Kaká has a long and storied career. He’s played in front of some of the best crowds, in some of the best stadiums in the world. But he’s never opened a one.
“It’s amazing. It’s amazing,” Kaká said “It’s very good. It’s my first time in a brand new stadium. I’ve played in a lot of stadiums… but to have this opportunity to play in the brand new one is great.”
Over the weekend, Kaká and his team played their first match on the new grass pitch. Kaká said that his favorite part of the stadium-- the grass field. He scored the first goal in the new stadium in a preseason friendly, and Kaká said he is thrilled to be able to play here.
“I told the guys ‘I don’t know how you’re feeling, but I’m feeling great to play here,’” Kaká said.
As for the questions surrounding the stadium construction, Orlando City CEO Alex Leitao said that everything will be good to go for the first match.
“We know that by Sunday we are going to be ready,” Leitao said. He explained that originally, Orlando City hadn’t planned to play their first match in the stadium until Week Three. But with international TV coverage on the table, Leitao knew that he needed to do what was best for the club. In the end, they made the decision to push up the opening date, with the full understanding that they would be working until the last moment.
“We knew at that moment the risk that we had to take in order to do that. We had meetings with our partners here and our construction company, and we knew that it’s gonna take us until the very last moment in order to be ready,” Leitao said. “So the first thing, I want to tell the fans that the stadium is gonna be ready. The second point is that I ask that there is some patience with us, especially for this first game.”
Orlando City will play their first match in the new stadium to a sold-out crowd this Sunday, March 5th, against New York City FC. Kickoff is set for 5:00pm and the game will be broadcast on ESPN.
