Belson Stadium

Belson Stadium
	The stadium in 2019
Address	8000 Utopia Parkway; Queens, NY; United States
Owner	St. John's University
Operator	St. John's University
Type	Soccer-specific stadium
Capacity	2,168
Surface	FieldTurf
Construction
Broke ground	February 1, 2001
Opened	September 21, 2002; 22 years ago
Construction cost	$6 million
Tenants
	St. John's Red Storm (NCAA) teams:; men's and women's soccer (2002–present); Professional teams:; New York Pancyprian-Freedoms (USASA) (2005–present); New York City FC II (MLS Next Pro); (2022–present); F.C. New York (USL Pro/NPSL) (2011–2012); F.A. Euro (USL2) (2013–2018); New York Cosmos (NASL) (2015–2016); New York Rumble (MLU) (2015);
Website
	redstormsports.com/belson-stadium

Belson Stadium is a 2,168-seat soccer-specific stadium located at Utopia Parkway and Union Turnpike in Queens, New York City, on the campus of St. John's University. It is the home of the St. John's Red Storm men's and women's soccer teams. The stadium is unique in that it is built on an elevated platform over a mostly underground parking garage to save space in the dense urban environment of Queens.^[1]

Overview

The stadium is named in honor of Maxine and Jerome Belson. Mr. Belson was a graduate of St. John's law school, a member of the university's board of trustees and a past benefactor to the university. The Belsons donated $6 million for the construction of the stadium and an additional $5 million was raised for the parking garage and landscaping.^[2]

The stadium is also the home field of the New York Pancyprian-Freedoms of the Cosmopolitan Soccer League of the United States Adult Soccer Association.^[3]^[4]

From 2013 to 2018, the stadium was the home field of F.A. Euro New York of USL League Two (USL2).^[5]

On November 13, 2016, the stadium hosted the Soccer Bowl, the championship game of the North American Soccer League (NASL), between the New York Cosmos and the Indy Eleven. The Cosmos won on penalties 4–2 in front of a crowd of 2,150.^[6] The Cosmos also played several U.S. Open Cup matches at the stadium in 2015 and 2016.^[7]

On February 24, 2022, it was announced the New York City FC II of MLS Next Pro would become tenants of Belson Stadium as part of a partnership with St. John's University.^[8]