The arms race in college football continues to grow. Three FBS schools are building new stadiums in the future – USF, Northwestern, and Hawaii. Bookmark this page for the latest updates on new college football stadiums in development.
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Newest College Football Stadiums In Development
Unnamed USF Football Stadium: 2027
USF revealed renderings for its new on-campus stadium on Dec. 5. The school also announced a $6 million donation intended to go to the new facility, but also that the new open date would not be until 2027 (previously reported 2026). The stadium will be east-west facing to “maximize shade” inside the venue.
The gift was donated by USF Federal Credit Union, bumping total funding up to $43 million, just shy of their $50 million goal. The credit union secured naming rights to the pregame walk space outside the stadium. The design company involved with this projects also designed other FBS venues like Minnesota, Baylor, Colorado State, and UAB.
No capacity or name has yet been revealed by USF. However, “more detailed renderings” are expected in Spring 2024, which could include those details. The ground breaking ceremony is also planned for Fall 2024.
New Ryan Field (Northwestern): 2026
Chicago Business reporter Danny Eckler reported in September 2022 that Northwestern plans to tear down existing Ryan Field. A new, $800M stadium would take its place with a “slightly different footprint” and will be privately funded. The goal for the stadium is to host concerts and other events.
The demolition of the existing Ryan Field began in January 2024. The new stadium is reported to open in 2026. As of mid-February 2024, Northwestern did not have a concrete plan of where to play its home games.
A development in mid-April, however, announced the university will move forward with temporary seating at an outdoor practice facility on Lake Michigan. The temporary stadium will host “most” of Northwestern’s home games and seat 15,000.
New Aloha Stadium (Hawaii): 2028
Developments to Hawaii’s new football stadium and entertainment complex released Dec. 6, 2023. Originally, the facility was projected to open by the 2026 season; that deadline has been pushed back to 2028. The entire entertainment district plan isn’t expected to open until 2043 at the earliest.
Chris Kinimaka, a public works administrator handling the development contract, said in December 2023 that they are “looking to have the stadium available for the start of the UH 2028 football season.” A master plan is reported to be revealed in December 2025.
Originally estimated to be a 30-35,000 seat venue, Kinimaka now says the minimum requirement is 25,000 seats.
In March 2024, House Bill 2664 was introduced. The plan killed the existing stadium build and instead would make the existing Ching Complex Hawaii’s new permanent home. The $400M in funds would be re-allocated to disaster relief efforts following wildfires in the state. University of Hawaii staff and athletic administrators vehemently opposed HB 2664.
Just weeks later, the bill died in the state senate.
Aloha Stadium still sits vacant after closing in 2020. Multiple dates have been rumored for its demolition, but Kinimaka now gives a late 2025 or 2026 estimate.
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