Houston Dynamo/Texas Southern Tigers break ground on new downtown stadium

Texas Southern University President Dr. John M. Rudley
“One of our major initiatives was to bring a state-of-the-art stadium to Texas Southern University athletics. This new stadium has helped us reach that goal. It also gives us one of the best facilities in the Southwestern Athletic Conference. It’s a huge boost to the overall athletic program.”


Videographer: Khou.com

The Houston Dynamo of Major League Soccer broke ground on February 5, 2011 on their $95 million dollar, 22,000-seat soccer stadium in downtown Houston's East End. Dignitaries such as AEG President and CEO Tim Leiweke, Dynamo equity partner Oscar de la Hoya, MLS President Mark Abbott, Houston Mayor Annise Parker, and Harris County Judge Ed Emmett participated in the groundbreaking festivities, while Dynamo all-time leading scorer Brian Ching kicked a ceremonial first goal on the stadium site.

Excavation of the site and construction of the stadium is expected to begin shortly, and the Dynamo hope to play their first game in the new stadium by mid-2012. The stadium is located in downtown Houston, within walking distance of Minute Maid Park, the George R. Brown Convention Center, and the Toyota Center. In addition to soccer games, the new stadium will host Texas Southern University football, concerts, boxing matches, and more.

The stadium will be operated by the Dynamo and leased from the Harris County-Houston Sports Authority. It is located closer to downtown than any other American stadium built for soccer and will be easily accessible to fans from the entire Houston area.

AEG Facilities, the world's largest venue manager, will manage the stadium on behalf of the Dynamo. The stadium will be included in AEG Facilities' worldwide network of more than 100 elite venues across five continents.

Renowned architectural firm Populous designed the stadium, which will be constructed by Houston-based Manhattan Construction and overseen by the ICON Venue Group. Additional companies working on the site are landscape architect Clark Condon, structural engineer Walter P. Moore, and civil engineer WGA, all companies based in Houston.

RELATED LINK: DYNAMO STADIUM 2012