Officials from Major League Soccer and San Diego State University have met to discuss the possibility of a team playing in the new Aztec football stadium once it opens in 2022.
Jack McGrory, a CSU Trustee who helped spearhead the SDSU West campaign, said representatives from the university held a preliminary meeting with Major League Soccer to discuss a San Diego team.
MLS officials did not immediately respond to request for comment.
The university in a statement confirmed it has been seeking tenants for its proposed 35,000 stadium but was not specific in which leagues it has approached.
“SDSU Athletics has had contact with multiple professional organizations since the November election," the statement said. "We have provided information related to our proposed timeline for moving into a stadium by the start of the 2022 season, and the elements that we plan on incorporating in the design of the stadium. We have long said that we are interested in other teams playing in the new Aztec Stadium and will work to create those opportunities for the community.”
In November, San Diego voters approved the SDSU West initiative. It cleared the way for the city to sell the SDCCU (formerly Qualcomm) stadium site to SDSU for a Mission Valley campus. That includes housing, hotels, a river park, and a 35,000 seat stadium.
Voters also rejected the competing SoccerCity Intiative, which would have brought Major League Soccer to San Diego. Nick Stone, the project manager, said during the campaign that SoccerCity had exclusive negotiating rights with the MLS. Reached Monday, Stone declined to comment.
McGrory said SDSU has also met with the San Diego Fleet, a new Alliance of American Football team that will call SDCCU Stadium home.
