A new stadium will be built in Barrie.
Building taxpayers’ funded soccer stadiums for either Major League Soccer’s lowest rung tier or the United Soccer League’s lowest rung tier is all the rage now. The latest city that plans to use taxpayers’ money to help build a stadium is Barrie, Ontario, Canada, a town of around 179,000 people that is about 50 miles north of Toronto. The minor league soccer team will be coming out of Toronto as Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment is moving its MLS NEXT Pro Toronto FC II franchise to a 3,500-seat facility in Barrie in 2028. According to stadium backers, the venue is “designed to become one of the most iconic small soccer stadiums in North America”.
Barrie Mayor Alex Nuttall thinks the stadium will be an economic driver. If it is, it will not be because the Barrie soccer franchise is going to pay a living wage as minor league sports businesses do not pay any large salaries, it is about how many events will be held in the venue. The weekly paycheck for low level players is around minimum wage levels. Nuttall said the City of Barrie will be picking up $26 million Canadian or about $18.6 million US of the estimated $130 million Canadian or around $92.6 million US cost of the stadium. Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment and the Barrie Stadium Group will pick up the rest. The city of Barrie has purchased the land for the stadium. Nuttall, sounding like every other politician who throws public money into a stadium project, claimed that Tourism Barrie estimated the economic impact of the club will be around $57 million Canadian or $40.6 million US and that could rise up to $64 million Canadian or $45.6 million US because the small stadium will host concerts. Those figures may not be reliable but Barrie is getting a stadium.
Evan Weiner’s books are available at iTunes – https://books.apple.
https://evanweiner1.substack.com
Evan can be reached at evan_weiner@hotmail.com
