Opening Day: March 20, 2010
Capacity: 25,000
Surface: Grass
Current Owner: Red Bull
Team Website: newyorkredbulls.com
Team Phone: 973-268-8420
Address: 600 Cape May St., Harrison, NJ 07029
Directions:
Via subway: Take the Newark Train from Journal Square, to the Harrison, NJ exit. Journal Square trains depart from several Manhattan PATH stations at 23rd Street, 14th Street and 9th Street.
Red Bull Arena was built specifically for the New York Red Bulls, who had previously been playing in Giants Stadium since their inception in 1996 as the MetroStars. A relatively short jot away from New York City, Red Bull Arena draws visitors from the whole metropolitan area there to watch games, especially between the Red Bulls’ rivals to the south, D.C. United.
The Red Bulls have an extensive network of supporters—to the point that certain sections are held to be exclusively supporters club sections—and the design of the stadium abets this close-knit image. The stadium’s roof looms over most of the bleachers, a semi-transparent cover that lets in some natural light, but also folds the crowd in a semi-private intimacy. The area around the stadium is also interesting; the Passaic River runs just next to the arena, and the New Jersey Institute of Technology campus rests just across said river to the west.