The Oakland Roots soccer team has announced an agreement to play its home games at the Oakland Coliseum for the 2025 season while a temporary stadium is built on the Coliseum complex for the Roots and the Oakland Soul women’s soccer team.
The team made the announcement Monday on its website and during a news conference at the Coliseum attended by Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao, Roots President Lindsey Barentz and city officials. Bay Area News Group reported that the Roots signed a $3 million lease with the city and Alameda County to play 17 home games at the Coliseum next season.
The announcement was expected after the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Authority adopted a resolution in March which approved a licensing agreement between the stadium and Oakland Pro Soccer, owner of both the Roots and Soul clubs.
The Roots play in the USL Championship, the Division 2 professional soccer league in the United States. The team began playing home games at Laney College in Oakland in 2019. In 2023, the team moved its home field to Pioneer Stadium on the campus of California State University, East Bay in Hayward due to turf issues at Laney College, and has also played some home games at Las Positas College in Livermore.
“We are honored to play our 2025 season in such an iconic venue,” said Roots President Lindsay Barenz. “We are proud to ensure that professional sports will remain at the Coliseum next year.”
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Ownership of the Coliseum complex, which includes the stadium and the Oakland Arena, is currently being transferred to the African American Sports and Entertainment Group after the private developer purchased the facility from the Oakland Athletics and the city of Oakland.
The Athletics announced last April that the team plans to play home games at Sutter Health Field in West Sacramento while a new stadium for the team is being built in Las Vegas. That facility is scheduled to open for the 2028 Major League Baseball season.
The Roots also said work is still underway to build a temporary 10,000-seat stadium in the Coliseum’s Malibu Lot that would be used by the Roots and Soul teams beginning in 2026. The Malibu Lot has been used as an overflow parking lot over the years. Until the temporary stadium is built, the Soul, which plays in the pre-professional USL W league with plans to play in the USL Super League in 2025, would continue to play its home games at Merritt College in Oakland.
“Real Town Biz! When I got the chance to come home and play my last few seasons in the Coli, it was special,” Roots co-owner Marshawn Lynch said in a prepared statement. “I won OAL titles there with Oakland Tech. What that building means to Oakland and the culture is everything. Now we have Roots here and we’re going to keep it going.”
“I grew up going to games at the Coliseum and have created some of my fondest memories there,” Roots co-owner Jason Kidd said in a prepared statement. “There is a special soul to that place that I felt every time I walked in as a visiting player. It is special for me to be a part of a club that will continue the great sporting traditions of the Coliseum.”
Last week, the A’s announced that the final game at the Oakland Coliseum – set for Thursday, September 26 against the Texas Rangers – is now sold out.
