Boston Could Still Score A Major League Soccer Stadium

New England Revolution owner Robert Kraft has long wanted to score a downtown Boston stadium for his Major League Soccer team, but he has run into opposition at every turn. A side comment by the co-owner of a Miami MLS team indicates one might be coming near the TD Garden. 

Miami businessman Jorge Mas is a co-owner of the unnamed team with a group that includes soccer star David Beckham. In a discussion with the Miami Herald editorial board, Mas indicated the Kraft Group was planning a stadium near North Station and the Garden, the Boston Business Journal reports. 

“One of the only franchises left to build a soccer-specific stadium is the New England Revolution, which is owned by Bob Kraft of the New England Patriots,” Mas said to the Herald editors. “They’re building a facility, I think, right near or next to Boston Garden.”

Boston was quick to refute the businessman’s claim. A Boston Planning and Development Agency spokesperson said there was no soccer proposal before the city. While Boston Mayor Martin Walsh has supported building a soccer stadium in the city, his press secretary also pointed out there was no proposal before the city at this time, Pro Soccer USA reports. 

Talk of a stadium near the Garden is the latest in years of rumors and failed attempts at moving the Revolution from Gillette Stadium closer to Boston. 

The Kraft Group dropped plans to build a 20,000-seat stadium on the Bayside Expo Center property in Dorchester after negotiations stalled with the Boston Teachers Union, which owned a part of the land. Others have pointed to the redevelopment of Widett Circle south of downtown as another option for a stadium.