OracleOfOmaha wrote: Fri Oct 23, 2026 2:28 pm
omaha79 wrote: Thu Oct 22, 2026 6:59 pm
jomaha9 wrote: Thu Oct 22, 2026 5:52 pm
omaha79 wrote: Thu Oct 22, 2026 5:17 pm
jomaha9 wrote: Thu Oct 22, 2026 4:57 pm
To be clear, Union Omaha does not have to loan out their stadium. I am simply pointing out that building a stadium with too limited of scope is not the best thing for Union Omaha or the city. Union or MECA could drive additional revenue with a facility that serves multiple purposes.
I referred to the UFL as it is a realistic opportunity, but it doesn't have to be football. If the stadium has some other uses, such as concerts or some other sport, there would be a greater return on investment on the facility.
Ultimately, a soccer facility is a soccer facility. If every facility needs to be a catch all event center, why aren't there more concerts at Schwab? Why isn't Morrison holding music festivals? Why isn't Werner Park holding outdoor concerts annually? Don't we now have enough outdoor concert venues or potential concert venues that this facility is a tertiary option for that at best considering we have the ballpark, arena, Gene Leahy, and Steelhouse within a mile of the soccer facility?
At some point, wear and tear even on field turf is a concern.
I'm not against UFL if it makes sense. But, shoehorning UFL into a soccer stadium when it may not exist in 5 years seems foolhardy. If UFL wants to be here and there are costs associated with accomodating UFL (additional seats, locker rooms, etc) let UFL ownership help fund it as well. that seems like a reasonable request. Why should the owners of Union Omaha have skin in the game and then just expect a UFL team to slide in just because this area wants American football at any cost?
Bottom line: I'd fully expect the facility to get plenty of use. it just may not be the use that Joe Six Pack Omahan wants it to have. I see potential uses including...
1. 20-25 dates a year for the Union Omaha men's team at the USL Championship level including additional US Open Cup and friendly matches they've had to say no to in the past because they have to pay rent as a tenant.
2. 20+ women's matches a year.
3. Around 6-7 matches a year for a feeder USL League 2 team featuring local college players playing during the summer.
4. Some shared State Soccer matches with Morrison
5. A few concerts a year
6. Perhaps some international or professional friendly match for either men's or womens soccer.
If those "uses" aren't palatable to the "voices from the grandstand", then I'd challenge you to look at where that unease comes from. Is it not sufficient use? Or, is it not sufficient you FOR YOU, because you simply don't like soccer. If it's the latter, it's a pointless argument to keep discussing because nothing they add in the realm of soccer will satisfy your burning desire for something you can relate to like a failing American Football product.
Totally valid and I see your point. If there are sufficient uses for the stadium that keep it active for a good chunk of the year, I think it justifies the investment. On your earlier point about Schwab Field, I echo your comments that it is not properly utilized and sits empty most of the year. Part of the concern a lot of people have is whether we will have a second stadium that spends most of the year empty.
To be clear, I am fully supportive of the Union Omaha stadium and think it will be good for Omaha. I just shared a concern that the design might be more limiting than it should be.
Agree on Schwab. If UFL Football is to exist anywhere in the metro, it should be Schwab field. That will require buy in from MECA, NCAA, and Creighton University. Ultimately, probably too big of a hill to overcome, but you have a facility that is ready for UFL right now with Schwab. Just getting NCAA and Creighton on board with field wear and tear during the spring. If that cannot be overcome, Omaha is simply not a UFL market.
So Creighton baseball and the college world series can have UFL, but your precious club level soccer team is sacred. Got it
Reading comprehension and critical thinking go a long way. Read the things I said prior. I'll summarize.
the USL Soccer stadium will be a 5,500 seat stadium. In this American Football obsessed market, prior attempts at minor league football drew much larger numbers, to the tune of 10k or more. This facility will not meet those needs.
The USL Soccer stadium will not have a locker setup that will work to house a football team of 50 players.
Any attempt to put a UFL franchise into the soccer stadium will not only take field configuration concessions with lines, etc, but also will require more stands, larger locker and maybe separate locker facilities. None of those things are in this bid.
Again, if the UFL wants to dump money into the stadium to have locker facility and training for football to be added, they certainly can. They can work with Omaha and Union ownership, come up with a plan, and write a check. I wouldn't have a problem with that. But, why should the city or Union have to pony up more to pound the square peg of UFL into the round hole of a soccer stadium if they aren't going to be compensated?
Now, you have Schwab sitting there with 25k seats and ample locker facilities. The only fly in the ointment is the pesky wear and tear on the field that the NCAA doesn't want. Get past that, you don't have to spend anything and you can have your precious UFL (until it folds).
Beyond that, looking around, Burke stadium holds 8k. It's actually a football stadium. It would give the West O people the event they so want without having to drive down to the dirty and dangerous downtown. Millard South also holds 6,500. Again, a dedicated football stadium.
If American Football is such a slam dunk, why not just utilize a football stadium? All those people that said "Union should just utilize Morrison and share with Creighton." Why not just have UFL share with a local high school team. Have the UFL pump some money into one of these facilities and make it better for a minor league pro team. easy peasy.
Why not Memorial Stadium in Lincoln?
See, these arguments aren't as workable in real life, are they?
