Oakland Roots sign one-year deal to move into Coliseum after A's move out

Oakland Coliseum will stay in play with new lease for 2025 Oakland Roots soccer season

The Oakland Roots soccer club team will make the Oakland Coliseum their home for their next season that begins in March 2025. City leaders hope it will help preserve some of the jobs being lost when the Oakland Athletics baseball team moves to Sacramento.

OAKLAND, Calif. - The Oakland Roots professional soccer team is putting down deeper roots in Oakland next year.

The team announced at a news conference Monday that they are signing a one-year lease to play their 2025 season at the Oakland Coliseum, after the Oakland Athletics baseball team relocates to Sacramento.

The team posted the announcement on their website, along with information on how to put a deposit down for tickets, which will go on sale later in the month. The Roots team will be able to use the first level seating and some upper level suites, nearly tripling the team's capacity to about 15,000 seats, compared to their current venue at Cal State East Bay.

"It's unbelievable for me. I grew up coming to this stadium from age five," said Gavin Glinton, the Roots interim Head Coach and an Oakland native. "Historically, this stadium has been and the teams that have played here, have been a unifying force around the community and I think that's what we want to do."

The deal comes after the City of Oakland agreed to sell its share of the Coliseum to the African American Sports And Entertainment Group or AASEG, which had already secured the county's ownership share.

"It's been a dream since the day the club was founded," said Lindsay Barenz, president of the Oakland Roots and Soul organization. "We want to have very affordable, family-friendly tickets at our stadium, as well as premium offerings that include food and beverage and other type of amenities for people who want that type of experience."

Players said they're excited.

"I think we'll put on a good show for them. We keep winning some games and I think they'll be ready to come out and support us," said Johnny Rodriguez, an Oakland Roots player.

"Roots is growing as a team. For us to come here I'm super excited," Oakland Roots Team Captain Neveal Hackshaw said. "I can't wait to see the outline of the field."

"Part of what's wonderful about welcoming this team here, is that they are really committed to building in community and with the community," said Oakland City Council member Rebecca Kaplan.

Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao says safety at the venue will be addressed and paid for by the new owners and management.

"With any events, OPD is involved on overtime, not with taxpayers' backs, but with AASEG and AEG they will be paying the overtime for our officers," Thao said.

There's also hope it might preserve some of the Coliseum jobs after the A's baseball team leaves.

"We lost the Raiders, lost the Warriors, lost the A's so it's good for the city to have something going on," Joe Morales of Oakland said.

"If it means they're going to stay there, and they're going to have a lease for a year, that means somebody's got a job," Cseneca Parker, an Oakland native said.

Barenz says they hope their pre-professional women's team, the Soul, will be able to go professional and share the venues with the Roots. Plans to build a pop-up soccer stadium at the adjacent Malibu lot for the 2026 season are still on track, according to Barenz.

Roots tickets for the 2025 season are expected to go on sale on the website soon.

People can put a deposit down for $5.10 by going to the Oakland Roots website.

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