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The Kansas City Wizards, an American professional soccer club based in Kansas City, has appointed Philadelphia-based facility management firm Global Spectrum to manage its new stadium designed by global design practice Populous.

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KC Soccer Stadium is the tentative name for the soccer-specific stadium in Kansas, which is currently under construction. Wizards has selected Global Spectrum to manage and operate the team’s 18,500-seat future home,which is slated to open in June 2011.

The Wizards’ state-of-the-art, $160 million venue is being built at The Legends in Village West in Kansas City, and has been designed by Populous as the first authentic American soccer stadium. The facility contains 33 luxury suites, two premium clubs, a 60,000 square feet entertainment plaza, and a 2,000-seat supporters section. Global Spectrum will provide management, marketing and operations at the new stadium.

Global Spectrum will also book non-soccer events for the stadium. The company works with numerous concert promoters and travelling show producers throughout North America and can utilise these resources to create new and exciting opportunities for the Kansas City region.

A signature roof element designed by Populous - a canopy covering nearly every seat in the stadium - will be a key component of the stadium creating a memorable fan experience. While the canopy will serve as a dramatic crown to the stadium, functionally it will magnify crowd noise to create a home field advantage for the Wizards. Designed of polycarbonate panels, the canopy will offer an intimate experience.

The stadium is incorporated with unique design elements rarely seen in today's sports facility design. For instance, to enhance a sense of community, multiple suites on each of two suite levels will connect to a common lounge area via rolling doors. The Cauldron Club, a year-round space designed to be the place in Kansas City to watch soccer matches around the globe, will feature the best premium amenities in modern-day sport but also a standing-room-only space at field level for the team's most passionate fans. In addition to hosting soccer, the stadium features a retractable seating section in the seating bowl's south end that, when retracted, will reveal a stage that can be used for end-stage concerts.

Global Spectrum is a subsidiary of the Philadelphia-based sports and entertainment firm Comcast-Spectacor. The company manages 90 stadiums, arenas and convention centres throughout North America, including PPL Park in Chester, Pennsylvania, home of the Major League Soccer’s Philadelphia Union.