Papa Murphy's Park

Papa Murphy's Park (formerly known as Bonney Field) is a sports venue located on the grounds of Cal Expo in Sacramento, California. The soccer-specific stadium has a capacity of 11,569 and includes a full-sized (120 x 80 yard) soccer field. Papa Murphy's Park is the current home of Sacramento Republic FC soccer team and former home of PRO Rugby team, Sacramento Express.

Papa Murphy's Park
Former names
  • Cal Expo Multi-Use Sports Field Facility (planning/construction)
  • Bonney Field (2014–17)
Address1600 Exposition Blvd
Sacramento, CA 95815-5104
LocationCal Expo
OwnerCal Expo
OperatorSpectra
Capacity11,569
Field size116 x 74 yards
Construction
Broke groundMarch 2014
OpenedJune 20, 2014
Construction cost$3 million
($3.24 million in 2019 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

Construction 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.

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.[3]

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.[4]

Structure

Papa Murphy's Park is open-ended, with the south endline lacking a grandstand but hosting the VIP section.[5] The north endline is home to the Tower Bridge Battalion, the SRFC supporters group.[6] The team benches and premium seating are located along the west sideline.[5]

Soccer

Papa Murphy's Park is the home stadium for the Sacramento Republic FC soccer team of the USL.[7] The Republic hosted its first match at Papa Murphy's Park on June 20, 2014.[7] In addition to USL Pro matches, Papa Murphy's 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..[8]

Rugby

Papa Murphy's Park was the home of the Sacramento Express that played in the PRO Rugby competition.[9]

Papa Murphy's Park has hosted several international rugby matches:[10]

Date Team #1 Result Team #2 Competition Attendance
June 21, 2014 United States38–35 CanadaPacific Nations Cup7,804
July 24, 2015 Fiji30–30 SamoaPacific Nations Cup5,500
 United States23–18 Japan11,000
June 25, 2016 United States25–0 RussiafriendlyN/A
February 8, 2018 United States29–10 CanadaAmericas Rugby Championship2,500

Expansion

After a successful inaugural season for the Republic FC, which consisted of 16 sell-outs in 17 matches and a USL Pro championship at Papa Murphy's Park, Smith indicated plans to expand the stadium by 2,000 to 3,000 seats for the 2015 USL Pro season.[11] 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.[6]

References
  1. Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. "Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–". Retrieved January 1, 2020.
  2. Spedden, Zach (August 1, 2016). "Bonney Field Could Become Music Venue". Soccer Stadium Digest. August Publications. Retrieved July 19, 2018.
  3. "First home match at Bonney Field moved to June 20"
  5. "Bonney Field Seating Map", Bonney Field.
  6. "Crews Race to Finish Bonney Field Expansion", KCRA, April 8, 2015.
  7. "Bonney Field" Archived 2016-10-16 at the Wayback Machine, Sacramento Republic FC.
  8. "Republic FC will play Liga MX team at Bonney Field on July 6", Sacramento Bee, June 11, 2014.
  9. "It's official: Sacramento will get team in nation's first pro rugby league", Sacramento Business Journal, November 18, 2015.
  10. "San Jose, Sacramento for PNC Home Matches", Rugby Today, February 19, 2015.
  11. "Republic FC wins first USL Pro championship, will expand stadium", Sports Illustrated, October 1, 2014.
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