All eyes are on Kansas City today for the nationally-televised debut of LIVESTRONG Sporting Park as Sporting Kansas City hosts rivals Chicago Fire at 9:00 p.m. CT on ESPN2, ESPN Deportes and ESPN3.com.
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See a sampling of the media coverage below for much, much more on the inaugural match and what people are saying around Major League Soccer.
MLSSoccer.com's Jackie Pickering interviewed Sporting KC Captain Davy Arnaud, strikers Teal Bunbury and Kei Kamara, as well as Manager Peter Vermes for a pair of videos to preview the inaugural match.
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Major League Soccer Commissioner Don Garber arrived in Kansas City on Wednesday for his first look at the finished stadium site, after last seeing it during the club's historic 2-1 upset of Manchester United last summer.
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Of all the Sporting Kansas City players, hometown favorite Matt Besler -- an Overland Park, Kansas native -- has been amongst the most excited for Kansas City's first-ever soccer-specific stadium. Besler gave a guided tour just on the eve of its opening.
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Major League Soccer's ExtraTime Radio broadcast a special, LIVESTRONG Sporting Park edition of the weekly podcast featuring Sporting Club CEO Robb Heineman and assistant coach Kerry Zavagnin. Listen to the archived audio at the ExtraTime Radio homepage.
MLS Insider Shawn Francis is also amongst the MLSSoccer.com entourage who made the trip from League headquarters in New York. He
takes a look at the luxurious Victory Suite
, teases the
hard work going into the opening day festivities by club supporters
and catches up with Luke Sassano, who will be
opening a new stadium for the second straight year
.
Beyond the comprehensive coverage provided by Major League Soccer, news outlets have covered the story from all angles in advance of Sporting Kansas City's long-awaited opener.
Following a 10-page special section in their Sunday edition, the Kansas City Star has continued to bring all the latest news for its readers up through Thursday.
- Sporting KC veteran Arnaud excited about first game at new home
- Sporting KC's most dedicated fans have own section in new stadium
- Sporting president Heineman is eager for opening of LIVESTRONG Sporting Park
- Sporting tries to fan flames of rivalry with Fire
- LIVESTRONG Sporting Park filled with fans will complete a long journey
- With wireless and video systems, LIVESTRONG Sporting Park is a technical knockout
- Cisco, Sporting KC look to enhance fan experience
- LIVESTRONG Sporting Park prepped for debut
- The beer will flow fast at LIVESTRONG Sporting Park
- Summer of soccer, the sequel
- A few of my favorite things about LIVESTRONG Sporting Park
- Lamar Hunt's soccer legacy lives on at Sporting KC
- Music kicks off new soccer stadium, LIVESTRONG Sporting Park
- LIVESTRONG Sporting Park nearing its unveiling
Kansas City's newspaper coverage carried into The Pitch, which took a
behind-the-scenes look at Sporting Club CEO Robb Heineman
, while the
Lawrence Journal-World talked to MLS Commissioner Don Garber
, The
Shawnee Dispatch takes a during-and-after approach
, and the Kansas City Kansan posted
videos of LSP
and
Teal Bunbury
, who was chosen as the cover boy for not just one, but two local magazines this month.
KC Magazine featured the fashionable striker
for their June issue (shown on right) and
INK KC also tabbed the up-and-comer
for their newsstand selling shot (shown above).
Local TV stations turned out at LIVESTRONG Sporting Park throughout Media Day on Tuesday, beginning bright and early by airing their morning shows live from the stadium. FOX 4 KC's coverage included captured photos from the stadium, while KCTV5 also aired footage on their newscast, as did KMBC 9's Nick Griffith who talked to Teal Bunbury.
NBC Action News offered several videos and soundbytes for their viewers, including the packages seen below:
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Over the airwaves, Sports Radio 810 WHB's Nate Bukaty spoke to MLS Commissioner Don Garber on Wednesday and KC Soccer Show co-hosts Josh Whisenhunt and Jake Gutierrez previewed the opener almost exactly 24 hours from the inaugural match. Likewise, 610 Sports Radio ramped up the radio chatter by interviewing Manager Peter Vermes and goalkeeper Jimmy Nielsen, posting photos from their tour of LSP, and getting reaction from Vermes and defender Chance Myers after the final training session there on Tuesday.
Across the state, Tom Timmerman of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch raves about KC's "Soccer Palace" after touring the facility on Tuesday.
Nationally, the Associated Press filed their report on the new digs and the Sports Business Journal took a closer look at Sporting Club's partnership with Cisco for cutting-edge technology. Prominent soccer voices have also chimed in with their thoughts on Major League Soccer's newest venue. This Is American Soccer writer Adam Spangler conducted a lengthy series of interviews with some of the individuals most closely connected to the club for a compelling narrative on the team's transition into the new era. The Sporting News' Brian Straus examines the opening as a testament to the re-birth of soccer in KC and The Original Winger latched onto a video tour, courtesy of DJ Ramsey.
