Virginia Beach Sportsplex
Encyclopedia
Virginia Beach Sportsplex is a sports complex in Virginia Beach, Virginia
. The name is most commonly attached to the main stadium
within the complex, which is primarily used for soccer
. The main stadium opened in 1999 and holds 10,000 people. As of now, it holds 6,000 people, on two decks of seating. (3,600 on bottom deck, 2,400 on top deck) It was the first soccer-specific stadium
built from the ground up in the United States. It is named after Harold Heischober, former mayor and city councilman of Virginia Beach. The Sportsplex is located across the street from the Princess Anne Athletic Complex and near the Virginia Beach Amphitheater.
The main stadium was the home field of the Hampton Roads Piranhas
, a women's team in the W-League
, which became the de facto top women's league in the country after the demise of the Women's United Soccer Association
. It was originally their home from 1999 to 2002. In 2003 the Piranhas moved their home games to a smaller stadium on the campus of Virginia Wesleyan College
near the city's border with Norfolk
. It was also the home field for the Virginia Beach Mariners (USL-I) and the Virginia Beach Submariners (PDL). In 2007, the franchise was terminated, and as a result the Piranhas acquired the Submariners and renamed them as the Piranhas, a reflection of their women's team. Both teams will play at the Virginia Beach Sportsplex for the 2010 season of the W-League and the Premier Development League. The stadium is now the home office for the Virginia Rush Organization as well as the home venue for its U16 and U18 US Soccer Development Academy teams. It is also home to the Norfolk Blues rugby team and Southern Virginian Trojans semi-pro football team.
In 2009 the city of Virginia Beach turned over the Sportsplex to a private firm, Hometown Sports Management, who changed the soccer-only Bermuda grass field over to a more durable multi-sport friendly turf and plans to pave the parking lot, build a fieldhouse, as well as carry out other upgrades.
The Sportsplex also contains a turf practice field, and is the central training site for the U.S. Women's National Team field hockey
team which has two fields and its own office building.
In the fall, the stadium also hosts high school football
playoff
games.
) to expand the stadium to between 14,000 and 17,000 seats depending on demand. The Destroyers first game drew almost 13,000 fans to see a 34-17 Virginia win.
The Destroyers set an attendance record for the Sportsplex, when 14,172 fans overflowed the stadium for the 2011 UFL Championship Game
, requiring the stadium to accommodate for standing room.
es:Virginia Beach Sportsplex
Category:Sports venues in Hampton Roads
Category:United Football League (2009) venues
Category:Soccer venues in Virginia
Category:Sports in Virginia Beach, Virginia
Category:Visitor attractions in Virginia Beach, Virginia
Category:Buildings and structures in Virginia Beach, Virginia
Category:Virginia Destroyers stadiums
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Virginia Beach, Virginia
Virginia Beach is an independent city located in the Hampton Roads metropolitan area of Virginia, on the Atlantic Ocean at the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay...
. The name is most commonly attached to the main stadium
Stadium
A modern stadium is a place or venue for outdoor sports, concerts, or other events and consists of a field or stage either partly or completely surrounded by a structure designed to allow spectators to stand or sit and view the event.)Pausanias noted that for about half a century the only event...
within the complex, which is primarily used for soccer
Football (soccer)
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...
. The main stadium opened in 1999 and holds 10,000 people. As of now, it holds 6,000 people, on two decks of seating. (3,600 on bottom deck, 2,400 on top deck) It was the first soccer-specific stadium
Soccer-specific stadium
Soccer-specific stadium is a term used mainly in the United States, Canada, Australia and South Korea coined by Lamar Hunt, to refer to a sports stadium either purpose built or fundamentally redesigned for soccer and whose primary function is to host soccer matches, as opposed to a multipurpose...
built from the ground up in the United States. It is named after Harold Heischober, former mayor and city councilman of Virginia Beach. The Sportsplex is located across the street from the Princess Anne Athletic Complex and near the Virginia Beach Amphitheater.
The main stadium was the home field of the Hampton Roads Piranhas
Hampton Roads Piranhas
Hampton Roads Piranhas is an American women’s soccer team, founded in 1995. The team is a member of the United Soccer Leagues W-League, the second tier of women’s soccer in the United States and Canada...
, a women's team in the W-League
W-League
The USL W-League is a national women's soccer league in the United States on the 2nd level of women's soccer in the United States soccer pyramid, alongside the Women's Premier Soccer League and below Women's Professional Soccer....
, which became the de facto top women's league in the country after the demise of the Women's United Soccer Association
Women's United Soccer Association
The Women's United Soccer Association, often abbreviated to the WUSA, was the world's first women's soccer league in which all the players were paid as professionals. Founded in February 2000, the league began its first season in April 2001 with eight teams in the United States...
. It was originally their home from 1999 to 2002. In 2003 the Piranhas moved their home games to a smaller stadium on the campus of Virginia Wesleyan College
Virginia Wesleyan College
Virginia Wesleyan College is a small Methodist liberal arts college on the border of Virginia Beach and Norfolk, Virginia offering a Bachelor of Arts in many disciplines and has added Bachelor of Science programs as well...
near the city's border with Norfolk
Norfolk, Virginia
Norfolk is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. With a population of 242,803 as of the 2010 Census, it is Virginia's second-largest city behind neighboring Virginia Beach....
. It was also the home field for the Virginia Beach Mariners (USL-I) and the Virginia Beach Submariners (PDL). In 2007, the franchise was terminated, and as a result the Piranhas acquired the Submariners and renamed them as the Piranhas, a reflection of their women's team. Both teams will play at the Virginia Beach Sportsplex for the 2010 season of the W-League and the Premier Development League. The stadium is now the home office for the Virginia Rush Organization as well as the home venue for its U16 and U18 US Soccer Development Academy teams. It is also home to the Norfolk Blues rugby team and Southern Virginian Trojans semi-pro football team.
In 2009 the city of Virginia Beach turned over the Sportsplex to a private firm, Hometown Sports Management, who changed the soccer-only Bermuda grass field over to a more durable multi-sport friendly turf and plans to pave the parking lot, build a fieldhouse, as well as carry out other upgrades.
The Sportsplex also contains a turf practice field, and is the central training site for the U.S. Women's National Team field hockey
Field hockey
Field Hockey, or Hockey, is a team sport in which a team of players attempts to score goals by hitting, pushing or flicking a ball into an opposing team's goal using sticks...
team which has two fields and its own office building.
In the fall, the stadium also hosts high school football
High school football
High school football, in North America, refers to the game of football as it is played in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular interscholastic sports in both of these nations....
playoff
Playoff
The playoffs, postseason, or finals of a sports league are a game or series of games played after the regular season by the top competitors, usually but not always with a single-elimination system, to determine the league champion or a similar accolade.In the U.S...
games.
Virginia Destroyers
On November 10, 2010, the Virginia Destroyers of the United Football League announced their home games would be played at the Sportsplex starting in Fall 2011. The UFL added temporary bleacher seating (recycled from the 2011 U.S. Open golf tournament2011 U.S. Open (golf)
The 2011 United States Open Championship, the 111th U.S. Open, was played June 16–19 at Congressional Country Club in Bethesda, Maryland. It was won by Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland, who set 11 U.S. Open records on the weekend, including the lowest total 72-hole score and the lowest total under...
) to expand the stadium to between 14,000 and 17,000 seats depending on demand. The Destroyers first game drew almost 13,000 fans to see a 34-17 Virginia win.
The Destroyers set an attendance record for the Sportsplex, when 14,172 fans overflowed the stadium for the 2011 UFL Championship Game
2011 UFL Championship Game
The 2011 UFL Championship Game was the third championship game of the United Football League and took place on October 21, 2011, the concluding weekend of the league's truncated third season...
, requiring the stadium to accommodate for standing room.
External links
ttp://hamptonroads.com/node/255721}}es:Virginia Beach Sportsplex
Category:Sports venues in Hampton Roads
Category:United Football League (2009) venues
Category:Soccer venues in Virginia
Category:Sports in Virginia Beach, Virginia
Category:Visitor attractions in Virginia Beach, Virginia
Category:Buildings and structures in Virginia Beach, Virginia
Category:Virginia Destroyers stadiums
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