cup Day is still a worthy event that offers worthy value.

How to get there?

Allianz Stadium is located south of Sydney’s central business district, reachable by bus or car. The nearest heavy railway station is located in the central part of the city, a 20-minute walk from the hotel, although keep in mind that it goes uphill most of the way, so it is not recommended to use it for less mobile fans. In the future, there will be a high-speed tram connecting Central Park with Moore Park. However, if you are driving, there are several parking options, including park areas in front of the stadium, an entertainment quarter (entrance through Lang Rd) and secondary schools for boys / girls in Sydney (entrance through Cleveland St), each of which will charge around 25 dollars.

Entrance to the Allianz Stadium itself is via the pedestrian square leading from Driver Ave. The halls around and outside and inside the stadium are narrow and, as a rule, are considered as not meeting the standards, especially when there is a large crowd on it. The Allianz Stadium also has limited facilities for disabled visitors, and the toilets are well used and not enough for female fans.

Where to eat?

One of the biggest disadvantages of visiting Allianz Stadium is the concessions; expect medium quality, long lines and high prices. Despite the fact that in recent years they have tried to expand the range, the stadium is simply not equipped to service high-quality boutiques. The main items available are hot dogs ($ 6.60), meat pies ($ 6.20), sausage rolls ($ 5.20) and hot chips ($ 6.60). The basic combined food offerings for these items cost just over $ 16. For those who are a little hungry, there are hamburgers, chicken strips, fish and chips, they all cost about $ 15. Drinks are also expensive with beer, wine and cider for about 9 dollars. Soft drinks cost $ 6.40, and water $ 5.30. It’s hard to believe, but a tray for your drinks now costs up to $ 1.50, which, unfortunately, is common in many stadiums these days.

Atmosphere

The Allianz Stadium has several obvious design flaws; access is not very good, the roof has little protection from the weather, there are limited opportunities for corporate clients and the media, and the amenities are poor. While the above list should be addressed to truly offer a modern, premium fan experience, the venue still meets numerical criteria in a sports stadium in that there is only a bad place in the house. As the main football venue in Sydney for over a decade, SFS has hosted many commemorative events including Grand Finals and Rugby League regattas, international rugby (including RWC 2003) and international football matches (including World Cup qualifiers and Summer Olympics ). in 2000).

Anzac Day Cup hosts an extensive pre-game ceremony to honor those who have served in the past and present. You should strive to sit about an hour before the first bounce, to make sure that you catch all the pre-match actions. As soon as the two teams enter the field, the Ode of Memory is read, and the flag ceremony includes the drawing of the Last Post. This is an exciting experience that most viewers respect, and this is one of the most exciting moments you are likely to experience at a sporting event.

Neighborhood

In recent years, crowds of people flocked to the Moore area through one of the many pubs on the way from Central Station. It seems that today is not the norm, and although there are still a few local attractions, it is worth mentioning the proximity of the CBD and all that a global city has to offer. Those who come from another city should be allocated at least a few days to mark the main attractions, such as the famous bridge in Sydney Harbor, the Opera House and Bondi Beach. The nearest restaurants and bars are located in the entertainment district, which is located on the south side of SCG, with the Bavarian cafe Bier (entertainment district, 212 Bent St Moore Park) and the Irish pub PJ Gallagher (entertainment district, 216 1/2 Bent). St Moore Park) is a popular choice. Those who want to go a little further will be well acquainted with Paddington, Coogee, the Rocks and Kings Cross.

Given this day, those who especially want to celebrate this event can start the day with the Dawn service at the Cenotaph in Martina Place at 4:15 in the morning.After snacks in nearby pubs, you can watch the annual march of veterans and their descendants in Anzac from 9:00, which runs from Martin Place on Elizabeth Street and ends in Hyde Park at 12:30. After the march, head to the Light Brigade Hotel (Cnr Oxford St and Jersey Rd) in Woollarha to play the traditional game “twice” before heading to Moore Park for a match.

The fans

The Anzac Day Cup gathers fans of both clubs en masse, and every year more than 35,000 spectators gather here. This is a family friendly atmosphere, as the fans are mostly in a good mood and behave well.

Additionally

NRL’s Anzac Day connection is strong and well secured, with a growing tradition that continues to improve and provides many additional features that complement the experience. The Allianz Stadium also offers free Wi-Fi, as well as some fan activation and gift giving at the entrance area.

Design

The stadium is a ring stadium, designed for 19,400 seats in the first stage and 24,474 in future expansion, which will fill the four corners. It has a secure permanent terrace for 2920 supporters, called “Wonderwall” in honor of the club’s unofficial hymn, located behind the goal of the southern end. The Wonderwall single-level terrace was designed with a slope of 34.9% and has no seats. In the north, there is the Brew Hall Brasserie, as well as a hand-operated scoreboard and ninety-minute hours, which were designed to resemble fixtures in a former home, the National Sports Center in Blaine.

The stadium was designed by Populous with a deliberate sightseeing and an “intimate atmosphere”. The field is located 16 inches (41 cm) above the first row of seats and consists of 97,000 square feet (9,000 m2) of Kentucky bluegrass that was grown in Colorado prior to its installation at the end of 2018. The glass oval outer surface of the polymer mesh provides the stadium with a smooth facade. He wears polytetrafluoroethylene, which covers the steel structure that holds the roof in place. With the overhang partially covering the field, it is expected that the façade softens the noise in the surroundings. Color-changing LEDs illuminate the external grid in the same way as the Allianz Arena in Munich, Germany, and the MetLife stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey. The first tests of the lighting system, which were conducted at night in the fog, caused complaints from neighbors because of the intensity of color.

Green space

The master plan focuses on pedestrians and provides 2.6 acres (1.1 hectares) of open gathering areas. The stadium will be surrounded by three grass areas, and the fourth green zone will be located along University Avenue, not far from Snelling Avenue station. Pascal Green will be east of the stadium; United Champion Plaza will be on the southwest corner; Victory Square will be in the north; and halfway through the square will be north of Victory Square, along Snelling Avenue. Midway Square and Victory Square will denote the north-south axis of the stadium.

It is planned that these green zones will be gradually introduced in stages, as the owner of the RK Midway real estate expects the expiration of the lease term of the existing tenants. However, the schedule of these stages was not made public for the city or the public as of July 2016. The project was criticized, since the full implementation of the master plan may take many years.

Construction

The stadium was scheduled to open in June 2016, but it was postponed until the team waited for tax exemptions, similar to those given to other recent stadium projects. Although the construction of the stadium was funded from private sources, the franchise owners said that tax exemption was necessary for the viability of the project.

In addition, since the construction of the stadium would exclude the company Rainbow Foods — the anchor tenant in the Midway shopping center — the owner of the RK Midway shopping center from New York faced the difficulties of renting with smaller tenants. Industry analysts say that intense competition between the SuperValu product company (which runs Rainbow in the mall) and competitors, primarily Hy-Vee, makes it unlikely that Rainbow will agree to terminate the lease agreement without a signed guarantee against a competitor who goes to the store. Centre.

On December 12, 2016, a ceremonial breakthrough was held, attended by MLS Commissioner Don Garber. The main construction on the site began in June 2017.The construction of the stadium was completed by Mortenson Construction on February 27, 2019, after 20 months of operation.

History

The master plan was developed for the reconstruction of a vast area, including the stadium and the adjacent property owned by RK Midway. This may include the construction of a new hotel and office space and the renovation of an existing shopping center. The buildings that occupy the Rainbow, Walgreens, Midway Pro Bowl supermarket and some adjacent premises will be demolished. The general plan requires that the renovation be more convenient for pedestrians to to accommodate a large number of fans coming to and from transit stations.

In the southern half of the site there used to be a bus shed, which Metro Transit used until it was demolished. Later, the store for large boxes was pursued for the site, but was not built. The site was acquired several years earlier by the Metropolitan Council with the help of the Federal Transit Administration, therefore the development of the site required the approval of the federal government. The stadium itself is mainly located on this property.