BMO Stadium

Lore & Background

The Los Angeles Times reported on May 17, 2015, that the team chose the Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena site to build a 22,000-seat state-of-the-art stadium for the MLS in Exposition Park, costing $250 million. The group estimated the project would create 1,200 temporary construction jobs and 1,800 full-time jobs, generating $2.5 million in annual tax revenue. The environmental impact report, arena demolition, and stadium construction were expected to take three years and delay the team's debut to 2018. On May 6, 2016, the Los Angeles City Council approved the stadium. A groundbreaking ceremony took place on August 23, 2016. At the event, LAFC announced a 15-year, $100 million naming rights deal for the stadium with the Banc of California. Demolition of the Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena began shortly after the groundbreaking and was completed by October 2016. The first public event at the stadium was an open practice and dedication ceremony held on April 18, 2018. The club's first match was played on April 29 against Seattle Sounders FC, with the home side winning 1–0. The lone goal was scored by Laurent Ciman in stoppage time in front of a capacity crowd of 22,000. On May 26, 2020, Banc of California announced that they planned to end the naming rights deal, paying $20 million for early termination but remaining the club's banking sponsor. The Bank of Montreal was announced as the new naming rights sponsor on January 19, 2023, shortly after acquiring the California-based Bank of the West. In November 2020, it was announced that the newly formed Angel City FC of the National Women's Soccer League would play at the stadium.

In Their Own Story

The bus pulls into the Harbor Gateway lot at 6:40 p.m. and the air already smells like hot asphalt and the faint salt tang of the harbor. You walk through the turnstile, past the vendors selling red-and-gold scarves, and into the lower bowl. The seats are still warm from the afternoon sun. Someone two rows ahead is tapping a rhythm on the plastic back of the seat—tap, tap, tap-tap-tap—and you realize it's the pre-match cadence the whole section is falling into. The grass is a deep, almost black green under the floodlights, and the goal nets hang slack and white. A ball is rolled out. The sound hits you in the chest before your brain registers it: twenty-two thousand people breathing out at once, then the first wave of the chant rolling from the south end, bouncing off the far stand, and coming back to you. You are not watching a game. You are inside it, twelve yards from the touchline, and the roof is the open, starless Southern California sky.

Reader's Guide

The seating capacity of the stadium is 22,000. The stadium's seating is at 34 degrees, which makes it among the steepest in MLS. The closest seats are 12 feet from the field and all seats are within 135 feet of the field. It includes 30,000 square feet of walkways and plazas open to the public. The stadium also features press box suites with a water fountain. The ground's North End is home to the '3252' supporters group, so named for the number of seats in the safe standing section. It was built at an incline of 34 degrees and features angled handrails that are designed to resemble those used on rollercoasters. The central section of the stand has a removable stage for use during concerts and other events outside of sports. On top of the North End is a supporter-designed bar which can only be accessed from 3252 section. A northeast slice of the stadium was designed to be open to capture the downtown Los Angeles skyline and the San Gabriel Mountains. Members of the media in the angled press box have one of the best vantage points to peer through the 'keyhole'. The roof is covered with 190,000 square feet of ETFE film. The field is 100,000 square feet of improved bermuda grass. Five percent of the stadium's parking spaces have electric vehicle charging stations and 20% electric vehicle ready infrastructure. The stadium has 440 planned parking spaces for bicycles and a bike path to the stadium as part of the My Figueroa Project. The stadium is a LEED Silver certified building.

Did You Know?

• The stadium was the first open-air stadium built in Los Angeles since Dodger Stadium in 1962.
• The supporters' section is called the '3252' after the number of seats in the safe standing section.
• The stadium hosted the 2021 MLS All-Star Game on August 25, 2021.
• The stadium will host flag football and lacrosse events during the 2028 Summer Olympics.
• The naming rights changed from Banc of California to BMO Bank in 2023.