HOUSTON – Construction on the Houston Dynamo's new stadium has been completed.
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A ribbon-cutting ceremony was held at BBVA Compass Stadium on Tuesday.
The stadium along Texas Avenue near Bastrop on the east side of downtown has about 22,000 seats and cost about $95 million to build. It's the first soccer-specific stadium in Major League Soccer to be built in a city's downtown district.
The team's first game in the stadium will be against DC United on May 12.
"It's going to be spectacular," Dynamo President Chris Canetti said. "For those of you who can be here on May 12, I don't think it's possible to quite describe the environment that we're going to see when the stadium filled with 22,000 people wearing orange."
Single-game tickets for the May 12 game are sold out.
"This is a truly fine venue," Houston Mayor Annise Parker said. "This is a well-designed stadium that will not only provide a great fan experience but also be a boost to this end of downtown."
The Dynamo previously played at Robertson Stadium on the University of Houston campus.
The open-air stadium will also hold concerts, festivals, boxing, high school sports, soccer "friendlies," sports championships, community and special events and more.
The stadium is operated by the Dynamo and leased from the Harris County-Houston Sports Authority. AEG Facilities, the world's largest venue manager, will manage the stadium on behalf of the Dynamo.