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Advertisement Republic FC considers expansion at Cal Expo Team draws nearly 40,000 fans for two games Share Shares Copy Link Copy

Sacramento’s new pro-soccer franchise is considering enlarging its planned home field at Cal Expo in response to fan support.Saturday night’s match at Hughes Stadium attracted 17,400 people.Watch report here: Sacramento Republic FC considers expansion at Cal ExpoThe team’s first home match last weekend was a sell-out with 20,200 tickets sold.Photos: Fans flock to Sacramento Republic FC gameThe new Bonny Field was planned to seat 8,000 fans when it opens in June. That could leave thousands of new Republic FC fans shut out.Team founder and president Warren Smith told KCRA 3 News that the team is considering expanding seating at Cal Expo.“We do have the ability to do that and Cal Expo would be open to it,” said Smith. “In fact, we are meeting on Monday about, what do we do now?”Smith said the seating design could be expanded by 50 percent, adding 4,000 seats.He said that idea will be discussed.“We’ll do what we can to meet the need and not overbuild,” Smith said. “But we’ll do what we can to expand that facility.”At its first home game, the team’s sell-out crowd was the largest regular season turnout in the history of the United Soccer Leagues.After attracting nearly 40,000 people at two home games, team officials said there were gratified and excited.Many fans said they were not surprised.“Sacramento is a great soccer town,” said Jamie Wilson.Even though welcoming, Hughes Stadium at Sacramento City College is built for football and track. The new Bonney Field will put fans much closer to the action.But the field’s planned limited seating is a concern for many. “Hopefully they expand and then an MLS (Major League Soccer) team comes here,” said soccer fan Roger Brock. “Let’s get ready for it.”