Heart Health Park is a sports venue located on the grounds of Cal Expo in Sacramento, California, United States. The soccer-specific stadium has a capacity of 11,569 and includes a full-sized (120 x 80 yard) soccer field. Heart Health Park is the current home of Sacramento Republic FC soccer team and former home of PRO Rugby team, Sacramento Express.
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| Former names |
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| Address | 1600 Exposition Blvd Sacramento, California, United States 95815-5104 |
| Location | Cal Expo |
| Coordinates | 38°35′28″N 121°26′17″W / 38.59111°N 121.43806°W |
| Owner | Cal Expo |
| Operator | Spectra |
| Capacity | 11,569 |
| Field size | 116 x 74 yards (106 x 68 meters) |
| Construction | |
| Broke ground | March 2014 |
| Opened | June 20, 2014 |
| Construction cost | $3 million ($3.86 million in 2023 dollars[1]) |
| Tenants | |
| Sacramento Republic FC (USLC) (2014–present) Sacramento Express (PRO Rugby) (2016) | |
The field is located on the former site of the Cal Expo Amphitheatre,[2] and is bordered on the west and south by the Cal Expo monorail, and on the east by Raging Waters water park.
History
editConstruction of the stadium began in March 2014, following approval by the Cal Expo Board of Directors. Funding for the stadium came from an agreement between Ovations Food Services, Cal Expo, and the Republic FC. Original schedules put the grand opening for the Republic FC's June 7 match against Arizona United, but that date was postponed two weeks, with the grand opening falling instead on June 20, when the Republic FC played the reserve team of the Colorado Rapids in a match that ended in a victory for the Republic. [3]
The name of the stadium was originally Cal Expo Multi-Use Sports Field Facility, but on April 21, 2014, Republic FC President Warren Smith announced a multi-year deal with Bonney Plumbing, Heating, Air and Rooter Service for the naming rights of the stadium and the name was changed to Bonney Field.[4]
On March 9, 2017, Republic FC announced that the facility would be renamed Papa Murphy's Park, in a multi-year naming rights agreement with Papa Murphy's.[5]
On May 5, 2021, the Sacramento Republic FC and Western Health Advantage agreed to a new naming rights deal that would change the name of the stadium to Heart Health Park.
Structure
editHeart Health Park is open-ended, with the south endline lacking a grandstand but hosting the VIP section.[6] The north endline is home to the Tower Bridge Battalion, the SRFC supporters group.[7] The team benches and premium seating are located along the west sideline.[6]
Soccer
editHeart Health Park is the home stadium for the Sacramento Republic FC soccer team of the USL.[8] The Republic hosted its first match at Heart Health Park on June 20, 2014.[8] In addition to USL Pro matches, Heart Health Park also hosted Republic friendly matches against visiting foreign teams, such as Mexican Premier Division team Club Atlas, Scottish Premiership team Rangers F.C., and Premier League team West Bromwich Albion F.C.[9]
Rugby Union
editHeart Health Park was the home of the Sacramento Express that played in the PRO Rugby competition.[10]
Heart Health Park has hosted several international rugby matches:[11]
| Date | Home | Result | Away | Competition | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| June 21, 2014 |  United States |
38–35 |  Canada |
Pacific Nations Cup | 7,804 |
| July 24, 2015 |  Fiji |
30–30 |  Samoa |
Pacific Nations Cup | 5,500 |
| United States |
23–18 |  Japan |
8,300[12] | ||
| June 25, 2016 | United States |
25–0 |  Russia |
friendly | N/A |
| February 8, 2018 | United States |
29–10 | Canada |
Americas Rugby Championship | 2,500 |
Expansion
editAfter a successful inaugural season for the Republic FC, which consisted of 16 sell-outs in 17 matches and a USL Pro championship at Heart Health Park, Smith indicated plans to expand the stadium by 2,000 to 3,000 seats for the 2015 USL Pro season.[13] The expansion project, which forced a reschedule of the 2015 home opener, added approximately 1,300 sideline seats, 2,500 endline seats, and an expanded market area.[7]
References
edit- ^ 1634–1699: McCusker, J. J. (1997). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States: Addenda et Corrigenda (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1700–1799: McCusker, J. J. (1992). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1800–present: Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. "Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–". Retrieved February 29, 2024.
- ^ Spedden, Zach (August 1, 2016). "Bonney Field Could Become Music Venue". Soccer Stadium Digest. August Publications. Retrieved July 19, 2018.
- ^ "Match Recap: Sacramento Republic FC 4, Colorado Rapids Reserves 3". Sacramento Republic FC. Retrieved 2024-08-27.
- ^ "First home match at Bonney Field moved to June 20"
- ^ "Republic Fc Announces Facility Naming Rights Partnership with Papa Murphy's for Their Facility and Home Pitch on the Grounds of Cal Expo". Archived from the original on 2017-03-12. Retrieved 2017-03-09.
- ^ a b "Bonney Field Seating Map", Bonney Field.
- ^ a b "Crews Race to Finish Bonney Field Expansion", KCRA, April 8, 2015.
- ^ a b "Bonney Field" Archived 2016-10-16 at the Wayback Machine, Sacramento Republic FC.
- ^ "Republic FC will play Liga MX team at Bonney Field on July 6", Sacramento Bee, June 11, 2014.
- ^ "It's official: Sacramento will get team in nation's first pro rugby league", Sacramento Business Journal, November 18, 2015.
- ^ "San Jose, Sacramento for PNC Home Matches", Rugby Today, February 19, 2015.
- ^ "PACIFIC NATIONS CUP , Pool B – Sacramento, 24 July 2015, 20:00 local, 03:00 GMT +1d". espnscrum. Retrieved 2 May 2021.
- ^ "Republic FC wins first USL Pro championship, will expand stadium", Sports Illustrated, October 1, 2014.