RENTON, Wash. — The Seattle Sounders FC are back from Spain and officially opened up their new team headquarters on Tuesday.
At first glance, it looked like just another practice session for the Sounders. But Tuesday was extra special as the Sounders unveiled its new state-of-the-art practice facility.
"It's awesome," said Craig Waibel, Sounders FC general manager. "It's home for the next 50 years. It's a great day because it's not only for the guys behind us but for the public too."
"We are super fortunate, super grateful for this facility, better than it was described," said Jordan Morris, Sounders forward. "It's pretty cool and it will just push us to keep improving."
The facility gives the Sounders one of the top practice facilities in the league with over 50,000 square feet of office space and four full-sized training fields. The new complex also comes with plenty of high-tech toys.
"It does play a huge factor," said Cristian Roldan, Sounders FC midfielder. "I want to go into the facility and not want to leave and that's the goal, and here we have that now."
Some of the players' favorites include a state-of-the-art weight room, a specialized kitchen and nutrition center, a training room, a locker room fit for royalty, and a hallway of champions.
"You're going to walk in and out of that hallway every day and so it's a great reminder, this is the hallway of champions, and you have to practice like one," Roldan said.
"Discipline is your unwavering commitment to your dreams and goals, and it's much easier now to be disciplined when you have all these toys and things that are right here," said Stefan Frei, Sounders FC goalkeeper. "And so what are our dreams and goals? And let's go after it."
"It will inspire, it will motivate, and that players and our training staff now have all the tools to perform at a high level," said Brian Schmetzer, Sounders FC head coach.
Roldan and Morris said their new home reminds them of some of the facilities they've played at while training with the United States national team,
"It's state of the art, and for us, at the national team level, you want the one percent better to win a World Cup and a facility like this can give you that advantage," Roldan said.
In 2026 there's a good chance this new Sounders facility will become a base camp for a national team during the World Cup.
The new Sounders facility in Renton replaces the Starfire Sports Complex that had been the Sounders' training center since the franchise got its start in 2009. The new facility combines the Sounders' on-field and business operations in the same location for the first time.