[Wattleigh]

There was a good piece in The Guardian ahead of the home opener regarding the new stadium as well as the overall impact of MLS locally, as well as across the nation.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2012/may/09/houston-dynamo-bbva-compass-stadium-mls?newsfeed=true

Houston Dynamo have a new home as MLS puts down its roots

Houston Dynamo will play its first game in the new BBVA Compass Stadium on Saturday, signalling the end of a journey that has taken in San Jose, a couple of MLS Cups, and a long term rental. It is a sign too of MLS's journey

Tom Dart in Houston
guardian.co.uk, Wednesday 9 May 2012 09.00 EDT Comments (47)



Houston Dynamo's new BBVA Compass Stadium is only half-a-mile from the middle of downtown and is very orange. Photograph: Anthony Vasser/Houston Dynamo


Beckham has been good, but let us give credit to bricks. Construction is more vital than celebrity to Major League Soccer's growth and a reminder comes on Saturday afternoon as Houston Dynamo hosts DC United in the league's newest mansion.

When Montreal Impact moves into its renovated Saputo Stadium this summer, fifteen of MLS' nineteen teams will be playing in stadiums built or renovated for soccer since 1999, when the curtain came up on Columbus Crew Stadium.

In excess of $1.7 billion has been spent on these arenas, mostly through public-private funding partnerships. The Dynamo's home, a $95 million project with a 22,000 capacity, will be the third-largest soccer-specific venue and the most central.