SoFi Stadium to host 2026 World Cup opener for U.S. Men’s National Team

The U.S. Men’s National Team will play its opening match in the 2026 World Cup at SoFi Stadium

When Stan Kroenke brought the Rams back to Los Angeles and built SoFi Stadium, he had visions of it becoming one of the top venues in the world. It’s already hosted a Super Bowl and a college football national championship, and in 2026, it’ll play host to multiple World Cup matches.

FIFA announced that while SoFi Stadium wasn’t awarded the World Cup Final, it will host the United States’ opening match on June 12. It’ll be the venue for two of the U.S. team’s three group stage matches, with the third being played up in Seattle.

In total, eight matches will be played at SoFi Stadium, including two round-of-32 matches and a quarterfinal. SoFi Stadium’s eight matches are second only to AT&T Stadium, which will have nine played there.

The World Cup Final will be played at MetLife Stadium, which is home to the Jets and Giants.

SoFi Stadium will undergo some renovations in preparation for the World Cup two years from now. Retractable bleacher risers will replace concrete seats in the corners of the lower bowl so that they can be moved during soccer matches where the field is wider. Additionally, a temporary grass field will be installed for the World Cup, replacing the turf.

Cooper Kupp not excited to play on turf twice in 5 days: ‘I hate it’

Cooper Kupp hates playing on turf in general, but playing two games on turf in a short week makes it even tougher

SoFi Stadium is one of the best new venues in the NFL, and it should be after coming with a price tag of $5.5 billion. There’s one aspect of the Rams’ home stadium that Cooper Kupp hates, though: the turf.

It’s not just SoFi Stadium’s surface that Kupp loathes. It’s artificial turf in general.

He’s made this opinion known several times in the past, and he was asked about it again this week with the Rams playing back-to-back games on turf in a span of five days.

“As you know, I hate it. I’m not a fan of turf in general and it’s obviously tough going back-to-back on a short week,” Kupp said. “But it is what it is. I know people are certainly aware of it. If there’s going to be change that’s going to come, it’s not because people don’t know, you know? So it is what it’s. Like I said, it’s the same thing about playing Thursday night. Everyone’s got to do it. Everyone’s got to get it done on turf and just part of this game and you got to deal with it.”

Kupp isn’t the only player in the NFL who much prefers to play on natural grass instead of artificial turf, citing the greater toll turf takes on players’ bodies compared to grass. And the numbers are there to back it up, with turf causing more foot and ankle injuries than natural grass.

The Saints are dealing with the same thing this week, having just played on their own turf in the last three games. In fact, they haven’t played on natural grass since Week 5, so they’re used to playing on turf.

Matthew Stafford has ‘no idea’ if he’ll still be playing when Super Bowl returns to LA

The Super Bowl is returning to SoFi Stadium in 2027, but Matthew Stafford has no idea if he’ll still be playing by then

SoFi Stadium will host the Super Bowl for a second time in 2027, five years after the Los Angeles Rams won a ring in their home building. NFL owners voted to approve the stadium as the host site on Wednesday, which was exciting news for the Rams, Stan Kroenke and the city of Inglewood.

Matthew Stafford would love to win another Super Bowl with the Rams, and doing so at home again would be special, but he has no clue if he’ll still be in the NFL three years from now.

“Come on, man,” he said laughing. “I have no idea. That’s a long way away.”

Stafford will be 36 in February which means if he did play another three years and reached the Super Bowl in 2027, he’d have just turned 39 before the game. Again, that’s a long way out, but it’s not out of the question for the Rams quarterback to continue playing for another three seasons.

He’s certainly shown this season that his game hasn’t fallen off in the least bit at 35 years old, but he’s also dealt with a litany of injuries throughout his career that could cause him to consider retiring in the next year or two.

That being said, he’d love another opportunity to win a Super Bowl in his home building.

“Absolutely. Yeah, absolutely,” he said. “It was cool. Obviously, that’s the only one I’ve ever played in. It was a unique experience getting able to do that at home. Don’t know what it would be like anywhere else, but it sure was fun getting it done at our place.”

Super Bowl LXI to be played at SoFi Stadium in 2027

Super Bowl LXI will take place at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California

The NFL works years ahead when it comes to Super Bowl venues. The league decided on Wednesday where the 2027 game will be played.

Super Bowl LXI will take place at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California. The date is to be determined.

This will be the second Super Bowl at SoFi Stadium. In February 2022, the host Los Angeles Rams defeated the Cincinnati Bengals in Super Bowl LVI.

SoFi Stadium to host Super Bowl LXI in 2027

The NFL is bringing the Super Bowl back to Inglewood. The Rams’ home, SoFi Stadium, will host the big game in 2027.

SoFi Stadium is one of the newest stadiums in the NFL, but it won’t have to wait very long to host its second Super Bowl. According to Adam Schefter of ESPN, NFL owners are voting Wednesday to make SoFi Stadium the host of Super Bowl LXI in 2027.

It’ll be the second time SoFi Stadium will host the big game, with the first being Super Bowl LVI in February 2022. The Rams, of course, won that game against the Bengals, becoming just the second team ever to win a Super Bowl in its home stadium. The Buccaneers were the first just one year prior.

SoFi Stadium in Inglewood is considered one of the top stadiums in the NFL and being right next door to the league’s West Coast headquarters, its hardly surprising that the NFL is already bringing the Super Bowl back to Southern California.

The game isn’t for another three-plus years, but can the Rams become the first team ever to win two championships in its home stadium when the time comes in 2027?

Matthew Stafford may not be the quarterback by then, and Aaron Donald will probably be off in retirement, but the Rams have shown they can be contenders every year as long as Sean McVay is there.

Best photos from Chargers’ win over Bears in Week 8

Here are some of the best photos from SoFi Stadium on Sunday.

The Chargers defeated the Bears in Week 8 by the score of 30-13.

To relive the game, here are some of the best photos from SoFi Stadium.

Rams raising season ticket prices for 1st time since opening SoFi Stadium

The Rams are raising the price of season tickets, the first time they’ve done so since moving into SoFi Stadium

Prices for Rams season tickets are going up a little bit. According to Adam Grosbard of the OC Register, the team is increasing season ticket prices for the first time since opening SoFi Stadium in 2020, one year before fans were able to attend games due to the pandemic.

Starting prices for season tickets will increase from $600 to $720 per season, which is an increase of $12 per game. According to the team, 52% of the stadium will have its prices increase by 10% or less per game, so it’s not a substantial hike.

“We thought our price increase was reasonable overall given the context of normally teams raise ticket prices each year; we haven’t for three years,” Rams COO Kevin Demoff said on a conference call. “This is a pretty moderate increase coming off of three years without an increase.”

The good news for season ticket holders is that there will be a new ticket exchange program where they can sell back up to three games per season for a credit toward the following season’s season ticket package. Season ticket holders will also be eligible for food and drink discounts, ranging from 15-30% depending on the package level.

Raiders first actual home crowd atmosphere will be this Sunday in Los Angeles

Sounds like Raiders actual home opener will be this Sunday at SoFi vs Chargers

If you were transported to a seat in Allegiant Stadium last week for the Raiders’ Sunday Night game against the Steelers, you’d have never guessed you were in Las Vegas for the Raiders’ home opener.

The ‘Terrible Towels’ were waving and the crowd got loudest when either cheering a big play by the Steelers or jeering the Raiders. It was a clear numbers advantage for the visiting Steelers, making it feel like the Raiders were playing their third straight road game to begin the season.

That figures to change this week when the Raiders head to Los Angeles to play the Chargers.

Expectations are that SoFi stadium will lean heavily to Silver & Black. And the Chargers are expecting it as well.

This has been an ongoing problem for the Chargers since they announced their move from San Diego to the Raiders former hometown of Los Angeles in late 2016

Even before that, the Raider Nation — much of which just took the quick trip down from LA — would show up in large numbers to Chargers games. But it’s been much worse over the past six years as Chargers fans in San Diego were not having their team leave town and the Raiders fans in LA welcomed the ability to drive across town instead.

The result is the Raiders will play in front of their first favorable crowd on Sunday.

As a matter of fact, it could be their *only* favorable crowd over the first half of this season. The next two home games are against the Packers and Patriots — two teams well known for having good traveling fan bases. That means it could be November before the Raiders have a legit home game feeling at Allegiant.

We’ll see if the Raiders can take advantage of this week’s ‘home’ game or not.

49ers fans are projected to outnumber Rams fans at SoFi Stadium on Sunday

The current crowd forecast for Rams-49ers at SoFi Stadium leans heavily toward the team in red again

It seems like every time the 49ers visit SoFi Stadium, their fans take over the Rams’ building. This weekend may not be much different.

According to a projection from Vivid Seats, the crowd at SoFi on Sunday is expected to be 64% 49ers fans and 36% Rams fans. It’s impossible to predict exactly what the split will be this weekend because there’s no definitive way to know which team each fan represents, but this is an indication that the 49ers’ takeover trend is likely to continue.

Last season in their October matchup, there was a heavy 49ers presence. The same went for their meeting in the NFC Championship Game two seasons ago, which was hosted by the Rams at SoFi Stadium.

Nick Bosa expects 49ers fans to take over SoFi Stadium once again this week after seeing the fanbase travel well to Pittsburgh in Week 1.

We’ll see what the crowd looks like this weekend but the Rams might want to work on their silent count in the next few days, knowing there will likely be a large presence of 49ers fans in attendance.

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Fans vote SoFi Stadium the 10th-best venue in the NFL

In this poll of fans, SoFi Stadium only came in as the 10th-best venue in the NFL currently

SoFi Stadium has been heralded as one of the best venues in the NFL since it opened in 2020, as it should after coming with a bill of $5.5 billion to build. It’s a spectacular stadium that has some one-of-a-kind features, including the double-sided Infinity Screen hanging above the field and the translucent roof that can project anything on the exterior of it.

New stadium designs are even drawing inspiration from SoFi Stadium because of how modern and unique it is.

Yet, despite appearing to be one of the best venues in the NFL, fans aren’t sold it’s one of the best. USA TODAY polled readers and had them vote on the best stadiums in the NFL and SoFi only came in at No. 10.

At $5.5 billion, SoFi Stadium is the most expensive NFL stadium in the world – and it shows. With its translucent canopy, immaculate concourses, great seating, and huge range of dining options, plus just basking in Southern California sunshine, it’s worth coming here even if just to take a stadium tour.

Rams fans won’t be happy to read that Lumen Field in Seattle was voted the best stadium in the NFL, followed by Arrowhead in Kansas City and the Ravens’ M&T Bank Stadium. SoFi Stadium is newer and more modern than all of those stadiums but it seems fans appreciate the allure of a classic venue like Lambeau Field or Acrisure Stadium in Pittsburgh.

SoFi will continue to host some of the biggest events in the world, with the World Cup heading there in 2026 and the 2028 Summer Olympics opening ceremony also being held there.

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