Faced with the prospect of an anticlimactic opening to its inaugural season, MLS expansion team Atlanta United has decided against opening the 2017 campaign with three months of road games. Instead, the club will host matches at Georgia Tech’s Bobby Dodd Stadium while the retractable-roof facility it will share with the NFL’s Falcons, Mercedes-Benz Stadium, is completed.
“With the amount of excitement we’ve seen for the club, especially over the past few months as our season ticket sales have continued to rise, it was evident that playing at home for the first part of the season was in the best interest of our fans and our players,” United president Darren Eales said in a Wednesday release.