![]() Eden Park reigns supreme as the home of the All Blacks, but feels far too big now to even host Blues matches that don't involve the Crusaders. North Harbour Stadium is slowly being dismantled, while there is no suitable cricket venue in the entire city. The bad? Foley probably doesn't know fully what an absolute travesty Auckland's stadium saga over the last couple of decades has been. The good news? His involvement in both has seen the Golden Knights win the Stanley Cup and Bournemouth currently in the English Premier League. Photo: Andrew Cornaga/If Foley is going to bankroll the building of it, that will be another big investment to go along with his expansion fee of $828 million for the Vegas Golden Knights NHL franchise and $248m purchase of AFC Bournemouth. Phoenix captain Annalie Longo during the A-League Women match between the Wellington Phoenix and Perth Glory at Go Media Stadium in Auckland on 25 November 2023. The prospect of all of the city's sides to play there makes sense, as does developing an entertainment precinct in conjunction with nearby Spark Arena. ![]() The plan for the team to spend their first couple of seasons at Go Media Mt Smart and then move into a new, 20,000 seat park on Auckland's waterfront is, quite frankly, exciting. It's unclear whether he knew just what an historic issue he'd touched on, but Foley's reignition of the Auckland's stadium debate is really what is going to keep this venture in the headlines from now until at least the kick-off of their first game. But what's even more is what the 78-year-old Foley has also set his sights on. That's ambitious, given that's less than a year to secure a staff, squad and fanbase. ![]() ![]() Bankrolled by Texan billionaire Bill Foley, the as-yet unnamed venture will begin playing next season. In a piece of auspicious timing, the new A-League franchise that will be based in New Zealand's biggest city and the largest market in the area that doesn't have a pro football team was greenlit a few days before the Phoenix games took place. Alex Paulsen makes a save for the Wellington Phoenix against Melbourne City FC. ![]()
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