World Cup commercial gives sneak peek of new Sacramento-area soccer team, arena
A new commercial debuting during the 2026 FIFA World Cup is showcasing the Sacramento region’s return to major-league indoor soccer.
The 30-second spot for the Dova Arena project, which will be located in Rancho Cordova, shows clips from previous Sacramento sporting events, including former soccer team the Sacramento Knights, and says that “a championship legacy returns.” The commercial will be shown during World Cup games airing on Fox.
The 10,000-capacity arena, with 7,500 fixed seats, is planned for the corner of Kilgore Road and Trade Center Drive and is expected to become home to the Sacramento area’s two Major Arena Soccer League teams one men’s team and one women’s team. It could later expand to include housing, hotels, retail, restaurants, a card room and the city’s first movie theater and bowling alley, according to previous Sacramento Bee reporting.
Joshua Wood, a local developer and part of the ownership group behind the project, said the glimpse into the soccer team and arena shows the potential for how it will redefine Rancho Cordova and the Sacramento region.
“Sacramento has always shown up for local sports, and we believe this region deserves a destination that matches that passion,” Wood said Friday in a news release. “Downtown Dova is being built to bring people together through sports, entertainment, and community, with the MASL team serving as an anchor for that vision.”
Wood told The Bee in late May that a groundbreaking for the arena was planned for this summer and that the project was planned to go in front of the city’s Planning Commission in early summer.
A team name and logo are expected to be announced later this year, according to the release.
Team ownership includes Wood and Charanjeet Kaur Tiwana-Purewal from real estate development firm KozPure, with minority owners Caleb Kwong, the CEO of cybersecurity firm Savant Solutions; and Mark Daya, owner of Sac Platinum Realty. The arena project is privately funded, Wood told The Bee in late May.
“This is a defining moment for our region,” Tiwana-Purewal said in the release. “We’re bringing professional arena soccer back to Sacramento, we’re building the team a world-class home base in Rancho Cordova at Downtown Dova. Sacramento boasts a championship history in soccer, and we intend to honor and continue that legacy here.”
Rancho Cordova City Manager Micah Runner said the city is “excited to be the home” of soccer in Sacramento.
“We are focused on creating a central gathering place for our community and the entire region,” Runner said in the release.
The World Cup, hosted jointly this year at venues across the United States, Mexico and Canada, began Thursday and concludes July 19. Six games will be played in Northern California, at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, with the first of those set for noon Saturday.
