There is work happening behind the scenes in the New England Revolution’s quest for a soccer stadium in downtown Boston.
A report this week in the Boston Globe indicated that Revolution owners representatives met with city officials in July and investment banking firm Goldman Sachs has been brought in to work on financing aspects.
During a Facebook Q&A at 2015 AT&T MLS All-Star Week at the end of July, MLS commissioner Don Garber indicated that “the Kraft family is working hard to get a stadium built in downtown Boston. I’ve just seen the newest renditions. We are very focused on seeing that project through."
Both the city and the Revs are not saying much about the discussions involving both sides, telling the Boston Globe that talks are “preliminary.”
In November 2014, a member of the Kraft family hinted at the work happening outside the public limelight.
“It’s something we’ve been working on for a while,” Jonathan Kraft told a local radio station at the time, “and we’ve come very close with a couple of situations over the past half dozen years and they didn’t happen. Because of that we’re just going to stay quiet until we have something."
The Revolution played at the old Foxborough Stadium beginning in 1996 and in 2002 moved to the new Gillette Stadium built on the same site in Foxborough.
Since 2003 there have been 14 MLS clubs that have christened new or renovated soccer stadiums in the USA and Canada with the most recent being brand new Avaya Stadium in San Jose, which opened its doors in March of this year.
D.C. United and Orlando City have agreements in place for new stadiums in their respective cities, while New York City FC continue to work with local officials on a stadium plan of their own.
