An 8,000 seat venue is being pitched for downtown Albany

Owners of the professional soccer league, MLS Next Pro are eyeing Albany as a potential franchise as the league expands. Along with the team, would potentially come a new 8,000 seat state-of-the-art soccer stadium right downtown. 

Charles Altchek, the league's president, told the Times Union: 

The Capital Region has been on our radar for some time. From a market perspective, we didn't have to be convinced.

So where would the stadium be built? The area of Liberty Square, which most refer to as the 'parking lot district'. Developers said the venue could also be used for other events, such as hosting concerts too small for the MVP Arena or SPAC. The stadium itself would cost around $75 million to build. 

'Business for Good' founders Ed and Lisa Mitzen are partnering with other investors, developers Jeff Buell and Chris Spraragen to spearhead the project. Mitzen says they'd like to have the stadium built in time for the 2026 season to coincide with the US hosting the world cup, although the likelihood of that timeline is debatable. 

The MLS league has 29 teams nationwide. 

If built, the franchise and stadium would certainly reshape Downtown Albany. The video below shows the renderings developed by Re4orm Architecture.