The new stadium will be New York City's first dedicated professional soccer venue. NYCFC, which won the MLS championship in 2021, currently plays its home games at Citi Field or Yankee Stadium in the Bronx.
In addition to Citi Field, nearby soccer venues include the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, which hosts the U.S. Open.
City Council approved the new stadium after decades of efforts to transform Willets Point, long a cluster of auto repair shops, failed.
City officials said the stadium was privately financed by NYCFC's owners, including Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan of the United Arab Emirates, owner of the Yankees and Manchester City Football Club. He said it would be done.
However, the city's Independent Budget Office concluded that the actual cost to taxpayers for the stadium could be $516 million over the life of NYCFC's 49-year lease.
The analysis is based on the amount the city would have received in property taxes if it had sold the land to the stadium developer instead of leasing it.
The development team includes Affiliates and Sterling Equity, which is partially controlled by the Wilpon family, former owners of the Mets.
