It may be just less than 40 years old, but the Wachovia Spectrum in Philadelphia is the perfect facility for the Major Indoor Soccer League.
Sure, there are parts of the arena that could use some updating ? from the scoreboard to the field itself ? but the size and layout of the arena works well for the game.
“It?s an old arena, but it?s a very nice arena in that the size is good,” Blast president/general manager Kevin Healey said of the Spectrum, which is located just off I-95. It?s essentially the same type of arena Blast owner Ed Hale would like to see in Baltimore.
“Ed would like to put an arena right down in that Canton area, still in Baltimore City, but very accessible to get in and out of,” Healey said, noting that 1st Mariner Arena?s management is strong, and that fans should continue to support the current arena to illustrate the demand for a new building.
The Spectrum, the original home to the Philadelphia Flyers and 76ers, has a maximum capacity of 16,713, but the upper deck has been draped-off to create a more intimate atmosphere. Nearly all of the 7,246 in attendance Saturday sat in the lower seating bowl, which looks as if it were built to fit the indoor field.
The aging scoreboard and the playing surface ? with concerning gaps along the boards and air pockets under the carpet ? were the only real drawbacks from the Spectrum.
The music and fans are just as loud as at 1st Mariner Arena. And the soccer is just the same. Maybe that?s why fans are so often enticed to make the trip north to see the Blast in their road whites.
“We try and go on two or three a year. We?re always up here,” Blast fan and Dundalk resident Nancy Neukam said. “The seating is good because you can sit anywhere in here and see the field.”
Note
The Spectrum is located at the same complex as the Wachovia Center (Flyers, 76ers), Lincoln Financial Field (Eagles) and Citizens Bank Park (Phillies).
