D.C. United forward Wayne Rooney
On his welcome to D.C....
"I just want to say a huge thank you to the fans. On the first day when I arrived to the airport, the reception you gave me was something which I will never forget, so I want to say thank you for that."
On his excitement to join D.C. United and to play in Audi Field...
"Thank you to all of the owners of the football club for creating this youthful stadium. When I spoke to them about coming here to play, I could tell the excitement they had with the stadium and the new training grounds that will be here next year. It really played a big part in me coming here. I want to come here to win, to help the team go forward, to win titles. It is my job to do that and hopefully in the next few years we can climb up the table, win titles, and help create some history in this wonderful stadium."
On the fans' support...
"Once again I just want to say thanks for the support since I have been here. It has been great and I will see you guys on Saturday and hopefully we can reward you with three points."
D.C. United defender Steven Birnbaum
On what D.C. and Audi Field mean to him...
“D.C. is my first and only professional club. I was drafted here out of college five years ago. I fell in love with the city from the beginning. I have lived here now, in the city, for three years and have fallen in love with it. Having a stadium in our backyard is going to hold a special place in my heart for a long time."
On what Audi Field means for the community...
"Putting Audi Field in the middle of D.C. has shown the growth of Major League Soccer in our country, but it’s also going to hold a special place for our community, to get local kids growing up playing soccer and showing them how to be on the forefront of the major sports community here in the District."
On his excitement to open Audi Field on Saturday...
"We’ve been on the road for a long time, it’s been four months, and we have a lot to work on. We are coming here [to Audi Field] Saturday and we can’t wait to play. We’re ready to play here in front of our fans and we’re happy to be here in front of you guys. You guys mean the world to us, we come out here to play for you guys and the club and the organization, and we can’t wait to be here. So thank you everyone for coming out today and we can’t wait to see you on Saturday.”
D.C. United CEO and Managing Partner Jason Levien
On what Audi Field means to D.C....
"Today is the day we have been waiting for. A landmark day, in a landmark year for D.C. sports. It is difficult to overstate the magnitude of what today represents. Today we christen our glistening new home in D.C.’s hottest neighborhood. Audi Field will be a place where Washingtonians will come together for a shared love of the city and our shared love of this great, beautiful game. At a time when the nation’s capital is too often divided, at Audi Field we are going to play the world’s sport and we are going to live up to the team’s name, United, and it’s thanks to all of you."
On what D.C. means to him and the rich history D.C. United will carry in to Audi Field...
"I first came to Washington D.C. over 30 years ago and I attended Georgetown basketball camp and instantly fell in love with this city. So much so that I later become a Hoya myself and I followed in my sister’s footstep by going to Georgetown. I returned to D.C. after law school to start my career and I found that this city was a changed place. A new soccer team had arrived in town and they had won back-to-back MLS Cups. These days D.C. United take the field with four stars above our crest—one for each of our MLS Cups. And more than a third of the MLS’s all-time best 11 are D.C. United legends. Some of them are here today. Our club remains the most decorated in U.S. soccer history with 13 trophies, and as of today our club D.C. United finally have a home this is befitting of its legacy."
On what the stadium will mean for MLS and fans...
"Audi Field is just the latest celebration for this District. I hope this stadium sends a strong message about our city to the whole country. A stadium like this is a major milestone for Major League Soccer, which is one of the most dynamic leagues in all of professional sports as it continues its rapid ascendancy, and it’s a big win for United fans. Audi Field is going to be a temple for the 12th man, we have designed this stadium so that there is no such thing as a ‘bad seat.’ Every fan in the stadium will be in on the action at every game and what action there is going to be."
On the new era for D.C. United...
"This really does feel like the beginning of a new era for United, the best one yet. You know the greatest sports stadiums in the world are where unforgettable live experiences are shared between fathers, sons, daughters, and families. Stories are told and passed down through generations about great players, teams, and incredible events. These memories transcend sports and they encapsulate some of life’s richest experiences. Decades from now, stories will be told in this community, our community, about precious moments that we shared right here at Audi Field. As we commemorate this place, it makes all of the hard work that went into Audi Field a reality more than worth it. So thank you all for making this more than just a dream, but a reality, and vamos United."
D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser
On those who helped make Audi Field a reality...
"I want to thank Jason [Levien] and his whole team for having such a great vision and seeing it through. It is true that to come to today and have it feel like this, many people played a significant part. I want to thank the members of council who worked with me and my team before I was mayor and when I became mayor to make sure we had a workable package for getting things done for this team. We the city promised to take care of the land, and the team made a huge investment in building this building, and the fans and the players are going to make sure we have championships here for years and years to come."
On D.C. government's help...
"I want to thank the members of our Department of Health and Transportation, the Department of the Environment, and the Department of General Services who was responsible for delivering the infrastructure and the land to the team to build this stadium."
On the Southwest D.C. community...
"I also want to thank the residents of this community who made sure that everything that happened here would support everything that goes on in our surrounding neighborhoods. What we know, in a city that is as dynamic as ours, is that we have a lot to offer. We are growing every day. We have more than 20 million visitors that come to our city each and every day and we have made the investments necessary to be the sports capital of the United States too."
MLS Commissioner Don Garber
On Audi Field's importance to the sport...
“It’s such an incredible honor and a pleasure to be back here in D.C. It was 16 months or so ago when we broke ground, and who would have thought that we would have Audi Field behind us, one of the great, great new cathedrals for our sport. A great beacon for hope and what it can represent for how great our country can be, along with Canada, as one of the leading areas for shining a light on how great our sport can be throughout this region."
On Mayor Bowser's help...
"I want to start by making some comments about the Mayor. You know we travel all around the world, and particularly for us in MLS, throughout cities in the U.S. and Canada, trying to get the right public/private partnerships. It’s really, really hard in today’s environment to find political-elected officials that have vision, that have courage, that understand relationships and can wire together all the various constituents to be able to create the kind of environment to have Jason [Levien] and Erick [Thohir] and their partners make the investment that they made. So Mayor Boswer, it has been an honor to have worked with you, and we’re proud for everything that you do for the District."
On D.C. United's storied history...
"The first game I ever attended in fall of 1999 was here in D.C. I walked into the locker room at RFK, I saw Jaime [Moreno], I saw Jeff [Agoos] and I saw John [Harkes], Ben [Olsen] was playing at that time for the club and I knew then—seeing these great players who are representing our country, seeing this incredible brand which was so authentic—I knew then that we were going to be this league for a new America that was going to drive the success of this sport as our country continued to change. And there was only one thing missing, and that was the 20-year quest for Audi Field."
On the rise of soccer in the U.S....
"This [Audi Field] is the one stadium that we knew we needed, and that we were waiting for for so long. This is stadium #19. Stadium 20 opens up in Minnesota next year. In the next couple of years, five more stadiums. That will be 25 stadiums for our league. And that gives us the foundation to be able to build this sport. But in order to make this sport great we need a few things: we need great players, great legends, and we need great fans. And these fans have been the icon for our league. We want you to keep it up."
