Opening Day: September 22, 1962
Capacity: 10,525
Surface: Grass
Current Owner: Santa Clara University
Team Website: sjearthquakes.com
Team Phone: 408/556-7700
Address: 500 El Camino Real, Santa Clara, CA 95050
Directions:
From I-880 in either direction: follow I-880 toward Santa Clara University and then take exit 2 onto The Alameda. Follow until it splits off into El Camino Real, then follow until you reach the SCU Entrance and take a left onto campus. Buck Shaw Stadium is visible on the left from El Camino Real.
Buck Shaw Stadium has been the home of the San Jose Earthquakes since 2008, and will remain so until 2015, when the new Earthquakes stadium opens. In addition to housing the Earthquakes, the stadium is also the site of Santa Clara University’s commencement ceremonies, and has been used for that purpose since 2001. Prior to the Earthquakes’ tenure, Buck Shaw was a multipurpose stadium, and as late as 2007 still bore vestiges of when it hosted Santa Clara University Baseball in the NCAA Division I West Coast Conference (between 1963 and 2005). It was converted to a soccer specific stadium in anticipation of the Earthquakes.
The setup of the stadium is one of the most interesting in the MLS circuit. The stands do not wrap around the entirety of the field, but mostly flank the lengths of the field and wrap around one of the corners. It is also currently the smallest stadium. Nonetheless, Buck Shaw has the distinction of hosting not just MLS soccer but international rugby matches and World Cup teams. It became the first U.S. stadium to host pool matches for the Churchill Cup. In 1994, Buck Shaw was the training/practice field for the Brazil soccer team, who went on to win the World Cup that year.