Subaru Park

• 1. Introduction

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  Subaru Park rises on the Delaware River waterfront in Chester, Pennsylvania, right beside the Commodore Barry Bridge. Major League Soccer commissioner Don Garber made the same promise about the city for years before the stadium existed. "It's not a matter of if but when Philadelphia gets a team," he said. The Philadelphia Union now call the stadium home. In continental club competitions, though, broadcasters are required to call the building Philadelphia Stadium, a quirk of advertising rules. Getting from Garber's promise to a finished building took time. One proposed site north of the city fell through, and a second plan collapsed in New Jersey, before Chester's waterfront finally got the deal. Once open, the ground would end up hosting far more than league games: rugby internationals, college lacrosse finals, even a summer drum corps tour.

• 2. Funding A Waterfront Gamble

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  Redeveloping the Chester waterfront was the real goal behind Subaru Park. Future plans called for a river walk, plus more entertainment, retail, and residential development. Major League Soccer first eyed a site in the borough of Bristol, about 23 miles north of Center City Philadelphia, but those plans never came to fruition. Rowan University then proposed its own stadium near its campus in Glassboro, New Jersey, only for funding to fall through in 2006 when it failed to pass the New Jersey legislature. A group of investors led by longtime MLS executive Nick Sakiewicz began planning a stadium in Chester in late 2006. Delaware County politicians approved funding for the project in October 2007, after months of negotiation. T.N. Ward Company, based in Ardmore, was hired to build it. The county ended up owning both the land and the stadium, while the team secured naming rights through a 30-year lease.

  The newly formed Delaware County Sports Authority covers the county's $30 million share using tax revenue from the Harrah's Chester harness racing track and casino. Private investors contributed another $80 million toward the project. On the 31st of January 2008, Pennsylvania's state government unveiled a combined stadium and economic revitalization package for Chester, committing $47 million overall. Of that package, $25 million went directly to stadium construction, while $7 million funded a two-phase redevelopment nearby. The first phase called for 186 townhouses, 25 apartments, and 335,000 square feet of office space. It also included a 200,000 square foot convention center, more than 20,000 square feet of retail space, and parking for 1,350 cars. A planned second phase would add 200 more apartments, 100,000 square feet of office space, and 22,000 square feet of retail.

  The Environmental Protection Agency worked with the city to make sure construction did not disturb a nearby parking facility. That site had once been the Wade Dump, a polluted Superfund site. That environmental clearance let building begin, though the delays it caused would end up sending the team's true debut somewhere else entirely.

• 3. Kickoff At Subaru Park

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  Construction delays forced the Philadelphia Union's inaugural home game onto the field at Lincoln Financial Field instead of Subaru Park. Their actual first match at the new stadium came on the 27th of June 2010, a 3-1 win over Seattle Sounders FC. Sébastien Le Toux scored the Union's first goal there, heading in a crossed pass. Seattle's Pat Noonan, though, technically scored the venue's first-ever goal.

  The stadium's attendance record came on the 5th of December 2021, during the Eastern Conference Final. New York City FC beat the Union 2-1 that night, in front of 19,487 fans, the largest crowd Subaru Park has hosted.

  Consistently high attendance and strong ticket sales led the Union to propose expanding the stadium as early as 2011. The plan called for three phases: first to 20,000 seats, then 27,000, and eventually around 30,000. In 2024, the club hired design firm Gensler to study an expansion that could fit 27,000 seats within the stadium's existing footprint.

  Soccer alone never filled Subaru Park's calendar. Touring rugby squads would soon claim the same turf.

• 4. Rugby Comes To America

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  Subaru Park hosted the Collegiate Rugby Championship every June between 2011 and 2019. It is the highest-profile college rugby competition in the United States, broadcast live on NBC every year. The first edition in 2011 drew more than 17,800 fans, and Dartmouth beat Army 32-10 in the final. California then won five straight titles from 2013 through 2017, including a 31-7 rout of UCLA in 2016. By 2017, the tournament drew a reported 37,518 fans across the weekend, and the Saturday crowd alone set a one-day record of 14,973. Lindenwood won the final two years the event was held at the venue, beating UCLA in 2018 and Life University 21-12 in 2019.

  On the 17th of May 2017, organizers announced that Newcastle Falcons would play Saracens at Subaru Park that September, in an English Premiership Rugby fixture. The game, on the 16th of September 2017, marked only the second Premiership match held in the United States. Saracens had also played at Red Bull Arena in Harrison, New Jersey, against London Irish, on the 12th of March 2016. Saracens beat Newcastle 29-7 at Subaru Park, in front of 6,271 fans.

  Subaru Park's first rugby union international came on the 9th of November 2013, when the Maori All Blacks faced the United States. A sold-out crowd of 18,500 watched the Maori All Blacks win 29-19 in a hard-fought match.

  Rugby was far from the only import to test Subaru Park's turf. College football, lacrosse, and even competitive ultimate frisbee would all get a turn there too.

• 5. A Field For Every Sport

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  The first college football game at Subaru Park was the Battle of the Blue, on the 19th of November 2011, when Delaware beat Villanova to claim the trophy for the first time. The two schools met again on the 23rd of November 2013, and this time Villanova won 35-34.

  In 2012, Subaru Park hosted two quarterfinal matches in the NCAA Division I Men's Lacrosse Championship. The following year it staged Major League Lacrosse's championship, the Steinfeld Cup. The Chesapeake Bayhawks beat the Charlotte Hounds 10-9 in front of 3,892 fans. On the 24th and the 26th of April 2015, the venue hosted the ACC Lacrosse Championship. That same year, it also staged the NCAA Division I and Division III Women's Lacrosse Championships. Maryland beat North Carolina for the Division I title, while SUNY Cortland beat Trinity College of Hartford in Division III. Those women's championships returned to Subaru Park on the 28th and the 29th of May 2016. At the high school level, the Haverford School beat the Hun School of New Jersey in the 2015 Inter-Academic League Championship. The win capped off a perfect 23-0 season. The Premier Lacrosse League also played matches at the stadium from 2019 through 2023.

  Major League Ultimate held two of its championship games at Subaru Park, starting on the 19th of July 2014, when the DC Current beat the Vancouver Nighthawks 23-17. The championship returned on the 8th of August 2015, when the Boston Whitecaps defeated the Seattle Rainmakers 31-17.

  West Point's Army and the Naval Academy have also brought their annual men's soccer rivalry, the Army-Navy Cup, to Subaru Park. The 2012 meeting there was only the third time in the rivalry's 75-year history that the teams played at a neutral site. It was also the first regular-season neutral meeting outside the NCAA tournament. A crowd of 3,672 turned out. After Hurricane Sandy damaged Red Bull Arena, the 2012 Big East Men's Soccer Tournament moved to Subaru Park, which hosted the restructured conference's tournament again the following year. The stadium also staged a scoreless international friendly between Greece and Nigeria in 2014. It hosted the 2013 College Cup, which returned to the venue again in 2017. The opening matches of the 2017 SheBelieves Cup were also played there, with France beating England and the United States beating Germany.

  Because it can be configured as a football field, Subaru Park has also become a regular stop on the Drum Corps International Summer Competition Tour.

  None of those visiting teams and touring acts changed what the building was called. That question turned out to have a much more complicated answer.

• 6. A Home Built For Supporters

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  The stadium's original architectural drawings showed an oval bowl with a cantilevered roof covering every seating section, much like most European football grounds. After hearing from the club's own supporters, ownership group Keystone Sports & Entertainment redesigned a dedicated entrance for the Sons of Ben, honoring their loyalty. That entrance leads into a 2,000-seat section at the stadium's southeast end, known as The River End. Cantilevered roofs cover the Main and Bridge Stands, shielding fans from the weather without blocking the view from their own seats. The exterior uses brick and natural stone, echoing traditional Philadelphia architecture. Other features include thirty luxury suites, a full-service restaurant and club above the Chester End, and a built-in concert stage at The River End that has never actually been used.

  In February 2020, alongside a change in the stadium's naming sponsor, the Union unveiled a new video board above the Chester End. The 3,440 square foot screen used high dynamic range technology, the first of its kind in any MLS soccer-specific stadium. The LED ribbon boards around the field and seating bowl were upgraded at the same time. A new VIP area called the Tunnel Club also opened for the 2020 season. The plaza outside the stadium, known as Subaru Plaza, was also expanded for pregame festivities. It now includes a community garden growing fruits and vegetables for local residents.

  The company behind that new video board deal was the third to put its name on the stadium, after two very different energy companies had already had a turn.

• 7. Whose Name Is On The Building

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  On the 25th of February 2010, the Philadelphia Union announced that Allentown-based PPL Corporation had bought the stadium's naming rights for $20 million. The deal ran for 11 years. As part of it, PPL EnergyPlus supplied the stadium with sustainable energy drawn from other sources within Pennsylvania. The Panasonic Corporation, separately, provided broadcast and television production systems, large-screen LED displays, security systems, and point-of-sale systems. On the 30th of November 2015, Talen Energy took over the naming rights and energy supply. Talen had spun off from PPL as an electricity producer, while PPL kept its transmission and distribution business. On the 18th of February 2020, Subaru of America, headquartered in nearby Camden, New Jersey, became the stadium's newest naming rights holder.

  In September 2010, Mid-Atlantic Construction Magazine named the venue its Sports/Recreation Project of the Year. The publication gives that award to the region's premier construction projects. In February 2011, the Delaware County Planning Commission gave the stadium its 2010 William H. Bates Memorial Award. That honor has been presented annually since 1980 to real-estate developers who improved a Delaware County property.

  None of those honors say anything about what fans actually eat once they're through the gates, or how they get there in the first place.

• 8. Beyond The Pitch

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  Subaru Park sells the usual American stadium fare, but also traditional Philadelphia foods such as cheesesteaks, hoagies, and soft pretzels shaped like the Union's primary logo. Local companies including Turkey Hill, Herr's, and Seasons Pizza supply several of the concessions. Beer from area breweries Victory and Dogfish Head is also available.

  Like the South Philadelphia Sports Complex, Subaru Park sits near Interstate 95. It's about 1 mile from the Chester Transit Center SEPTA station, which runs shuttle service starting four hours before kickoff until the stadium empties out. Philadelphia International Airport is 5 miles away. Plans under consideration for the stadium's expansion include improving transit to the Highland Avenue station on SEPTA's Wilmington Line. Another option is building a new station closer to the gates.