New Ryan Field opening doors in October

Article posted by Coliseum, February 25^th, 2026

Image: Northwestern University

Northwestern University will open the doors to its new state-of-the-art Ryan Field stadium in October.

Northwestern said the Wildcats football team will open their home schedule at Northwestern Medicine Field at Martin Stadium before moving to the new Ryan Field in the fall.

The Wildcats will host South Dakota State on Saturday, September 5, and Colorado on Saturday, September 19, at the lakefront venue.

The remaining five home games on the 2026 schedule will be played at the new Ryan Field, with the Wildcats set to host Penn State on Friday, October 2, in the inaugural game at the new world-class stadium.

Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois (US) is a comprehensive research university that is deeply interdisciplinary across multiple schools and units. A founding member of the Big Ten Conference, Northwestern University sponsors 21 varsity sport programs with 500 participating student-athletes.

The new Ryan Field is a replacement stadium presently under construction for the Northwestern University’s football team – the Northwestern Wildcats (which is a member of the Big Ten Conference) – set to open in 2026 and is being built on the same site as the 47,130-capacity old Ryan Field.

The new stadium will feature 35,000 seats, a smaller capacity than the old stadium, but with a steeper, fully covered seating bowl and individual seats along with more premium seating and a state-of-the-art design.

Combe Family Vice President for Athletics and Recreation Mark Jackson said, “The opening of the new Ryan Field marks a defining moment for Northwestern Football and reflects our continued investment in excellence across every aspect of the program.

“The opener against Penn State presented by FOX Sports provides us with an extraordinary stage to showcase the incredible stadium and the culture that Head Coach David Braun has established.

“We appreciate the dedication and support of our fans and campus community, and we look forward to welcoming them to the nation’s greatest college football stadium that will elevate the student-athlete experience and bring us together in powerful and memorable ways.”

The new stadium opener against Penn State on October 2 marks exactly 100 years to the day that the original stadium—first known as Northwestern Stadium, later Dyche Stadium and since its 1997 renovation, Ryan Field — hosted its first football game in 1926.

Construction of the new Ryan Field remains on track for its originally scheduled completion in mid-September 2026, positioning Northwestern to transition to the new facility beginning with Big Ten play.

CEO of Ryan Sports Development Pat Ryan Jr. said, “We are incredibly appreciative of our remarkable workers, subcontractors and our partners at Central Street Consortium for being on track to deliver the new Ryan Field on time, despite the unexpected number of weather days that we’ve experienced.”

The new Ryan Field includes:

All 35,000 seats will offer better-than-tv sightlines. By leveraging modern engineering, each level is optimized for putting it as close to the field as possible, and every seat will feature a comfortable seat back protected from the weather by a canopy
The seating canopy is also specifically engineered to create a powerful homefield sound advantage at games
With 194% of the required ADA seating, universal accessibility and the opportunity for every fan, regardless of physical ability to experience the stadium the same way, it will be the most accessible stadium ever built
More than 200,000 square feet of parks and plazas surrounding the stadium, with the ability to host pregame activities for every type of fan, including pop up restaurants, live music and a community tailgating zone
All main concourses at the new Ryan Field will be open to the stadium bowl, allowing fans to never miss a moment of the game
Four premium clubs for every type of fan, from the most hardcore Wildcat supporter to opportunities for corporate entertainment at Chicago’s Big Ten Stadium. Designed by world-renowned architecture and design firm Rockwell Group, the clubs will be available year round for all types of events, meetings and private gatherings.

Partners in the new Ryan Field include Turner Walsh, who is leading construction on the project, as well as architecture firms Perkins & Will and HNTB.

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