The Oakland Roots, a United Soccer League team, sold out their inaugural home opener game at the Coliseum Saturday. The Roots, who have played at Lainey College and CSU East Bay previously, are starting a new chapter playing at the Coliseum.
On Saturday, the Coliseum came alive again, with fans chanting, drumming, and tailgating.
"Just the vibes, you just can't beat this," said Fernando Barajas of Richmond, who was tailgating outside the Coliseum with friends and family on Saturday.
"It's totally Oakland," he continued.
The Roots ultimately lost the match to San Antonio FC 1-2. But the match and the environment at the Coliseum still managed to win over the hearts of many who love the East Bay.
"This is literally our home, and we’re happy to be back," said Cynthia Garcia of San Leandro, who said her dad worked at the Coliseum for four decades. She and her brothers share countless memories of watching A's, Warriors, and Raiders games in Oakland.
"We’re here with our kids, our siblings, all of our extended families, because it was important to show them what home was like for us, this tailgate environment," Garcia added. "It feels like we never left."
Sports
The Coliseum parking lot quickly filled up with cars, and long lines of people waited to enter the match.
The club had initially set capacity at 15,000 seats, but due to the high demand, it increased to 24,500 and then to 26,000. Saturday, the team reported that the home opener game broke the club attendance record with 26,575 fans.
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"Tonight's match is OFFICIALLY SOLD OUT! No tickets will be available at the box office," the Roots said on its social media platform. "With this sellout, we now rank #1 in Single-Game @USLChampionship Regular Season Attendance among active clubs — and we did it right here in Oakland."
MAGIC OF OAKLAND. 🖤
— Oakland Roots (@oaklandrootssc) March 22, 2025
Tonight’s match is OFFICIALLY SOLD OUT! No tickets will be available at the box office.
With this sellout, we now rank #1 in Single-Game @USLChampionship Regular Season Attendance among active clubs — and we did it right here in Oakland.
Missed your chance… pic.twitter.com/TB810yjK3S
Last year, the Oakland Athletics had an Opening Day attendance of 13,522 for their game against the Cleveland Guardians. Several thousand fans boycotted the game by sitting in the parking lot, protesting the team's plans to move from Oakland to Las Vegas. The previous season, the A's drew 26,805 fans for a game featuring Kyle Muller against Mike Trout of the Los Angeles Angels.
The Roots match on Saturday offered a dose of joy after years of disappointment for Oakland fans, who watched the Warriors, the Raiders, and most recently, the A's leave the town.
"I think the culture is super deep, I think everyone that’s here was either a fan of the Raiders, the A’s, [or the] the Warriors," said Mateo Jackson, who grew up in Oakland and watched the match Saturday.
Jackson said he grew up watching A's games at the Coliseum and even attended the A's final home game.
"So being back here, it's super nostalgic," Jackson continued. "And I love this stadium, I love the environment."
Longtime Coliseum vendors showed up for the match as well, optimistic the Roots would draw in crowds and business.
Hal Stevens, who sells hot dogs, said he began his business two decades ago selling outside Raiders games.
"And just the love, you can feel the love right now, it's great," Stevens said of Saturday's event.
"The city of Oakland, the economy like it is right now, it's an opportunity for everybody to not only take advantage of supporting the Oakland Roots but also support our local businesses," he continued.
There were lots of nods to the Bay Area community throughout the event.
The Roots retired the number 24 jersey and held a minute of applause during the 24th minute of the match in honor of Oakland A's Hall of Famer Rickey Henderson, who passed away in 2024.
The Roots also presented a jersey to the parents of an Oakland teenager, Derbing Alvarado, who was shot and killed earlier this week. Alvarado was an avid soccer player and was shot while walking to soccer practice.
Bay Area rap icon Too Short performed at half-time for the game.
Throughout the match, fans cheered, danced, played instruments, and chanted choruses of "Let's go, Oakland!"
Multi-hyphenate filmmakers Rafael Casal and W. Kamau Bell attended the match together.
Both have memories at the Oakland Coliseum and Arena. For Casal, he remembers being a kid trying to get Rickey Henderson's autograph in the Coliseum parking lot. Bell remembers going to Warriors games back when "they were almost free because they were that bad."
"Now another homegrown institution is making a big leap, so we’re here to support and make sure the Roots get their shine," said Casal, who was born and raised in the East Bay.
Bell said this match is "bigger than soccer."
"It's just Oakland’s getting a bad rap around the country, and even a bad rap sometimes on the streets of Oakland, and look at all this positivity and beauty and joy and excitement," he continued.
"And this is really what Oakland is," Bell said, gesturing to the parking lot filled with fans. "We don’t get enough chances to shine about that."
Some of the attendees at Saturday's match have been fans of the Roots since the team began playing in 2019.
Others showed up to the match, never having been to a Roots game before but hopeful about the future of sports in Oakland.
"I’m hoping this lasts and it gets bigger and better and everybody comes out to enjoy," said Eden Gamero of Alameda, who came out with friends to tailgate and watch the game.
Gamero is hopeful the Roots playing at the Coliseum will give the team more exposure and following.
He believes the turnout on Saturday demonstrates that "there is a fanbase here in Oakland, that people will come out when you put out a good product and something that’s family oriented, people will come."
Carlos Yustis helped contribute to this report.
