Planning for a new stadium for New Mexico United could start taking shape, as a state economic development committee is set to discuss the idea next week.
New Mexico United began play in 2019 as a USL Championship expansion team, kicking off with a successful inaugural season. The club topped the league in attendance at Isotopes Park, drawing a per-game average of 12,693 fans, according to our attendance figures.
Isotopes Park is primarily a ballpark for Minor League Baseball’s Albuquerque Isotopes (Class AAA; International League), and has never been envisioned as a permanent home for New Mexico United. While the club will return to Isotopes Park in 2020, it is seeking to eventually move forward with the construction of its own stadium. Some ideas of what the club might pursue could surface next week, as a potential stadium is set to be discussed by the New Mexico Economic and Rural Development Committee.
For right now, it seems that proponents at the state level are thinking big in terms of the stadium project’s scope, and it is possible that state capital outlay funds could help contribute to the cost. More from KRQE 13 News:
“It’s within our scope, it’s within our plans, we’re looking into it now and we definitely hope to have it in the next five years,” NM United Marketing Director Elizabeth Davis has told KRQE News 13.
Next week, the Economic and Rural Development Committee will look into the idea of pitching in to build a new soccer stadium.
“I think we could have a first-class stadium, a world-class stadium, for about $100 million,” Rep. Antonio Maestas said Thursday.
The so-called Community Catalyst Sports Venue could be partially funded by state capital outlay funds, thanks to the oil boom.
The committee is scheduled to conduct its discussion next Thursday afternoon.
Image courtesy New Mexico United.