(Editor's note: This is the first installment in a weekly series spotlighting Rhode Island FC and Centreville Bank Stadium from a business perspective throughout the 2025 United Soccer League Championship season.)
PAWTUCKET – A major seven-minute downpour at the end of Rhode Island FC’s home opener at Centreville Bank Stadium on May 3 did not dampen the excitement of fans or soccer club administrators who had long awaited the sold-out event.
That day, complete with
a rainbow hovering over the stadium, jump-started a hectic, yet exciting week at Rhode Island’s newest sports and entertainment venue that was more than six years in the making. With that, Rhode Island FC and stadium officials hope those positive vibes at 11 Tidewater St. in that opening week can carry well beyond early May.
Rhode Island FC President David Peart told Providence Business News that approximately 30,000 people attended multiple events at Centreville Bank Stadium both large and small from May 3-10. That includes
an oversold-out 10,700 crowd that witnessed Rhode Island FC play to a 0-0 draw against San Antonio FC on May 3, more than 9,500 fans at the U.S. Open Cup Round of 32 match against the New England Revolution on May 7 and approximately 250 to 300 business professionals for a private Pawtucket Foundation event at the venue.
“What this does for me is, looking forward, it shows that this isn’t just a vision. This is reality,” Peart said. “That snapshot of the first week, in diversity of events and folks who came into the building, that’s really positive stuff.”
Stadium General Manager Paul Byrne told PBN he spent months envisioning what the stadium experience in an intimate setting would be once the gates finally opened on May 3. Now, it’s no longer if people will get to Centreville Bank Stadium. It’s now how many will go, Byrne said.
“Every day, a new person when they’re brought into the stadium is awestruck by it,” Byrne said. “The more people we can get through the doors, the more marketable the building. We are a unique venue in this area. People are actually seeing it now.”
The outlook for Centreville Bank Stadium to be a go-to place beyond this year is bright. Peart said he expects 45,000 out-of-state visitors to attend events at the stadium annually, based on the club’s market research. It’s estimated the annual economic impact on the state from those out-of-staters will be around $7 million, he said.
[caption id="attachment_495117" align="alignleft" width="423"]
RHODE ISLAND FC President David Peart says the club, based on its marketing research, that about 45,000 out-of-state visitors will visit Centreville Bank Stadium in Pawtucket annually, bringing in about $7 million in economic impact for the state. / PBN PHOTO / JAMES BESSETTE[/caption]
Additionally, Peart said Byrne’s team is “actively marketing and promoting” the stadium, both preparing for upcoming scheduled events and seeking potential new events down the line. Centreville Bank Stadium is scheduled to hold its first international friendly match between Puerto Rico and Nicaragua on June 1. Then, on June 28, the venue
will host the 2025 Major League Rugby Championship match.
“Those things don’t happen without the venue and professionals in place here to fully realize the value the ways we can use that building … in a creative way,” Peart said.
Peart also said the club is receiving feedback from fans via surveys on how or where to improve game-day experiences at the stadium. He said “several areas” were identified in that first week from surveys where adjustments are needed. Additionally, Rhode Island FC will “in short order” host fan forums, bringing in fans after a series of games to gain for more dialogue on their experiences.
Byrne said leading up to May 3, he was concerned about how much the expected heavy traffic would impact the fan experience. But Rhode Island FC in the previous days put forth a major marketing blitz that encouraged fans to arrive early, prepay for parking and even take
the designated Rhode Island Public Transit Authority free shuttle bus from the lots to the stadium.
It paid off, he said. Fans took note and Centreville Bank Stadium was close to full by the time the teams entered the field for play on May 3.
“It was an incredible atmosphere. It could not have gone better, honestly,” Byrne said.
Byrne also lauded the city’s police department, which worked traffic detail throughout the area to get fans in and out of parking lots in an orderly fashion for all three Rhode Island FC matches. Plus, he said pushing the opening kick on May 3 back a half hour, from 4 p.m. to 4:30 p.m., was also instrumental to help fans into the building on time.
Byrne also said he first believed it would take “a couple months” for gameday operations in and around Centreville Bank Stadium to smooth out, but it only took two games. He stated that when Rhode Island FC’s May 7 match took place, fans knew what to expect in arriving to the stadium given the major attention the venue’s opening received in the days leading up to it.
“What I learned a lot about [Rhode Island] is word of mouth is your gold when folks are talking about your experiences,” Byrne said. “That’s been the driver for us here.”
- Current team record (wins-losses-draws): 2-3-3, 9 points; 6th place of 12 teams in USL Championship Eastern Conference
- Result of previous match: Rhode Island FC 1, Birmingham Legion FC 0 (from Wednesday)
- Next match: May 17, at Tampa Bay Rowdies, 7 p.m.
James Bessette is the PBN special projects editor, and also covers the nonprofit and education sectors. You may reach him at Bessette@PBN.com. You may also follow him on X at @James_Bessette.
