BARRIO – There continues to be hype around the city due to Toronto hosting one of the world’s most-watched sporting events.

Toronto is set to host World Cup matches in BMO Field, which will see huge renovations to increase capacity. BUT, also, plans are to bring a new soccer-specific stadium to the city, which will further develop soccer in Canada.

Woodbine Entertainment announced the new project back in March 2022 to bring the facility to Woodbine Racetrack in the Rexdale neighbourhood.

The complex is set to feature an 8,000-seat soccer-specific stadium with a natural grass pitch that meets FIFA professional standards, along with a 38,000-square-foot training facility, together forming a new hub for women’s and men’s soccer in the city.

It will serve as a training venue during the 2026 World Cup, but its primary tenant will be York United FC of the Canadian Premier League, which currently plays its home games at York University’s York Lions Stadium.

Sporting venue design advisor and modular building specialists SixFive Stadiums has posted a series of new images of the planned soccer complex that reveal what appears to be a very different plan from what was announced in March, highlighting modular details that will allow capacity to be easily expanded as needed in the future.

The complex is envisioned as a destination for national soccer training, and would serve as the host venue for international federations preparing for major international events as well as the potential springboard to develop women’s soccer in Canada.