Best stadiums for the USMNT to play at?

I hear ya.

I just think a game against Jamaica would be okay. The match against Trinidad & Tobago last Hex in Tennessee had a much better atmosphere than Toyota Park in the semi stage. So your small stadium theory does not always apply.

 

Portlands pitch is also too narrow. We'd be hurting our own NT by intentionally playing on such a narrow surface.

 

Maybe for Jam or Pan. Definitely not for Mex.

 

I can think of five home World Cup qualifiers with sellout crowds dominated by foreign NT fans. They were:
Mexico, Foxboro, 1997 (Sunday)
Jamaica, DC, 1997 (Friday night)
Guatemala, DC, 2000 (Sunday)
Honduras, DC, 2001 (Saturday)
Honduras, Chicago, 2009 (Saturday)

All five of them were on weekends. Foreign NT fans living in the United States do seem to more inclined to travel on weekends than on weekdays.

 

Problem is, that limits US Fans too, as if they don't have work/school commitments. Particularly anyone outside the metro where the game is.

The problem is our fans, they see their team all the time. Note the insanity when they're not able to watch away games that aren't PPV

 

Weeknight games do limit travelling US fans. But as you noted on the last page, most US fans are unwilling to travel very far anyway. Weeknight games don't limit US fans who live in the same city where the game is being played.

 

They say they are widening the field next year. Does not change the turf issue though.

 

Costa Rica (Salt Lake)
Mexico (Columbus)
Honduras (KC)
Jamaica (Houston)
Panama (Nashville)

Other options: Seattle, Portland (turf), Denver

 

You gotta come north east. The sport and the USMNT will never expand if we dont play matches an area that is driveable from New England

 

Hartford is your only chance unless you count Pennsylvania and DC as drivable North eastern locations.

 

Looks good to me.

 

Im biased but id like to them come to brand new BBVA Compass Stadium in Houston! Beautiful stadium and could be done vs the likes of Jamaica i think.

 

Didn't the U.S. play Colombia in Philly a few years ago and there was only like 8K people?

 

It was a friendly on a Tuesday night in October, and it was in Chester, not in Philadelphia. It wouldn't have drawn a big crowd anywhere in the country. Five months earlier, the United States' last game before leaving for the World Cup had drawn 55,000 in Philly.

That said, the only Hex games for which I would even think about Philadelphia or anywhere else in the northeast are Panama and Costa Rica.

 

I think Roger explained it pretty well.
To pile unto what he said, there were other (Union) friendlies and matches that year so Philly was pretty over-saturated with soccer. The Buzz of a World Cup qualifying match would be different.
Not to mention Columbus has had some badly attended matches in the past. Does that mean we will never play in Columbus again? (No).

 

DC is driveable, but thats about as far is it is reasonable to go. Its a 12 hour drive for me but I would be willing to do it.

 

I was listening to the ESPN Big Head Redhead podcast with Lalas and TT, they were talking about which stadiums will get a hex game and both of them think that PPL Park won't get a hex game.

 

Did they say why?

 

TT said because the last time the USMNT played in PPL Park about 8K fans showed up so half the stadium was empty.

 

Well that should not be the only reason. There were good excuses already discussed here that kind of dispute that reason.

 

As awesome I think a game in Portland would be, the west coast presents travel problems for the Euro based players.

 

I say the US should play Mexico in the Winter at that blue turf stadium in Idaho, since Lambeau Field in Green Bay can't do soccer.

 

********, or why not hawaii? Not many mexicans there?

 

The key word was "Winter."

Does it snow in Hawaii? No!