Prairieland Park pauses plans for pro soccer stadium in Saskatoon

Plans for a pro soccer stadium at Prairieland Park have been kicked to the curb.

In a statement on its website Tuesday, Prairieland said it was putting a halt on the stadium project and, seemingly, the accompanying plans for a Canadian Premier League team for the Bridge City.

“The Board of Directors at Prairieland, in agreement with Living Sky Sports, have determined that, at this time, it is judicious for all parties involved to adjourn Saskatoon’s proposed professional soccer project,” the statement said.

There wasn’t anything about the decision Tuesday on the Living Sky Sports and Entertainment website.

In June of 2022, Prairieland and Living Sky Sports and Entertainment unveiled plans to build a stadium that would house a franchise in the Canadian Premier League (CPL).

“With ventures of this magnitude, it is important to adjust to constantly changing economic factors,” Prairieland CEO Dan Kemppainen said in Tuesday’s release. “As we progressed with the project plans, we have had to make the decision to attend to competing financial priorities.”

The release didn’t say what those other priorities might be.

When the plan was unveiled last year, Living Sky Sports and Entertainment CEO Al Simpson — who was to be the team’s owner — said it was a no-brainer to invest in the CPL

“They’ve been able to establish a national footprint from Halifax to Vancouver Island. Now just stop and think: What other professional sports league has been able to do that? CFL? Nope. MLS? Nope. You haven’t seen it. (The CPL) has done it,” Simpson said at the time.

“We think the city of Saskatoon deserves it (and) we think the province of Saskatchewan deserves it.”

The plan at the time was to have the franchise playing in the CPL by 2024.

The stadium was to cost an estimated $28 million. The plan also called for the facility to accommodate cricket and rugby and be able to host other major events such as concerts.

At the time, Simpson said his group wanted to get shovels into the ground in the spring.

With the CPL plans seemingly scuttled, a high-level soccer league may still be coming to the province.

League 1 is a development soccer league for elite players 18 to 23 years old, and is looking to expand its footprint to include both Manitoba and Saskatchewan. That league could land in Saskatchewan as early as 2025.

Organizers have pointed out that League 1 isn’t a competitor to the CPL, but rather is complementary. Several players who played in the CPL have played in League 1.