The Swope Park Rangers announced Thursday that the club’s permanent home venue for the 2018 USL season will be Shawnee Mission South District Stadium in Overland Park, Kansas.
The Rangers will host their first match at the newly renovated, 7,500-seat stadium on Saturday, March 24, welcoming Seattle Sounders FC 2 for the club’s 2018 home opener.
“We look forward to making Shawnee Mission South District Stadium our new home fortress in 2018,” Swope Park Rangers head coach Paulo Nagamura said. “This is an exciting move for the club and we can’t wait for the upcoming season to begin.”
The full 2018 United Soccer League regular season schedule will be released in the near term, with SPR set to kick off their third USL campaign at Reno 1868 FC on Saturday, March 17.
“We are excited to play our 2018 home matches at Shawnee Mission South District Stadium,” Sporting KC President Jake Reid said. “In our search for a facility that met U.S. Soccer Division II standards, this was the perfect fit right in the heart of our fan base.”
“The Shawnee Mission School District and the Shawnee Mission South community are thrilled that the Swope Park Rangers have chosen our stadium as the club’s new home venue,” said John Johnson, Shawnee Mission South Athletic Director. “We look forward to the Rangers bringing high-level soccer to this area and want to thank the Sporting Kansas City organization for helping to make this partnership possible.”
Located at 5800 W. 107th Street just east of Lamar Avenue, Shawnee Mission South District Stadium received $6 million in upgrades during an extensive renovation project that spanned from fall 2016 to spring 2017. The facility boasts a variety of new amenities, including a stadium press box, Daktronics LED videoboard, state-of-the-art speaker system, hospitality suite and two locker rooms.
Less than a mile from the Nall Avenue exit along Interstate-435, Shawnee Mission South District Stadium will offer multiple concession services, restrooms and extensive parking on both the east and west sides of the venue.
Swope Park Rangers full-season and single-game tickets, including student-discounted tickets, will go on sale in the coming weeks. For ticket inquiries, call 888-4KC-GOAL.
The Rangers have lifted the USL Western Conference championship in each of their first two years of existence, becoming the first club to make consecutive appearances in the USL Cup Final. Former Sporting KC midfielder Paulo Nagamura takes the helm as first-year head coach in 2018, having served as an assistant for the Rangers last year.
The 2017 campaign saw several SPR players earn MLS contracts with Sporting KC — namely forward Kharlton Belmar, defender Amer Didic and midfielder James Musa. The Rangers also provided valuable playing time for players on loan from Sporting KC, such as goalkeeper Adrian Zendejas, defender Colton Storm and forward Daniel Salloi.
