Boxer Stadium
Boxer Stadium (also known as Matthew J. Boxer Stadium) is a soccer stadium in San Francisco, California. Located in Balboa Park, the stadium has a capacity of 3,500. It is owned and operated by the San Francisco Recreation & Parks Department and is the only public soccer-specific stadium in San Francisco.[1] Boxer Stadium is the primary home of the century year-old San Francisco Soccer Football League.[2]
Full name | Matthew J. Boxer Stadium |
---|---|
Former names | Balboa Park Soccer Stadium (1953–1990s) |
Location | San Francisco, California |
Coordinates | 37.725788°N 122.444593°W |
Owner | City and County of San Francisco |
Operator | San Francisco Recreation & Parks Department |
Capacity | 3,500 |
Field size | 100 x 65 m |
Surface | natural grass |
Opened | 1953 |
Tenants | |
El Farolito SC (NPSL) (2018–) San Francisco Glens SC (USL2) (2018–) San Francisco Stompers FC (NPSL) (2013–2015) San Francisco Dogfish (MLU) (2014) San Francisco Rush (PRO Rugby) (2016) |
History
Boxer Stadium opened September 27, 1953 as the Balboa Park Soccer Stadium at a cost of $150,000.[3] The concrete bleachers were added later after the November 1953 Proposition G bond passage.[4] The stadium was renamed in honor of the late SFSFL President, Matthew J. Boxer in the 1990s.
Boxer Stadium served as the main venue of the 1982 Gay Games.
Tenants
The stadium is home to the San Francisco Soccer Football League,[5] the Golden Gate Women's Soccer League,[6] and the San Francisco Unified School District CIF high school and middle school soccer.[7][8]
For the 2013 season the San Francisco Stompers FC of the National Premier Soccer League played their home games at Boxer Stadium.[9]
High school Lacrosse teams from SHC also use Boxer Stadium.[10][11]
Rugby and Gaelic Athletic Association teams had used Boxer Stadium until the opening of Ray Sheeran Field on Treasure Island in 2005.[12][13] In 2016, Boxer Stadium was the home pitch for the San Francisco Rush professional rugby team in the new PRO Rugby competition in the United States, however, the team was folded by the league after one season citing an unsuitable venue.[14]
References
- "SF Rec & Park - Stadium Rentals". Archived from the original on 19 March 2016. Retrieved 31 March 2013.
- Garcia, Ken (7 June 2002). "Soccer fever in S.F. is not new outbreak". The San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 31 March 2013.
- "SFSFL - Facebook". Retrieved 16 April 2013.
- "SFSFL - Facebook". Retrieved 16 April 2013.
- "SFSFL". Retrieved 24 March 2013.
- "GGWSL". Retrieved 24 March 2013.
- "CIF SF HS". Retrieved 24 March 2013.
- "CIF SF MS". Archived from the original on 27 March 2013. Retrieved 24 March 2013.
- "SF Stompers Schedule". Archived from the original on 12 March 2013. Retrieved 24 March 2013.
- "SHC Lacrosse Boys". Retrieved 24 March 2013.
- "SHC Lacrosse Girls". Retrieved 24 March 2013.
- "SFGG Rugby - About SFGG - Ray Sheeran Field". Archived from the original on 2013-07-02. Retrieved 28 March 2013.
- "Pairc Na nGael - Treasure Island Community Center". Archived from the original on 8 October 2012. Retrieved 28 March 2013.
- "PRO RUGBY NIXES SAN FRANCISCO RUSH". Rugby Today. December 15, 2016. Archived from the original on December 20, 2016. Retrieved December 17, 2016.