Parking lots & pickle tots: What’s new at Kansas City Current’s CPKC Stadium in 2025
The Kansas City Current begins 2025 NWSL regular-season play Saturday, March 15, with an 11:45 a.m. match against the Portland Thorns.
KC calls CPKC Stadium home and enters its second year in the first stadium specifically built for a professional women’s soccer team.
Time magazine named it one of the World’s Greatest Places in 2024. It also played host to the 2024 NWSL Championship match. Fans have come to appreciate several aspects of the stadium, including the unique food options and views from the stands.
Here’s what’s new with the stadium experience in 2025...
KC Current parking
As always, parking is a hot-button topic in Kansas City. It was especially so when the plan for parking at CPKC Stadium was unveiled in 2024.
Not much has changed regarding lot locations and pricing. What has changed is the number of available spots.
Construction is underway on the Riverfront mixed-use district, cutting into the preexisting red lot and total amount of parking spaces available.
“A lot of deliberation went into the parking and transportation plan in order to ease ingress and egress on matchday,” a KC Current spokesperson told The Star. “Fans are going to continue to park in the three main lots. With construction on the Riverfront district, new walking paths for fans parking in the red lot are in place.”
The spokesperson said construction on the Riverfront will eventually enhance the fan experience once completed.
All fans seeking to park must have a prepaid parking pass, and parking lot entry will be declined without one. Fans who attempt to park without a pass will be directed to off-site parking options.
Parking is entirely sold out for Saturday’s opening match. There is still parking available to purchase for remaining games.
The Current encourages fans to plan ahead and arrive early to avoid delays. Parking lots open three hours before the game, and the stadium opens two hours before kickoff.
Shuttles and Park-and-Ride
To combat the already minimal parking and streetcar extension’s pending completion, the Current developed a park-and-ride shuttle program with pickup locations along the existing streetcar route.
Attending a Current game, in some cases, may require multiple forms of transportation, particularly if you’re taking the shuttle. You’ll have to either drive to the pickup point, or take the streetcar to a nearby stop, then walk to the shuttle pickup point.
For the start of the 2025 season, the only shuttle pickup location will be at 7th and Main due to ongoing streetcar construction and the Grand Street Bridge’s construction closure.
The club expects shuttle service at 2nd and Main to resume later this season.
A club spokesperson said more shuttles have been added to accommodate the number of people needing to use them this season.
The shuttle dropoff location has also changed on site at CPKC Stadium. It will be further down the Riverfront Heritage Trail, close to where the streetcar stop will be upon its completion. Shuttle pickup will begin 2 1/2 hours before kickoff.
Again, before any event at CPKC Stadium, fans are encouraged to plan their arrival ahead of time and arrive early to avoid delays.
Pickle tots? Poke? New food at CPKC Stadium
The food offerings at CPKC Stadium are unique, with a group of local restaurants offering on-site concessions and the team’s own Riverfront Collective manning some of the more traditional items.
Waldo Thai and Local Pig have discontinued their in-stadium concession stands, and two new partners replacing them will be announced in the coming days. Yoli Tortilleria, Ruby Jean’s Juicery, Billie’s Grocery, Joe’s Kansas City BBQ, Martin City Brewing and Room 39 all return to CPKC Stadium, some bringing new offerings.
Ruby Jean’s has added a vegetarian Brussels sprout nacho with a vegan cashew queso. Billie’s Grocery has added a spicy tuna poke bowl. Room 39 has added a deep-fried Monte Cristo sandwich served with a berry jam. And Yoli Tortilleria has added a chicken tinga burrito, which packs punch with flavor and heat.
The Riverfront Collective has also added a cauliflower tikka masala, spicy Italian sandwich, vegan chocolate pudding and the star of the show: pickle tots.
Yes, pickle tots.
It’s a basket of tater tots tossed in a dill ranch seasoning with chopped dill pickles on top, served with a dipping sauce.
Daniel Sperry covers soccer for The Star. He can be reached at sperry.danielkc@gmail.com.