Northern California’s countless elite soccer facilities are rivaled only by the state’s abundance of natural resources and beauty. From San Francisco to Yosemite, Lake Tahoe to the massive redwood forests, winding trails weave together throughout the region in a state which offers a taste of everything.
From its mountains to the desert to the ocean, California’s natural playing fields are abundant and offer scenic backdrops for some of the top fields and facilities in the country. We looked at six of the best soccer sites around Northern California to see where the future of the sport in the state will play.
Papa Murphy’s Park
Sacramento
This $5 million, privately-funded facility located on the Cal Expo grounds opened in 2014 with 8,000 seats. In 2015 it quickly revamped to 11,500 seats for sporting events, and boasts a 25,000 person capacity for concerts.
Presenting one of the largest grass pitches for a professional soccer club in the U.S., Papa Murphy’s Park provides Internet access, four spacious dressing rooms, three offices with production rooms, four full hook-up bus parking stations, a basketball court, and a state-of-the-art digital board. It also includes a BBQ area, concessions, merchandise, and a beer garden.
The venue housed the 2014 United Soccer League (USL) Championship match along and has hosted friendly matches for international club teams like C.D. Guadalajara, Newcastle United and Rangers FC.
Twin Creeks
Bay Area
Equipped with 10 lighted all-purpose synthetic turf fields, the 14,000 square foot Global Sports Twin Creeks Clubhouse offers sports offices, meeting rooms, a banquet room, Sluggers restaurant, and Pitchers sports bar.
The upscale, boutique, Plaza Suites Hotel is the host hotel for this popular tournament spot. The venue houses numerous tournaments provided by Stanford Soccer, Santa Clara Sporting Club, MVLA Soccer, and more. The 2019 Surf Super Copa took place at Twin Creeks in January.
Regional Sports Complex
Previously a landfill, 110 acres were converted into a baseball, softball, and soccer dream land, which includes nine soccer/ football fields (two of which are championship sized and lit) and six softball/ baseball fields. The facility also provides a fishing pond, concessions, 43 picnic tables, two restrooms, a child play area, and eight parking lots to accommodate all its visitors.
The complex hosted the 2019 Copa Univision 5V5 soccer tournament in July.
A Place to Play Community Park
Santa Rosa
This 77-acre park is home to six soccer fields and two baseball fields, along with restrooms, a concession stand, playground, dog park and a lake for wildlife.
Fields are commonly used by the Santa Rosa youth soccer league teams throughout the duration of their season. A Place to Play Park is annually one of the featured facilities for The Santa Rosa City Cup tournament, held in October.
California Soccer Park
Equipped with four lighted NCAA-sized synthetic turf fields, this 22-acre, all-weather soccer complex sits atop the Sacramento Valley and the gateway to the mountains. 2,000 square feet of elevated, covered seating around the fields include ceiling fans and misters, ensuring a comfortable view.
A full-service snack-bar, air-conditioned bathrooms, and a large play structure are also found inside the vicinity.
As a popular destination for tournaments, California Soccer Park hosts the annual Nor-Cal Think Pink tournament. The venue housed the Whiskeytown Quickdraw 3V3 in June of 2019 and the Smash Cup 2019 tournament in October.
Cherry Island Soccer Complex
Sacramento
Hosting events with as many as 100 teams, Cherry Island Soccer Complex is home to many major tournaments. This venue includes 16 acres dedicated to 10 soccer fields, 26 acres of park life setting, 12 acres dedicated to wetlands, and a concession and storage building equipped with restrooms.
In April of 2018 both the 12th annual Sports for Life (SFL) tournament and 23rd Sacramento Adult Soccer League Gold Cup were held here. The facility also hosted the Copa Univision in July of 2019 and the 2019 Cal Cup in August.
