BMO Field

BMO Field is an outdoor stadium located at Exhibition Place in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is the home stadium of MLS team Toronto FC and the CFL team Toronto Argonauts. It was built on the site of the former Exhibition Stadium. The stadium was first opened in 2007. BMO Field hosted matches during the 2007 FIFA U-20 World Cup and 2014 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup. The stadium has also hosted rugby union matches.

BMO Field
BMO Field in May 2016
BMO Field is located in Toronto
BMO Field
BMO Field
Location in Toronto
BMO Field is located in Ontario
BMO Field
BMO Field
Location in Ontario
BMO Field is located in Canada
BMO Field
BMO Field
Location in Canada
Address170 Princes' Boulevard
LocationToronto, Ontario
Coordinates43°37′58″N 79°25′07″W
Public transit Template:GOs
 509  Harbourfront
 511  Bathurst
 29  TTC buses
OwnerCity of Toronto
OperatorMaple Leaf Sports & Entertainment
Capacity25,000 (football)
30,000[1] (soccer)
(expandable to 40,000)
Record attendance40,148 (NHL Centennial Classic)[2][3][4]
Field size105 × 68 metres (115 x 74 yards) (soccer)
134 × 59 metres (146 x 65 yards) (Canadian football)
Surface
Construction
StartedMarch 29, 2006
OpenedApril 28, 2007
Expanded2010
2014–16
Construction costCan$62.9 million
($77.3 million in 2020 dollars[5])
Can$120 million (2014–2016 renovation)
ArchitectBrisbin Brooks Beynon Architects (BBB Architects), Gensler (expansion)
Project managerPMX, Inc.[6]
Structural engineerHalcrow Yolles
Services engineerThe Mitchell Partnership Inc.
General contractorPCL Construction[7]
Tenants
Toronto FC (MLS) (2007–present)
Canada men's national soccer team (2007–present)
Toronto Nationals (MLL) (2009)
Toronto Argonauts (CFL) (2016–present)
Toronto FC II (USL) (2018)

Construction

BMO Field is the fifth stadium to be built at its exact location at Exhibition Place. The most recent was Exhibition Stadium, which was demolished in 1999.

On May 11, 2006, Major League Soccer announced that Toronto FC would join the league as its 13th (and first Canada-based) team in 2007, with BMO Field being its own stadium.

Recent developments

In August 2017, Toronto FC II, which normally hosted their games at the Ontario Soccer Centre, announced that it would move its home games to BMO Field and Lamport Stadium, starting with the 2018 season. The team moved their home games to BMO Training Ground for the 2019 season, after they dropped to the USL League One.

It will host matches during the 2026 FIFA World Cup. [8]

History

Soccer

Toronto FC crowned as the MLS' 2017 Eastern Conference champions at BMO Field.

Toronto FC played their first game at BMO Field on April 28, 2007. The grand opening celebration took place on May 12, 2007.

The 2008 MLS All-Star Game was held at BMO Field on July 24, 2008 versus Premier League team West Ham United.

BMO Field has hosted several MLS Cup matches, and was the first stadium outside of the United States to host the event in 2010, when the Colorado Rapids won 2-1 against FC Dallas. The first MLS home playoff game held at BMO Field saw Toronto FC defeat the Philadelphia Union 3–1 on October 26, 2016. BMO Field hosted the MLS Cup again in 2016, as Toronto FC won the MLS Eastern Championship and hosted the Seattle Sounders in the final. Seattle won the match 5–4 on penalties, after a goalless draw after extra time.[9]

On December 9, 2017, BMO Field hosted its second consecutive MLS Cup in 2017. The match was a rematch between Toronto FC and the Seattle Sounders, who played each other in the 2016 MLS Cup. Toronto FC won 2–0, and became the first MLS team to complete a domestic treble, and was the first Canadian team to win the MLS Cup.

2007 FIFA U-20 World Cup

A game between the New Zealand, and Portugal U-20 soccer teams at the 2007 FIFA U-20 World Cup.

BMO Field hosted the 2007 FIFA U-20 World Cup, the first major tournament held at the stadium. The stadium saw the Canadian Under-20 squad once. The stadium also saw six knockout stage games including the Final; which was won by Argentina. Due to FIFA sponsorship regulations, the venue was referred to as the "National Soccer Stadium" during the event.

Date Team #1 Result Team #2 Round Attendance
July 1, 2007 Canada0–3 ChileGroup A20,195
July 2, 2007 Portugal2–0 New ZealandGroup C19,526
 Gambia0–3 Mexico
July 5, 2007 New Zealand0–1 Gambia
 Mexico2–1 Portugal
July 8, 2007 Chile0–0 AustriaGroup A
July 11, 2007 United States2–1 (AET) UruguayRound of 16
July 12, 2007 Argentina3–1 Poland
July 14, 2007 Austria2–1 United StatesQuarterfinal
July 19, 2007 Chile0–3 ArgentinaSemifinal
July 22, 2007 Chile1–0 Austria3rd Place Match
 Czech Republic1–2 ArgentinaFinal19,526

2014 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup

BMO Field hosted the 2014 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup. Canada played in Toronto for the first two match days, with Korea DPR, Finland, and Ghana in their group. National Soccer Stadium also hosted a quarterfinal match on August 16.

Date Team #1 Result Team #2 Round Attendance
August 5, 2014 Canada0–1 GhanaGroup A20,195
 Finland1–2 North Korea
August 8, 2014 Canada3–2 Finland
 Ghana0–3 North Korea
August 13, 2014 South Korea2–1 MexicoGroup C
 Costa Rica0–3 New ZealandGroup D
August 16, 2014 North Korea1–1 (3–1 on penalties) United StatesQuarterfinal

2015 CONCACAF Gold Cup

Date Team #1 Result Team #2 Round Attendance
July 14, 2015 Jamaica1–0 El SalvadorGroup B16,674
 Canada0–0 Costa Rica

Canadian football

The Argonauts moved to the renovated BMO Field, starting with the 2016 season. On October 1, 2015, BMO Field was awarded the rights to host the 104th Grey Cup, which was played on November 27, 2016.[10] On June 11, 2016, the Argonauts played their first game at the stadium, a preseason (exhibition) game against the Hamilton Tiger-Cats. The Argos won that game 25–16.[11] On June 23, the Argos played their first regular season game at BMO Field, where they lost 42–20 to the Hamilton Tiger-Cats.[12]

Hockey

On January 1, 2017, BMO Field hosted an NHL outdoor game, the NHL Centennial Classic, in honour of the Toronto Maple Leafs' and the NHL's centennial seasons. The Leafs hosted the Detroit Red Wings, in a rematch of the 2014 NHL Winter Classic, which was held three years before.[13] The venue was referred to as "Exhibition Stadium" for its duration, as Scotiabank (a direct competitor to BMO), was title sponsor of the event.[14]

Date Away team Result Home team Spectators
December 31, 2016Detroit Red Wings Alumni4–3Toronto Maple Leafs Alumni
January 1, 2017Detroit Red Wings4–5 (OT)Toronto Maple Leafs40,148

Concerts

As of 6 October 2020, the only music concert at BMO Field was performed by the progressive rock group Genesis on September 7, 2007.

Milestones

View of the stadium immediately after the Toronto FC scored their first goal in club history on June 12, 2007.

The first goal at BMO Field was scored by Eddie Johnson for the Kansas City Wizards in a 1–0 Major League Soccer win over home side Toronto FC in the stadium opener on April 28, 2007. The first Toronto FC goal at the stadium was Danny Dichio's first-half strike against Chicago Fire on May 12, 2007 (also his club's first MLS goal).

The first goal at BMO Field scored by a Canadian came at the official opening on May 11, 2007, in a U-20 friendly between Canada and Argentina. David Edgar scored a penalty in a 2–1 defeat for Canada, just four minutes after Gómez had scored the first international goal at the stadium.

Costa Rica's Víctor Núñez scored the first senior international goal in a 1–1 friendly draw with hosts Canada on September 12, 2007, shortly before Dwayne De Rosario scored Canada's first senior goal at the stadium.

The first Toronto FC goal scored by a Canadian at BMO Field was in a June 25, 2007 friendly against Aston Villa of the English Premier League. Andrea Lombardo scored an equalizer at BMO Field's south end to make it 2–2 before Aston Villa ran out 4–2 winners. The first league goal at BMO Field scored by a Canadian came when Miguel Cañizalez scored for Toronto FC in the second minute of their 2–1 defeat to the Columbus Crew on September 22, 2007, snapping an 824-minute MLS goalless streak.

The first Toronto FC MLS playoff goal was scored at BMO Field in the 15th minute by Sebastian Giovinco on October 26, 2016 in front of 21,759. In the same game, the first Toronto FC playoff goal scored by a Canadian was by Jonathan Osorio in the 48th minute; the final score was 3–1 over the Philadelphia Union.

In Canadian football, the first CFL points scored at BMO Field was a Toronto Argonauts completed touchdown pass caught by Vidal Hazelton, thrown by Logan Kilgore, in a June 11, 2016 exhibition Argos win; final score 25–16.[11] The first CFL regular season points scored at the stadium was a conceded safety touch of 2 points by Canadian Argos kicker/punter Lirim Hajrullahu in a 20–42 loss on June 23.[12] The first regular season points scored by the Argos at BMO Field was a successful field goal kicked by Hajrullahu in the same game. On July 25, the Argonauts won their first regular season game at their new home, defeating the Montreal Alouettes 30–17.

Attendance records

The largest attendance for any event at the stadium was on January 1, 2017, when the Toronto Maple Leafs hosted the Detroit Red Wings in the NHL Centennial Classic in front of 40,148 people.[4] The largest attendance for a Major League Soccer game was on December 10, 2016, when Toronto FC hosted the Seattle Sounders FC in the 2016 MLS Cup Final in front of 36,045. The largest attendance for a Canadian Football League game was the 104th Grey Cup played before 33,421 on November 27, 2016.

MLS

SeasonSeason
average
Highest
gate
Lowest
gate
200720,13020,52219,123
200820,12020,46119,657
200920,34420,90219,843
201020,45322,10818,394
201120,26722,45316,313
201218,68120,07114,623
201317,63921,70012,627
201422,08622,59118,269
201523,45130,22616,382
201626,78736,04520,011
201727,39430,58415,175
201826,62830,79914,823
201925,04828,98922,651

CFL

SeasonSeason
average
Highest
gate
Lowest
gate
201616,38033,421112,373
201715,01524,92911,219
201814,21118,10410,844
201912,78916,7349,819

Notes: 1 104th Grey Cup game between the Ottawa Redblacks and Calgary Stampeders.

Rugby

The largest crowd for rugby at BMO Field and in Canada occurred when the Canada national rugby union team hosted the New Zealand Māori All Blacks before 22,566 people on November 3, 2013.[15] The Maori All Blacks won the match 40–15.

  • List of Canadian Football League stadiums
  • List of Major League Soccer stadiums
  • List of soccer stadiums in Canada
  • Venues of the 2015 Pan American and Parapan American Games

References

  1. Stejskal, Sam (December 8, 2016). "BMO Field 101: Toronto FC's stadium set to host MLS Cup after facelift". MLSSoccer.com. MLS Digital. Retrieved March 30, 2020.
  2. Kevin, McGran (January 1, 2017). "Overtime in Centennial Classic? Naturally". Toronto Star. Retrieved June 23, 2018.
  3. "Game Summary". National Hockey League. Retrieved June 22, 2018.
  4. "Game HQ". ESPN. Retrieved January 1, 2017.
  5. Inflated values automatically calculated.
  6. "Projects". PMX Inc. February 26, 2013. Archived from the original on November 26, 2013. Retrieved September 10, 2013.
  7. "National Soccer Stadium at Exhibition Place". PCL Construction. Archived from the original on October 16, 2006. Retrieved April 20, 2012.
  8. "FIFA announces Toronto and Vancouver as Canadian Host Cities for the FIFA World Cup 2026". bmofield.com. BMO Field.
  9. "Seattle Sounders beat Toronto FC on penalties to win 2016 MLS Cup". ESPN FC. December 10, 2016. Retrieved December 11, 2016.
  10. "104th Grey Cup Presented By Shaw coming to Toronto in 2016". Toronto Argonauts. October 1, 2015. Archived from the original on October 3, 2015. Retrieved October 1, 2015.
  11. "2016-06-11 – Hamilton Tiger-Cats vs. Toronto Argonauts (2268)". CFL.ca. June 11, 2016. Retrieved June 12, 2016.
  12. "2016-06-23 – Hamilton Tiger-Cats vs. Toronto Argonauts (2276)". CFL.ca. June 23, 2016. Retrieved June 28, 2016.
  13. "Detroit Red Wings, Maple Leafs set to play outdoor Centennial Classic". Detroit Free Press. Gannett. March 9, 2016. Retrieved March 10, 2016.
  14. "Limited number of Centennial Classic tickets on sale". NHL.com (Press release). Toronto and New York. November 18, 2016. Retrieved November 19, 2016.
  15. "Rugby Canada (Design, Hosting, Registration & Administration tools by esportsdeskpro.com)". Rugbycanada.ca. Retrieved March 24, 2014.

Notes

  1. North side FieldTurf end-zone for Canadian football

Other websites

Events and Tenants
Preceded by
first stadium
Home of
Toronto FC

2007–present
Succeeded by
current
Preceded by
Stadion Galgenwaard
Utrecht
FIFA U-20 World Cup
Final Venue

2007
Succeeded by
Cairo International Stadium
Cairo
Preceded by
Rogers Centre
Home of
Toronto Argonauts

2016–present
Succeeded by
current
Preceded by
Qwest Field
Host of the
MLS Cup

2010
Succeeded by
Home Depot Center
Preceded by
Investors Group Field
Host of the
Grey Cup

2016
Succeeded by
TD Place Stadium
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.