It’s official: Northwestern football will play its 2026 season at the new Ryan Field, but not all of it.
Northwestern announced on Tuesday that it would play its first two games of 2026 — against South
Dakota State on Sept. 5 and Colorado on Sept. 19 — at Northwestern Medicine Field at Martin Stadium, its temporary home venue for the 2024 and 2025 seasons. The Wildcats’ first-ever game at the new Ryan Field will come on Oct. 2 in their Big Ten home opener against Penn State.
In a press release, Ryan Sports Development CEO Pat Ryan Jr. said the decision to schedule the “grand opening” for Oct. 2 came after an “unexpected number of weather days.” The school had not announced an official opening date for the new Ryan Field until Tuesday.
“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,” said Northwestern athletic director Mark Jackson in a press release. “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.”
The Wildcats will play a total of five games at Ryan Field. After the home opener, Northwestern will host Ball State, Rutgers, Iowa and in-state rival Illinois at the venue.
Per release, Northwestern will also host two community events at the Ryan Field plazas, a part of the commitment to make the stadium a “year-round community hub.” Those events include a Halloween/Fall Festival on Halloween and a holiday Winter Festival.
The cost of the new Ryan Field increased slightly since plans were first announced. Northwestern initially said the new Ryan Field would cost $800 million in September 2022. By July of 2025, that figure had increased to $862 million. Ryan Jr. told Front Office Sports in July that the project had an original budget of $856 million. In that same article, he promised the project would not go over budget again.
Per Front Office Sports, the $6 million increase went towards a fourth club section for “young alumni” and was authorized by Northwestern.
The stadium is reported to be 100% privately funded.
Northwestern received approval from the Evanston City Council to build a new Ryan Field on Nov. 21, 2023. Demolition of the old Ryan Field was completed by May of 2024, and the school held an official groundbreaking ceremony for the new stadium on June 24, 2024.
Less than 10 minutes after announcing the official opening date for the new Ryan Field, Northwestern Athletics issued another press release noting that newly-hired offensive coordinator Chip Kelly will speak to the media for the first time on Wednesday.
