Kansas pronounces plans for over $300M in soccer upgrades

The College of Kansas introduced plans Friday for long-awaited renovations to Memorial Stadium, the Anderson Household Soccer Complicated and different amenities together with potential convention, leisure and retail areas.

The varsity has lengthy studied methods to renovate the growing older stadium, one of many oldest soccer venues in main faculty soccer, however assist has been tepid because the Jayhawks struggled by 12 months after 12 months of shedding seasons. The few upgrades which have taken place have been largely beauty, leaving the previous concrete bowl nearly fully untouched.

However buoyed by a 5-0 begin to the season, which has energized followers of the No. 19 Jayhawks, the varsity determined it was time to make public the behind-the-scenes discussions which have been going down for the previous a number of months.

“This challenge is unmatched in its imaginative and prescient to profit a broad vary of KU constituents whereas signaling a brand new period for Kansas soccer,” Jayhawks athletic director Travis Goff mentioned. “As soon as full, this challenge will guarantee our soccer program has the amenities it must compete on the highest stage and supply the absolute best game-day expertise for student-athletes and followers. Furthermore, we’re thrilled this challenge goes past soccer to profit the whole college and the area.”

The Jayhawks face No. 17 TCU on Saturday in a showdown of unbeatens. It’s the third consecutive sellout for the varsity, and ESPN has introduced its common Faculty GameDay program to campus for the primary time.

The challenge comes throughout a transformative period in faculty sports activities, during which the attraction of colleges amid convention realignment — even at Kansas, the defending males’s basketball nationwide champion — has been dictated nearly fully by soccer.

Kansas has chosen HNTB because the lead architect for its challenge. It is going to start early subsequent 12 months with renovations to the soccer complicated which are designed to enhance the student-athlete expertise, together with interesting to potential recruits, and embrace groundwork for the larger renovation to the stadium.

The challenge, which is predicted to value greater than $300 million, will probably be funded primarily by personal donations, financial growth funds, premium seating gross sales and future growth alternatives on website.

“The intersection close to eleventh and Mississippi streets is a main campus entrance for potential college students, alumni and friends,” Kansas Chancellor Douglas Girod mentioned. “For these causes, it is the perfect location to develop a brand new gateway with multi-use amenities to higher serve these audiences, generate income for tutorial programming, drive financial development within the area, and reimagine our soccer amenities.”

The renovations to Memorial Stadium are prone to entice essentially the most consideration. The varsity is promising improved sight strains and seating experiences within the decrease bowl, the place followers are removed from the sector due to the existence of the since-removed athletics observe, together with improved concourses, premium seating and different facilities.

Actual renderings of the stadium will probably be revealed later, as soon as the varsity and accomplice Elevate Sports activities Ventures conduct fan focus teams and solicit different suggestions from influential donors on what they envision in a soccer facility.

“Now greater than ever, faculty athletics — and definitely sustained success within the sport of soccer — are essential to the well being and vibrancy of our complete college neighborhood,” Goff mentioned. “There may be great pleasure for this challenge amongst donors and companions who consider in KU’s mission, and in partnership with KU Endowment, we’ll be reaching out in earnest to our benefactors and supporters to make sure this bold imaginative and prescient turns into actuality.”