When the United States Men’s National Team required a SoCal home base for the World Cup, the organization entered a three-year search process. According to ESPN, the federation vetted 27 potential West Coast sites to find a location. The search ultimately led to the Great Park in Irvine. The $1 billion urban mega-park is now the official Team Base Camp training site for the duration of the tournament’s group stage.
A hero’s welcome in SoCal
To officially launch their on-location World Cup operations, the team hosted an open training session at the park’s Championship Soccer Stadium last Monday. It was the only opportunity for the public to watch the team practice at the Great Park during the World Cup, and the appetite for soccer in the region was massive — U.S. Soccer received over 33,000 ticket requests for the session. Ultimately, 5,500 lucky supporters packed the stadium to its absolute capacity.
The 194-acre sports complex portion of the park offers an elite infrastructure tailored to high-performance training:
- 24 Soccer Fields: The massive layout provides the squad with an abundance of high-quality pitches, allowing the coaching staff to run simultaneous tactical drills.
- Championship Soccer Stadium: This 5,000-seat venue serves as the operational core. To accommodate the national team, local USL Championship club Orange County SC temporarily vacated the stadium entirely..
The Great Park Framework Plan
While the sports complex is currently the beating heart of soccer, it’s actually just a single piece of a massive, long-term project. The site is currently undergoing an expansion under the Great Park Framework Plan, which the City of Irvine approved in 2022. Once completed, the park will span 1,347 acres, making it larger than New York’s Central Park and San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park.
The framework is built to connect the athletic energy of the sports complex with the broader community through multiple zones:
- Heart of the Park: A central area featuring a permanent 10,000-seat amphitheater, lakes, and agricultural spaces.
- The Canopy: A 12-acre retail and dining district set to open in late 2026.
- Cultural Terrace: A museum district utilizing repurposed military hangars to house the Flying Leatherneck Aviation Museum, Pretend City Children’s Museum, and Orange County Music & Dance.
