Red Stars, Riot Fest Location Dispute Flares, and Legal Action Could Appear on NBC Sports Chicago
The dispute between the Red Stars and RiotFest is flaring up, with the football team reportedly preparing legal action against the festival for declaring their home field, SeatGeek Stadium, as the new home for this year’s concert on September 21.
The problem is that the Red Stars have a game scheduled that day against the San Diego Wave.
The team released a statement on Wednesday following the Riot Fest announcement, saying the double-booking of the stadium site illustrates the challenges women’s sports teams face.
“It is unfair and unfortunate that our club finds itself in this situation, which shines a light on the stark disparities in the treatment of women’s professional sports versus men’s professional sports,” team president Karen Leetzow said in a statement.
Ray Hanania, a village spokesman, said the village is under the rights of their contract with the team to host an event in parallel with the game. He also claims the village contacted the team in April to inform them of the move.
Red Stars President Karen Leetzow said the team then contacted the village, hoping to get clarification on the issue. Leetzow claims the village did not contact the team regarding their queries about the booking. Once again, Leetzow finds the sorority’s negligence troubling.
“It is unfair and unfortunate that our club finds itself in this situation, which shines a light on the stark disparities in the treatment of professional women’s sports versus professional men’s sports,” Leetzow’s statement read. “We are committed to ensuring our players and fans have a first-class experience both on and off the pitch, and we are working hard to find a solution that ensures our September 21 match is a success. ”
The village fired back after Leetzow made her statement, saying, “The village’s decision to schedule Riot Fest had nothing to do with gender. As mentioned, the village has held simultaneous events at the stadium in the past during games for the Fire, the Hounds and the Red Stars.
“The Village’s decision was strictly based on maximizing stadium revenue for the Village’s taxpayers.”
The organizers of Riot Fest and Ald. Monique Scott (24th Ward) added another wrinkle to the dilemma. They blame the Chicago Park District for a delay in the permit approval process, which took place from April to June, forcing the move to the southwest suburbs.
“If you’re doing a concert for 50,000 people a day, 150,000 people in a venue for a weekend, you need more than June to prepare for a concert of that size,” Scott said.
The Red Stars also claim that their lease with the village stipulates that the site must be available for specific uses, such as the festival, for planning purposes. It should also include parking and accessibility.
It’s unclear where the Red Stars will play on September 21 if Riot Fest keeps their date at SeatGeek Stadium. The club recently set an audience record in the National Women’s Soccer League by playing Bay FC at Wrigley Field in front of 35,038 fans.
Unfortunately, they would no longer be able to use Wrigley Field, as the Chicago Cubs have a home game scheduled against the Washington Nationals.
Soldier Field’s two main tenants, the Chicago Bears and Chicago Fire FC, are both on the road that weekend, with the Bears in Indianapolis to play the Colts and the Fire in Montreal.
The guaranteed rate field is also vacant that Saturday, with the White Sox taking on the Padres in San Diego.
The festival will still be held over three days from September 20 to 22 and will be part of ‘Riotland’, with numerous stages, food vendors and more taking place around SeatGeek Stadium.
Information about the festival’s lineup can be found on the Riot Fest website.
