Swangard Stadium
Encyclopedia
Swangard Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium
in Central Park
in Burnaby, British Columbia
. Primarily used for soccer, football
, and athletics
, the stadium is home to the Simon Fraser
Clan
football team. The stadium was home to the Vancouver Whitecaps of the NASL
. It opened on April 26, 1969, and has a capacity of 5,288.
Erwin Swangard raised nearly $1 million for the construction of an athletic stadium in Central Park
in Burnaby, British Columbia
. BC
Premier
W. A. C. Bennett officially named the stadium after Swangard at its opening on April 26, 1969. Swangard was not present on the day of the opening, however, having been sent to start a newspaper in Nigeria
.
(CSL) club began playing in 1987 and made Swangard Stadium their home pitch. The stadium served its last season as the Whitecaps' home in 2010, as the club will join Major League Soccer
(MLS) in 2011. As Swangard does not meet MLS standards for capacity, the City of Burnaby initially proposed to keep the team in Burnaby by renovating the stadium and expanding its capacity to 20 000 seats. This plan, however, fell through, and the Whitecaps eventually decided to move to a new, larger soccer-specific home at the Whitecaps Waterfront Stadium
. They will play at Empire Fields and BC Place Stadium
until its completion.
. In the past, it has hosted home games for the Canadian men's and women's soccer teams in Olympic and World Cup qualifying. In some cases, crowds in excess of 10,000 have witnessed games, with many of the fans standing. Swangard has also been the host stadium of the FIFA U-19 Women's World Championship.
Multi-purpose stadium
Multi-purpose stadiums are a type of stadium designed in such a way as to be easily used by multiple sports. While any stadium could potentially host more than one sport, this concept usually refers to a specific design philosophy that stresses multi-functionality over specificity...
in Central Park
Central Park (Burnaby)
Central Park is a 90-hectare urban park in Burnaby, British Columbia, founded in 1891. The park is located on the Vancouver-Burnaby border, just west of the Metrotown shopping complex, and is bounded by Boundary Road on the west, Kingsway on the north, Patterson and Willingdon Avenues on the east,...
in Burnaby, British Columbia
British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
. Primarily used for soccer, football
Canadian football
Canadian football is a form of gridiron football played exclusively in Canada in which two teams of 12 players each compete for territorial control of a field of play long and wide attempting to advance a pointed prolate spheroid ball into the opposing team's scoring area...
, and athletics
Athletics (track and field)
Athletics is an exclusive collection of sporting events that involve competitive running, jumping, throwing, and walking. The most common types of athletics competitions are track and field, road running, cross country running, and race walking...
, the stadium is home to the Simon Fraser
Simon Fraser University
Simon Fraser University is a Canadian public research university in British Columbia with its main campus on Burnaby Mountain in Burnaby, and satellite campuses in Vancouver and Surrey. The main campus in Burnaby, located from downtown Vancouver, was established in 1965 and has more than 34,000...
Clan
Simon Fraser Clan
Simon Fraser Clan are the athletic teams that represent Simon Fraser University in Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada.SFU's teams formerly played in the United States National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics for all sports. In 1997, Simon Fraser sought to join the U.S. NCAA as a Division II...
football team. The stadium was home to the Vancouver Whitecaps of the NASL
North American Soccer League (2010)
The North American Soccer League is a professional men's soccer league in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico which began league play on April 9, 2011. It has been provisionally sanctioned as the second tier of soccer in the United States soccer pyramid, behind Major League Soccer in the...
. It opened on April 26, 1969, and has a capacity of 5,288.
History
In 1969, Vancouver Sun sports journalistJournalism
Journalism is the practice of investigation and reporting of events, issues and trends to a broad audience in a timely fashion. Though there are many variations of journalism, the ideal is to inform the intended audience. Along with covering organizations and institutions such as government and...
Erwin Swangard raised nearly $1 million for the construction of an athletic stadium in Central Park
Central Park (Burnaby)
Central Park is a 90-hectare urban park in Burnaby, British Columbia, founded in 1891. The park is located on the Vancouver-Burnaby border, just west of the Metrotown shopping complex, and is bounded by Boundary Road on the west, Kingsway on the north, Patterson and Willingdon Avenues on the east,...
in Burnaby, British Columbia
British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
. BC
British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
Premier
Premier
Premier is a title for the head of government in some countries and states.-Examples by country:In many nations, "premier" is used interchangeably with "prime minister"...
W. A. C. Bennett officially named the stadium after Swangard at its opening on April 26, 1969. Swangard was not present on the day of the opening, however, having been sent to start a newspaper in Nigeria
Nigeria
Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...
.
Vancouver Whitecaps
The city of Vancouver launched a professional soccer team in 1986, named the Vancouver 86ers (now known as the Whitecaps). The Canadian Soccer LeagueCanadian Soccer League
The Canadian Soccer League is the top soccer league in Canada and is controlled by the Canadian Soccer Association. It was formerly known as the Canadian Professional Soccer League , and was officially re-branded on May 17, 2006...
(CSL) club began playing in 1987 and made Swangard Stadium their home pitch. The stadium served its last season as the Whitecaps' home in 2010, as the club will join Major League Soccer
Major League Soccer
Major League Soccer is a professional soccer league based in the United States and sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation . The league is composed of 19 teams — 16 in the U.S. and 3 in Canada...
(MLS) in 2011. As Swangard does not meet MLS standards for capacity, the City of Burnaby initially proposed to keep the team in Burnaby by renovating the stadium and expanding its capacity to 20 000 seats. This plan, however, fell through, and the Whitecaps eventually decided to move to a new, larger soccer-specific home at the Whitecaps Waterfront Stadium
Whitecaps Waterfront Stadium
The Whitecaps Waterfront Stadium is a proposed open-air soccer facility in Vancouver, British Columbia that would be privately funded and developed by the Vancouver Whitecaps FC. The proposed location is north of Gastown on the central waterfront on what is currently a parking lot and the site of...
. They will play at Empire Fields and BC Place Stadium
BC Place Stadium
BC Place is a multi-purpose stadium located at the north side of False Creek, in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. It serves as the home field for the BC Lions of the Canadian Football League and the Vancouver Whitecaps FC of Major League Soccer . Originally opened on June 19, 1983 as the...
until its completion.
International events
The stadium's capacity was temporarily increased to 10,000 for the 2007 FIFA U-20 World Cup2007 FIFA U-20 World Cup
The 2007 FIFA U-20 World Cup was the sixteenth edition of the FIFA U-20 World Cup , hosted by Canada from June 30 to July 22, 2007. Argentina defeated Czech Republic in the title game by the score of 2–1, thus managing a back-to-back world title, its fifth in the past seven editions, and sixth...
. In the past, it has hosted home games for the Canadian men's and women's soccer teams in Olympic and World Cup qualifying. In some cases, crowds in excess of 10,000 have witnessed games, with many of the fans standing. Swangard has also been the host stadium of the FIFA U-19 Women's World Championship.