BMO Stadium

BMO Stadium

BMO Stadium (formerly Banc of California Stadium) is a soccer-specific stadium in the Exposition Park neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, United States. It is the home of Major League Soccer's Los Angeles FC and the National Women's Soccer League's Angel City FC. The stadium opened on April 18, 2018, and was the first open-air stadium built in Los Angeles since Dodger Stadium in 1962.

The stadium was built on the site of the former Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena, right next to the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum and south of the University of Southern California. Los Angeles FC signed a deal for the stadium's naming rights with Banc of California in 2016, but this deal ended in 2020. In 2023, Bank of Montreal, a Canadian banking company, became the new sponsor, and the stadium was renamed BMO Stadium.

In North American competitions, the stadium is called Los Angeles Stadium because of advertising rules. It has become an important place for soccer fans in the Los Angeles area.

History

Planning and construction

In 2015, a team picked a spot near the Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena to build a new shiny stadium for soccer. The plan was to make a stadium for 22,000 people. It would cost $250 million. This project would help create jobs and bring money to the city each year.

In 2016, Los Angeles allowed the stadium to be built. A special ceremony to start building happened in August. The old arena was torn down to make space for the new stadium.

Opening

The stadium opened with a special event on April 18, 2018. The first game was played a few days later, and the home team won with a goal near the end.

In 2020, the bank that had its name on the stadium decided to stop using the name. In 2023, a new bank, Bank of Montreal, got the naming rights.

In 2020, a new women’s soccer team, Angel City FC, also started playing games there.

Features

Design

BMO Stadium can hold 22,000 fans. The seats are close to the field, with the nearest seats only 12 feet away. The stadium has open spaces for people to walk around.

The North End of the stadium is special for fans. It has a unique design that feels like being on a roller coaster. There is also a cool bar just for fans up there.

The stadium was built to show off the beautiful Los Angeles skyline. The roof is made from special material, and the field is covered in green grass. There are also places to park bicycles and paths to walk to the stadium.

2028 Summer Olympics

The stadium will be part of the Downtown Sports Park. It will host flag football and lacrosse events when Los Angeles hosts the 2028 Summer Olympics.

Major events

Soccer

The stadium hosted matches for the 2019 CONCACAF Gold Cup and the 2021 MLS All-Star Game on August 25, 2021.

Sometimes, other teams use the stadium when their usual places aren’t available. For example, New York City FC played a match there in the 2022 CONCACAF Champions League because their normal stadiums in the New York metropolitan area couldn’t be used. This included places like Yankee Stadium, Citi Field, and Red Bull Arena. They chose this stadium because they had a planned match against the LA Galaxy at the nearby Dignity Health Sports Park.

Other sports

BMO Stadium has hosted many sports besides soccer. In 2019, it had its first boxing event where boxers fought for titles. The stadium also had a large flag football game in 2026 with well-known football players and coaches.

The stadium was supposed to host rugby tournaments starting in 2018, but as of 2023, no rugby games have happened there. It also held the first-ever Premier Lacrosse League All-Star Game in 2019.

Other events

Concerts

BMO Stadium is also used for concerts and other musical events. It hosted the 2018 Wango Tango concert in June 2018, with Beck performing later that year.

Many famous artists have performed there, including Mumford & Sons, Iron Maiden, Rolling Loud hip-hop festival, Guns N' Roses, System of a Down, Twice, The Killers, Blackpink, Tomorrow X Together, blink-182, Fall Out Boy, RBD, ATEEZ, KoЯn, Seventeen, J-Hope of BTS, and Twenty One Pilots.

Cultural events

LAFC plans to use the stadium for local cultural events in Los Angeles's 9th District.

Esports

In June 2018, Epic Games held a special event for its game Fortnite Battle Royale at the stadium as part of the 2018 Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3). The event was won by a team including famous player Ninja and music producer Marshmello.