Some views of D.C. United's Audi Field in Washington during the Major League Soccer team's first game there Saturday. (Tim Newcomb)
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The gates opened 13 minutes late, but that didn’t stop 20,504 D.C. United fans from filling Audi Field in Washington for the first time to witness its first game Saturday.
A technical glitch kept fans from getting inside precisely at 6 p.m. — poor Wi-Fi and cell phone coverage persisted throughout the opening, making mobile ticketing a difficult proposition for some —but fans soon streamed into the stadium.
“It is great to see people in here and stop looking at this on paper,” said Populous architect Todd Spangler, who has been working on the $400 million project since planning began in 2013. “I hope people like it and enjoy the experience.”
The stadium is situated on a 10-acre site, the smallest for a venue in Major League Soccer, that posed a unique challenge for Populous: an easement across the east side that required a unique perspective on merging back of house with concourse and seating rakes. With no less than eight major underground utilities, designers had to keep the easement clear — turning it into a ground-level concourse that doubles as back-of-house storage — and elevating the seating bowl above to meet height requirements. The result was a steep 30-degree seating rake across three levels of seating on the east side. The smaller west side rises at a 35-degree angle, one of the steepest in MLS.
One calling card of Audi Field is the 550 field-level seats, including field suites on the west side within eight feet of the sideline. The club seating on the east is within 12 feet. During the inaugural game, fans enjoyed the proximity, with balls routinely flying into the hands of spectators and players even hitting the sideline wall in front of fans.
Spangler says the entry sequence was an important part of the plan. With roughly 80 percent of fans entering at Gate A on the northeast corner of the site, Populous designed a plaza that gave fans a view of the pitch from outside the gate. Once they are in the plaza, a circulation tower sends fans to lower-level clubs, a major all-inclusive club section and upper-level seating. As fans walk up the staircase they get views of the nearby neighborhood and the Capitol, among other downtown sites.
Easily the most popular part of opening night, however, was the stand-alone Heineken Club building on the north end of the site. Just six inches from the supporters section on the north, the building featured a club on the bottom level that served the east side field-level seats and an all-inclusive general admission deck on the top floor.
“Anyone can come up here,” Spangler said as fans streamed to the location to grab a table or a bar seat and take in views of downtown and the game. Visitors flooded the deck area from the moment gates opened until after the final whistle.
Crews worked on finishing the building right up to opening day. Along with the reception issues, a railing fell before the game, injuring the team’s sideline reporter, who reportedly was treated at the site.
During the game the crowd sometimes struggled to supply energy for the atmosphere, despite a full supporters’ section, perhaps because of a fracture among supporters’ groups that spilled into opening night. D.C. United, long a mixture of independent supporters’ groups, changed tunes for Audi Field, selecting one group to officially recognize but upsetting several others.
There was a more palpable excitement ahead of the game, as fans explored the new venue with 360-degree circulation at field level. Many looked to the south end, where the players entered the field from an underground tunnel and staircase. The unique entry, necessitated by the easement on the east and city streets on the west, allowed Spangler to keep the south end open and tuck away the player space.
“We worked hard to squeeze a lot in,” he said. The stadium has been designated LEED Gold on the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design rating system.
The opening-night event included plenty of food and drink, whether for the 1,500 club seats, the 31 suites or the general population. Levy has the Audi Field contract, and the venue’s executive chef teamed with famed chef Jose Andres for everything from a smoked burger to a crab pretzel and arepas to pupusas. Concessions were largely at the field level, although stands in the upper concourse also offered fare. Both the District Dog and Upper 90 Pizza stands will feature rotating match-day specials.
D.C. United fans spent the two hours before the game exploring the stadium but settled into their seats for game time, enjoying the first goal in the new venue from their own Yamil Asad in the 27th minute. Adding another first to the night, English star Wayne Rooney made his MLS debut in the 57th minute, becoming part of the action quickly in helping set up the next two D.C. United goals on the way to a 3-1 victory.
“It has been a long time since 2013,” Spangler said. “If feels like we have been working on this forever. It was a lot of work, but it is always great to have an opening day. It makes it worth it, the long hours of drawing.”