Memphis hits fundraising goal for new soccer stadium
By Omer Yusuf – Reporter, Memphis Business Journal
Mar 11, 2026
The University of Memphis athletic department recently surpassed its fundraising goal for a key project.
U of M athletic director Ed Scott said the school reached its fundraising target for Liza Wellford Fletcher Stadium.
Memphis has secured $8.37 million in gifts for the project, exceeding its initial goal of $8 million. The school has received 256 individual gifts at an average of $32,677, according to the U of M Board of Trustees' March 4 meeting documents.
The total project cost is estimated at $12.4 million, according to Scott in a previous interview.
This milestone follows the launch of the Liza’s Light University of Memphis Soccer and Track Stadium Fund in August 2024. The new stadium will serve as the home for the school’s men’s and women’s soccer teams as well as track and field programs.
The university has not announced an anticipated completion date for the project. Memphis’ current Billy J. Murphy Soccer and Track & Field Complex is located on the school’s Park Avenue Campus.
Scott also announced a modification to the project at the Board of Trustees' March meeting.
“The original plan was only for women's soccer to have their locker room and team room in that facility,” Scott said. “When I got here, we wanted to see if we could include men's soccer and do it all at once.”
Due to $237.5 million in athletic department-related construction projects, Memphis adjusted its plan.
“We made the decision to leave the men's soccer locker room where it is and renovate that locker room,” Scott said. “Liza Wellford Fletcher Stadium will be the training facility for both men's and women's soccer, but the home of women's soccer. The men's team will have access to the film room and training room.”
The project’s first phase includes a new soccer and track stadium grandstand, press box, and women’s soccer locker room.
Future phases will add new team areas for men’s soccer and track and field, benefiting more than 100 University of Memphis student-athletes.
