East Ridge, TN is a suburb of Chattanooga and the new CHI Memorial Stadium was built right on the border. The Red Wolves play in the USL, which is one step below Major League Soccer in the pecking order. New digs, a pre-game beer festival supporting local brewers and a nice night to watch a game lured us to the stadium on June 26th to see the hometown boys play FC Tucson.
CHI Memorial Stadium’s parking lot and entry drive have yet to be paved. The newness of this venture resulted in the support staff being extra friendly and attentive. Red Wolves’ mascot “Rusty” was a crowd pleaser.
We registered and got our promotional plastic mugs for the small beer festival an hour before the game started. Attendees’ names were on printed pages attached to clipboards and checked by hand. A low-tech, but effective approach. I think the laptop was just for show.
Cold beer was poured from pint cans supplied by eight local breweries. A Red wolves rep accompanied each brewery rep. There was a two-beer limit with all the taste samples you wanted.
Mingling with the small crowd sipping suds in the shade from the bleachers was great fun. This guy’s Homer Simpson shirt was a big hit, but Karen’s hat and hot dog T-shirt stole the show.
CHI Memorial seats 5,500. Lawn seating on one end creates a relaxing setting for soccer viewing. It’s a cozy venue and much smaller than football fields at today’s larger high schools.
CHI Memorial is the first soccer-specific stadium in Tennessee. It is home to the Chattanooga Red Wolves SC of USL League One, Chattanooga Lady Red Wolves SC of the Women’s Premier Soccer League and Dalton Red Wolves SC of USL League Two. I believe professional soccer is here to stay.