Fifth Third Stadium, known as Kennesaw State University Stadium until 2013, is a stadium near Kennesaw, Georgia, that is primarily used as the home for the Kennesaw State Owls football team as well as the KSU women's soccer and women's lacrosse teams. It was built as a soccer-specific stadium and opened May 2, 2010, with the first match played on May 9. The facility is the result of a public-private partnership between Kennesaw State University and the now-defunct Atlanta Beat of Women's Professional Soccer.[3]
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| Full name | Fifth Third Stadium |
|---|---|
| Former names | KSU Soccer Stadium (2010–2013) Fifth Third Bank Stadium (2013–2023) |
| Location | 3200 George Busbee Parkway, Kennesaw, Georgia 30144 |
| Owner | Kennesaw State University Foundation |
| Operator | Kennesaw State University |
| Capacity | 10,200 |
| Record attendance | 11,040 (Football: Kennesaw State vs. Louisiana; September 7, 2024) |
| Surface | PlayMaster hybrid[1] |
| Construction | |
| Built | 2010 |
| Opened | May 2, 2010 |
| Construction cost | $16.5 million |
| Architect | Rossetti Architects[2] |
| Tenants | |
| Kennesaw State Owls (NCAA) Women's soccer (2010–present) Women's lacrosse (2013–present) Football (2015–present) Atlanta Beat (WPS) (2010–2011) Atlanta Blaze (MLL) (2016–2018) Atlanta United 2 (MLSNP) (2019–present) | |
The stadium's seating capacity is 10,200. It has a stage at one end to facilitate concerts and can hold up to 16,316 for that purpose.
Stadium
editThe bowl-shaped stadium –– built on 21 acres (85,000 m2) of land east of the Chastain Road exit off of Interstate 75, about a mile from Kennesaw State’s main campus –– is the latest addition to the KSU Sports & Entertainment Park, which opened in fall 2009 to expand the university’s facilities for intramural and club sports. The stadium will help showcase varsity athletics at KSU, which recently completed its transition into NCAA Division I.
The 6.5 acres (26,000 m2) on which the stadium sits is part of 88 acres (360,000 m2) acquired for the university by the KSU Foundation in 2008 and 2009, which now are being developed into athletics facilities for the university’s growing student population. The remaining area around the new stadium has been developed into soccer fields, intramural fields, a rugby field, and a track and nearly 5,000 feet (1,500 m) of nature and hiking trails.
Football
editIn September 2010, KSU announced that it planned to launch a football program at the Division I FCS level in 2014, and would use the stadium as its home field.[4] On February 14, KSU announced that the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia approved the University’s request to add football to its 17-sport NCAA Division I intercollegiate athletics program.[5]
On September 12, 2015, Kennesaw State played their first home football game at Fifth Third Bank Stadium with 9,506 in attendance, defeating the Edward Waters Tigers, 58-7.[6]
Soccer
editThis section needs to be updated. (April 2023) |
The facility was home to the Atlanta Beat in 2010 and 2011, and hosted the 2010 WPS All-Star Game on June 30.[3] Pro soccer returned when Atlanta United 2 of the USL Championship moved to the stadium for the 2019 season.[7] The stadium hosted a 2019 CONCACAF Champions League match where Atlanta United FC defeated C.S. Herediano 4–0 on February 28, 2019,[8] and a U.S. Open Cup match between Atlanta United and Chattanooga FC on April 20, 2022, which Atlanta won 6–0.[9][10] Atlanta United have won all eight of the matches the team has played at the stadium.[10]
Rugby
editThe stadium hosted a round of the 2013–14 IRB Women's Sevens World Series on February 15–16, 2014.[11]
The second half of a home-and-home series of rugby matches between the United States and Uruguay as part of the qualification for the 2015 Rugby World Cup in England, was played here on March 29, 2014. The United States won the match 32–13 to win the qualification spot on a two-match aggregate of 59–40.[12][13]
The stadium hosted the United States when they played Georgia on June 17, 2017. The Eagles lost to Georgia 17–21.[14]
USA Eagles Internationals
editUSA scores displayed first.
| Date | Opponents | Final score | Competition | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 29 March 2014 |  Uruguay
|
32 – 13 | 2015 Rugby World Cup qualifying | 6,197[15] |
| 17 June 2017 |  Georgia
|
17 – 21 | 2017 June rugby union tests | [14] |
Renovation and renaming
editThrough a multimillion-dollar, multi-year sponsorship agreement with the Fifth Third Bank's Georgia regional office, KSU Stadium was renamed Fifth Third Bank Stadium with the addition of Division I football in February 2013.[5] Campus facility plans in 2016 suggested expanding the stadium's capacity, but as of June 2018, Kennesaw State University had not funded the plan.[16]
Top 10 attendance records
edit| Rank | Attendance | Date | Game Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 11,040 | September 7, 2024 | Kennesaw State 10, Louisiana 34 |
| 2 | 10,847 | September 28, 2024 | Kennesaw State 13, UT Martin 24 |
| 3 | 10,436 | October 7, 2023 | Kennesaw State 20, Tennessee State 27 |
| 4 | 10,108 | August 31, 2023 | Kennesaw State 38, Tusculum 7 |
| 5 | 10,029 | October 4, 2024 | Kennesaw State 24, Jacksonville State 63 |
| 6 | 9,556 | October 26, 2021 | 15 Kennesaw State 14, North Caroline A&T 0 |
| 7 | 9,506 | September 12, 2015 | Kennesaw State 58, Edward Waters 7 |
| 8 | 8,803 | October 15, 2016 | Kennesaw State 21, Liberty 36 |
| 9 | 8,799 | September 15, 2018 | 7 Kennesaw State 62, Alabama State 13 |
| 10 | 8,670 | November 7, 2015 | Kennesaw State 14, 15 Charleston Southern 28 |
References
editNotes and references
edit- ^ "Cutting-edge field rolled out at Fifth Third Bank Stadium". Kennesaw State University. June 6, 2018. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
- ^ "Fifth Third Bank Stadium at Kennesaw State University". Rossetti Architects. Archived from the original on August 6, 2021.
- ^ a b Ellis, Ralph (2010-04-15). "KSU hopes to raise profile with new soccer stadium". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Retrieved 2010-04-25.
- ^ Sugiura, Ken (September 15, 2010). "Kennesaw State plans to field 2014 football team". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Retrieved September 26, 2010.
- ^ a b "TOUCHDOWN! Kennesaw State University to Start Football Program in 2015". Kennesaw State University Athletics. February 14, 2013. Retrieved February 14, 2013.
- ^ Jake Dorow (September 12, 2015). "FB: Owls Excite Home Crowd in 58-7 Victory Over Edward Waters". ksuowls.com. Kennesaw State University.
- ^ "ATL UTD 2 Announces Move to Fifth Third Bank Stadium". USL Championship. December 14, 2018. Retrieved December 14, 2018.
- ^ Dylan Bulter (February 28, 2019). "Atlanta United 4, Herediano 0 | 2019 Concacaf Champions League Recap". mlssoccer.com. Major League Soccer. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
- ^ "ATLvsCFC 04-20-2022". Atlanta United FC. April 20, 2022. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
- ^ a b Doug Roberson (April 20, 2022). "Dwyer leads Atlanta United into next round of U.S. Open Cup". ajc.com. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
- ^ Chad Wise (August 22, 2013). "Atlanta's Fifth Third Bank Stadium to host Women's Sevens World Series". usa.rugby. USA Rugby. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
- ^ "Official RWC 2015 Site". Rugby World Cup. March 29, 2014. Archived from the original on March 30, 2014.
- ^ "Eagles RWCQ Home Leg Set For Atlanta". This Is American Rugby. October 24, 2013. Archived from the original on October 29, 2013.
- ^ a b "Georgia wins in Georgia, Eagles held off late". usarugby.org. June 17, 2017. Retrieved August 30, 2017.
- ^ "2015 RUGBY WORLD CUP QUALIFIER - Atlanta, 29 March 2014, 15:00 local, 19:00 GMT". espnscrum. Retrieved 1 May 2021.
- ^ Rio White (June 4, 2018). "Master plan beginning to take shape, funding uncertain". theksusentinel.com. The Sentinel. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
External links
edit- New Soccer Stadium
- Stadium information from Atlanta Beat
- Football team announcement