Atlanta Silverbacks Park

Atlanta Silverbacks Park is a soccer complex near Atlanta. It was the home venue of the Atlanta Silverbacks club, which included the Silverbacks North American Soccer League team and the Atlanta Silverbacks Women of the W-League; it is also the home of the Atlanta Renegades of USA Rugby and the Atlanta Rhinos of USA Rugby League. The park includes a 5,000-seat soccer-specific stadium, which opened in 2006 and is designed for future expansion.

The venue was the site of Soccer Bowl 2013.

History

The complex was planned and constructed by the owners of the Atlanta Silverbacks soccer club as a home for their various affiliated teams. It was designed to be built in several phases; the first phase commenced in 2004 with the creation of a grass field and two artificial turf fields. In 2006 the 5,000-seat soccer-specific stadium, originally known as the RE/MAX Greater Atlanta Stadium, was built over the grass pitch to serve as the home field for the Silverbacks men's upper-division team and the Atlanta Silverbacks Women.^[3][4][5][6]

In 2007, Reggie Bush and David Beckham filmed a commercial for Adidas at the park in which they try to teach each other to play soccer and American football, respectively.^[7][8] Construction continued in 2011 as the fourth international soccer-sized practice field, called "Renegade Field", was opened. The Silverbacks hosted the North American Soccer League Soccer Bowl 2013 on November 9, 2013, drawing 7,211 fans to the match.

Structure and facilities

Silverbacks Park currently features four full-sized soccer fields. The main field is at the stadium, which currently has a capacity of 5,000.^[9] The park was designed to be built in four phases, the first three of which are complete. The planned fourth phase is intended to increase the main stadium size to 15,000-20,000 seats and expand the amount of fields and facilities, adding a club house, pool, and fitness center.^{[10][11][12][13]}

Uses

Soccer

The Atlanta Silverbacks club have been using the park since 2004 as their training facility. In 2007, the Silverbacks men's first team and the Atlanta Silverbacks Women of the W-League moved their home games to the main field.^[6] The men's team played from 2007 to 2009 in the United Soccer Leagues before withdrawing. They returned in 2011 in the North American Soccer League (NASL).^[14][15] The Atlanta Silverbacks Reserves played from 2008-2012, and various youth soccer programs also play at the park.^[16][17]

In 2013, the men's team won the NASL Spring Championship,^[18] earning them the right to host Soccer Bowl 2013 on November 9. The Silverbacks lost 1-0 to the Fall Championship winners, the New York Cosmos.

In 2015, the NASL took over operations of the men's Silverbacks. On January 11, 2016, the NASL announced that they were unable to find suitable local ownership for the team and ceased operations for the 2016 season.^[19] The women's team also ceased operations when the W-League folded after the 2015 season and the team has not announced any intent to join another league.

Rugby

The Atlanta Rhinos Rugby League team will play their 2014 USA Rugby League fixtures at the Atlanta Silverbacks Park.

The Atlanta Renegades Rugby Football Club, a Rugby Union team, of USA Rugby are in partnership with the Atlanta Silverbacks. They use the complex for all their training and home games. The team mainly play at "Renegade Field.".

Geography

The stadium and park is located off Northcrest Road between Interstate 85 and Chamblee-Tucker Road. The official address is Atlanta Silverbacks Way, Atlanta, GA 30340, although some maps use the former name of Northcrest Way.

References

External links

• Atlanta Silverbacks Park (official website)
• Article on the project
• Atlanta Renegades Rugby Club Official Website