Update: Dave Martinez, founder and former editor-in-chief of Empire Of Soccer, reported Tuesday night that a source told him that this rendering is indeed legitimate.

From what I hear, these are real.



Close source confirmed seeing “exact” pic months ago. Said hotel bldgs planned in area too #NYCFC https://t.co/DOgEPQRttI — Dave Martinez (@DaveMartinezNY) October 25, 2017

Don’t get your hopes up, however. According to a source of NYCFC radio broadcaster Roberto Abramowitz, the Newtown Creek proposal was real but was scrapped early on.

A very good source has told me that that was a real proposal, albeit an early one that was looked at but the team moved on. — Roberto Abramowitz (@RobAbramowitz) October 25, 2017

Original story: In the current age of “fake news,” one can’t help but to point out some stories if only to acknowledge the sheer imagination of them while simultaneously questioning their legitimacy. And what subject is more ripe for such frivolous suggestions than New York City FC’s frantic, ongoing search for a stadium in the five boroughs?

While scouring Twitter for dank NYCFC news and rumors, I came across a tweet that mentioned renderings of a potential new stadium site. Suddenly, I became as intrigued as I’ve ever been and after digging a little deeper, I found this:

Posted by a member today. Whether it's a great photoshop job or an actual rendering it's at least something. https://t.co/dSzLuw1eUU pic.twitter.com/uWwOnmxgRV — NYCFC Forums (@NYCFCForums) October 24, 2017

Yup, you saw that right. An Etihad Stadium. Over Newtown Creek. With boats passing underneath. But take it with a grain of salt. As a matter of fact, just take the top off the salt shaker and pour the whole damn lot of it down your throat.

The artist rendering was originally posted to the NYCFC Forums by user “dark knight.” When asked as to how he acquired the rendering, he claimed that it “fell in his lap,” and would not specify where he got the image. Reverse image searches turned up nothing. Dark knight also claims that the only potential hurdle that New York City would have to clear in order to break ground is the site’s cleanup.

Feeling confused? Worry not! When I first saw this, I didn’t know whether to cheer or laugh either.

Obviously, when dealing with anonymous “leaks” such as this, it is difficult — if not outright impossible — to determine their legitimacy. Especially for stories coming out of left field like this one. Don’t get me wrong, if I were a betting man, I’d be hard pressed not to bet on this being fake. However, considering that NYCFC are owned by City Football Group — who are enormously wealthy and love to make a splash — I don’t see such a preposterous, ambitious design like this to be completely out of the question.

With all that said, let’s weigh our options. Though one could perhaps conceive of thousands of possibilities when it comes the image’s origins, let’s narrow it down to three.

It is fake. It is an old rendering done in the early stages of stadium planning that was ultimately thrown out. It is 100 percent legitimate and is part of CFG’s current stadium plans.

Regardless of anything, it’s at least a fun, interesting idea that involves NYCFC having what is practically their own island over Newtown Creek, which sits between Queens and Brooklyn.

So while not entirely implausible, it’s probably just best to wait on word from the club regarding their search for sites in the Bronx and Queens, as well as their alleged bid to build a stadium at Belmont Park.