The first section of seats has gone in (visible in the lower left corner of the first picture), which consists of just 17 rows in the lower tier (which will hold 11,000 of the 25,000 seats in the stadium). Spectators will get the first-class, up-close-and-personal view of the game that's typical in Europe---just 21 feet from the first row to the sideline. Adding to the European experience, EVERY seat will be covered.
Just in case you somehow miss anything going on on the field (though that's highly unlikely in this place), two large video boards will hang from the ends of the arena (the brackets can be seen in the next two pictures). The playing surface will be a full 120x75yd. Kentucky Bluegrass pitch, which also features subterranean drainage and heating systems, helping to keep the field in perfect condition year-round.
There will also be wrap-around LED signage along the base of the upper tier (you can see the brackets in this final picture). The entirely aluminum construction of the upper tier means it will be LOUD, while the idea of "nosebleed" seats just doesn't exist, as the upper tier contains a maximum of 23 rows. For those of you adding it up, that's a maximum of just 40 rows between a seat and the field---the same as the lower tier of the Red Bulls current home, Giants Stadium.
Follow the progress of Red Bull Arena at redbullarena.us, which includes both interior and exterior LIVE webcams.
On a final Red Bulls note, this weekend's 1-0 loss to San Jose is actually a plus for the team and the fans. The loss clinches the worst record in the league for New York, which carries with it the 2nd pick in each round of January's draft. With a new coach, and hopefully new leadership in the front office, in place, the opportunity to rebuild a younger, stronger squad is there. An advantage to a younger squad that hasn't been discussed...younger players carry smaller salaries, which opens more cap space. The Red Bulls still hold a 2nd Designated Player slot, which will likely cost a full $400k on the salary cap---but could be well worth it.
As the MLS season comes to a close, check back for the latest in the MLS playoff races and playoff previews.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
US coach Bob Bradley has his roster together for the upcoming qualifiers at Honduras (Saturday) and vs. Costa Rica (next Weds.)...
GOALKEEPERS: Brad Guzan (Aston Villa, England), Tim Howard (Everton, England)
DEFENDERS: Carlos Bocanegra (Rennes, France), Jonathan Bornstein (Chivas USA), Steve Cherundolo (Hannover, Germany), Jimmy Conrad (Kansas City Wizards), Clarence Goodson (IK Start, Norway), Oguchi Onyewu (AC Milan, Italy), Jonathan Spector (West Ham, England)
MIDFIELDERS: Michael Bradley (Borussia Mönchengladbach, Germany), Ricardo Clark (Houston Dynamo), Clint Dempsey (Fulham, England), Benny Feilhaber (AGF Aarhus, Sweden), Stuart Holden (Houston Dynamo), Robbie Rogers (Columbus Crew), José Francisco Torres (Pachuca, Mexico)
FORWARDS: Jozy Altidore (Hull City, England), Conor Casey (Colorado Rapids), Brian Ching (Houston Dynamo), Kenny Cooper (1860 Munich, Germany), Charlie Davies (FC Sochaux, France), Landon Donovan (Los Angeles Galaxy)
There are no real surprises in the roster---DaMarcus Beasley hasn't seen any time at Rangers, where Maurice Edu continues to recover from a knee injury, so their absence doesn't come as a huge surprise. An important loss for the US, though, is Clint Dempsey, who will miss the Honduras match (despite being named to the roster) with a sprained shoulder that he picked up over the weekend.
One win from these final two matches will guarantee the US' place in South Africa, though the Honduras result will be meaningless if the US gets at least a tie vs. Costa Rica. The real goal, however, should be winning both matches and, therefore, finishing at the top of the final hexagonal---it'll help next summer to be drawn as the top-ranked team in CONCACAF, hopefully avoiding a "Group of Death" in the group stage.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
In other qualifying news...this weekend starts the last push for South Africa. By next Wednesday, teams with automatic berths will have punched their tickets, while all of the countries facing November playoffs (including 8 UEFA teams (the top 8 2nd-place finishers in the European groups), 4th-place CONCACAF vs 5th-place CONEMBOL (South America), and New Zealand vs. Bahrain) will be locked in as well. If you aren't fortunate enough to be on those lists, your hopes to play in June are limited to friendlies to warm up the teams headed to South Africa.
In Africa, most every group is still up for grabs with Cameroon (by 1pt. over Gabon), Tunisia (by 2 over Nigeria), Algeria (3pt lead on Egypt), and Ivory Coast (6pt lead on Burkina Faso) leading their groups, while Ghana is the only team in Africa to already qualify.
Brazil and Paraguay are in from South America, but the other 2 spots and the playoff spot are still up for grabs, and favorites Argentina are in serious danger of not qualifying. Currently in the 5th-place playoff spot with 22 points, Diego Maradona's men will host last-place Peru before travelling to Uruguay in their quest to catch 3rd-place Chile (27pts) and 4th-place Ecuador (23pts). However, 6th-place Uruguay and 7th-place Venezuela (21pts each) are right on their heels, and 8th-place Columbia (20pts) isn't far behind.
Europe still has a host of open spots---only the Netherlands, Spain and England have clinched qualification---and many of the 9 groups will come down to the last day (all 9 group winners gain automatic qualification, while the top 8 second-place teams will be drawn into 2-leg November playoffs for the remaining spots). Perennial favorite France seems headed for a playoff spot, while other favorites, including Portugal, the Czech Republic, Poland and Turkey are currently on the outside and face an uphill battle just to make the playoffs.
Should be a GREAT week of futbol.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Portsmouth is in real trouble, and it appears that the Saudi oil-rich Al-Faraj brothers are set to step in and rescue the club---the second takeover of the club in the past 42 days. This comes after Sulaiman Al-Fahim, who purchased the club just a month and a half ago from Sacha Gaydamack, was unable to raise the approx. 15 million Pounds that he promised would be available by October 15th. The result? Players weren't paid this week, teams are awaiting transfer fees, and debts are ballooning. Without intervention, the club wouldn't be facing administration (an English form of bankruptcy), but complete extinction. Enter the Al-Faraj brothers, brought in by club chairman Peter Storrie as backers for his bid to buy the team when Al-Fahim's bid was slowed by concerns over his ability to finance the purchase, who promised (and have now provided) a bridging loan to keep the team afloat. As soon as all due diligence has passed, the brothers will purchase 90% of the team from Al-Fahim, and assume control over the club. Best of luck, Portsmouth!
A quick look at the Premiership table...
Chelsea's win over Liverpool this weekend proves that the Big 4 may be more of a Big 5 or Big 6 with the arrival of Tottenham and Manchester City. The loss sends the Reds crashing---not just out of the top 4, but down to 6th. The Blues, meanwhile, vault over Manchester United with the win, while 3rd-place Tottenham, 4th Manchester City, and 5th Arsenal round out the big clubs.
Just a couple weeks ago, Everton was struggling, sitting at the bottom of the table...well, that's changed in a hurry as this week they climb to the 10th spot, officially entering the top half for the first time this season.
Meanwhile, Portsmouth (3 points) and West Ham (5 pts) continue to struggle at the bottom of the table, with Hull (7pts) sitting in 18th on goal differential, though 1 win can take them as high as 11th.
With the break for the final round of World Cup qualifiers (aside from November's playoffs) coming this weekend, the table will sit unchanged until play resumes on the 17th.
No comments:
Post a Comment