NWSL Atlanta 2028 Training Ground Update

Atlanta’s future NWSL training ground is coming more into focus.

The June site plan filed with the City of Marietta shows the 34-acre property arranged around three main buildings, with parking near Franklin Gateway and the training pitches extending toward I-75. The campus will include nearly 300 parking spaces, space reserved for future development, maintenance facilities, and a plaza building. A billboard is also planned along the interstate side of the property.

One small detail stands out. Four parking spaces are specifically designated for expecting mothers, something Atlanta United’s training ground did not have to account for.

The full layout shows a much more developed picture of the training ground, including how the buildings will be used, how the fields are arranged, and how the property itself has shaped the design. Rottenwood Creek borders part of the site, more than half of the property lies within a floodplain, and the project has had to account for neighboring residential areas, access from Franklin Gateway, and significant grading across the property.

The Overall Training Campus

When AMBSE announced the training ground in March, it described plans for an approximately 38,000-square-foot facility, four full fields and two half-pitches. The current planning packet lists approximately 41,900 square feet of buildings across the property, and provides a clearer picture of how the training fields will be arranged.

The campus is arranged with much of the parking along Franklin Gateway at the front of the property. Three main buildings sit immediately behind it, forming the center of the complex before the site opens into training fields behind the buildings and along the right side of the property.

The primary training facility will sit centrally and is the largest of the three at approximately 27,000 square feet. It is planned as a three-story building. A roughly 7,500-square-foot maintenance building sits to the left. To the right is a roughly 6,500-square-foot public building with concessions and restrooms. In front of it is a community plaza, with an open-air viewing shelter on the terraced hill behind it. A smaller maintenance structure and guard booth bring the total planned building space to approximately 41,900 square feet.

Behind the buildings are two full-size grass pitches. The training area continues with smaller spaces designed for more specialized work, including a roughly 40-by-80-yard goalkeeper training area and a 45-by-88-yard “Plyo Practice Area.” Plyo is shorthand for plyometric training, focusing on explosive movements such as jumping, acceleration and changes of direction. A roughly 5,000-square-foot outdoor player amenity area is also planned near the grass fields.

Two additional artificial-turf fields sit to the right side of the property. These are identified as ancillary fields that can each accommodate two U12 fields, providing the first clear indication that the training ground is being designed with youth development in mind.

The site also leaves room for growth. An area beside the parking on the front-right side of the property is designated for future NWSL Atlanta development, giving the club space to expand beyond the initial campus.

Parking for Nearly 300 Vehicles

The front of the campus will include 293 parking spaces divided between private and public areas. A secured lot is planned for the team and staff, while a public lot provides about 145 spaces.

Of the total, 263 are regular spaces, 12 are designated for people with disabilities and 14 are reserved for electric vehicles. A notable consideration is that four spaces are specifically designated for expecting mothers, a feature tailored to a women’s professional team.

Part of the private lot is also designated for a future solar canopy, allowing solar panels to eventually be installed above some of the parking spaces.

The dedicated public parking adds another dimension to the campus. Combined with the concessions and restrooms, community plaza and open-air viewing shelter, it suggests the training ground is being designed to accommodate visitors in a way Atlanta United’s current facility does not.

Building Around Rottenwood Creek

Rottenwood Creek runs along the southeastern edge of the training-ground property and has a major influence on how the 34-acre site can be used. Fifty-two percent of the property lies within a floodplain, with another tributary running along the rear of the site near I-75. Stream buffers and possible wetlands further reduce the amount of land available for buildings, parking and fields.

Those conditions help explain why much of the campus is concentrated through the center and northern portions of the property. Buildings, parking, sidewalks and the artificial-turf fields account for about 11 acres, or a third of the property. Retaining walls are planned across parts of the site as the land is graded around the creek and changes in elevation.

Rottenwood Creek is also becoming a larger part of this stretch of Franklin Gateway. The city is developing the Rottenwood Creek Trail. Its first phase ends across the street at the Franklin Gateway Sports Complex. The nearby Franklin Gateway bridge over the creek is also being replaced.

Two apartment complexes border the training-ground property, making light and noise a significant consideration in the design. A 50-foot buffer is planned along the southeastern property line and part of the northwestern boundary. Landscaping and fencing will also help separate the training fields from the neighboring residential areas. Fencing can reach as high as 20 feet in some areas.

A Billboard Along I-75

A billboard is planned along the I-75 side of the property, similar to the one at Atlanta United’s training ground farther north on Franklin Gateway. The billboard can reach roughly 109 feet above I-75.

One detail remains unresolved. Atlanta United already has a digital billboard nearby, while Marietta requires at least 5,000 feet between digital billboards on the same side of I-75. The NWSL site sits well within that distance, meaning the planned billboard may have to use a different format or require another solution if AMBSE intends for it to be digital.