HERRIMAN, Utah (Thursday, July 18, 2024) - Utah Royals FC today announced the completion of the multimillion-dollar SharkNinja Performance Center in Herriman, Utah, a 11,000+ square-foot expansion to the training site at Zions Bank Real Academy. The world-class facility houses all five Utah soccer teams, Utah Royals FC (NWSL), Real Salt Lake (MLS), Real Monarchs (MLSNP), and RSL Academy U-15 and U-17 (MLS NEXT), under one roof.
“We are ecstatic to open the SharkNinja Performance Center and to be able to provide our athletes with the state-of-the-art facilities that they deserve," said RSL President John Kimball. "The investment made by our ownership group and our partner, SharkNinja, displays a commitment to empowering women and the growth of the women's game."
The SharkNinja Performance Center sets a new standard in the NWSL and serves as the daily home for the Utah Royals. The facility comes equipped with top-of-the-line equipment for the players’ weight room and training room, which also includes a dedicated hydrotherapy room complete with hot and cold tubs and a sauna. There is also space for a children’s playroom and nursing mothers, in addition to the players’ lounge and fueling station. Players and staff will have access to brand new, state-of-the-art sports medicine and performance-based equipment.
“The SharkNinja Performance Center represents an important investment in the future of women’s sports. We are very proud to partner with the Utah Royals on a state-of-the-art facility that is unrivaled in the NWSL and hope that this partnership sets a new bar for what is expected as the standard in women’s professional sports,” said SharkNinja's Chief Marketing Officer Adam Petrick. “For too long, female athletes have trained with less resources and support than their male counterparts. It is our hope that this partnership elevates what is expected for women’s sports and that our investment provides athletes within the NWSL and the local community with everything they need to truly perform at the top of their game.”
SharkNinja is not only the presenting partner of the training center but will also feature in two room entitlements, the weight room and the fueling station, as well as on the front of the Royals training gear. SharkNinja will bring the comfort of home to the training center, by providing players access to products across its Shark and Ninja brands – from fans and air purifiers to blenders, coffee makers, and hair care.
Zions Bank Real Academy is a 42-acre campus which includes five natural-grass outdoor fields, two full-size indoor fields, as well as the 5,000-seat capacity Zions Bank Stadium which is currently home to Real Monarchs. The Royals will continue to play their matches at America First Field in Sandy, UT. The expansion to the facility makes the Royals one of the only teams to have a dedicated training center in the NWSL, joining Kansas City Current, which opened its space in June 2022, and Racing Louisville FC, which opened its space in January 2021.
Orlando Pride and Houston Dash also have dedicated spaces with their MLS affiliates, Orlando City SC and Houston Dynamo.
“It means so much to have our own designated space, it's huge. We can grow things how we want to grow them, we can implement things how we want to implement them," said URFC Sporting Director Kelly Cousins. “This is a statement from ownership, you can see they are invested in the club, in the team. They want the team to become one of the best. They want the team to perform and grow in the league. This is just the foundation for us, we need to make sure we put this to use now. It does allow us to grow as a club and really perform. We want to be one of the best, this is a statement of the start of that process.”
Over the last five years, Zions Bank Real Academy has become a popular destination for a variety of sports and clubs including but not limited to: Utah Warriors Rugby, Germany’s TSG Hoffenheim, Premier Lacrosse League, Ultimate Frisbee Association, Mexican sides Monterrey, Club America, and Chivas as well as English sides Crystal Palace, Chelsea FC and Wolverhampton Wanderers. The facility has become a home for the community as it regularly hosts ODP tryouts, youth soccer clinics, community events and recreational sports leagues. In addition, the facility was named as a potential training site for teams participating in the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
Utah Royals FC is a professional soccer Club based in Sandy, Utah competing in the National Women’s Soccer League. Reformed in 2023, the Club aims to maintain a high level of excellence on and off the pitch. The Club’s home ground, America First Field, is known for its picturesque backdrop of the Wasatch Mountain Range and incredible home atmosphere created by the Club supporters. With a commitment to fielding a competitive team and developing young players, Utah Royals FC aims to become one of the gold standards in women’s soccer for years to come.
SharkNinja is a global product design and technology company that solves consumer problems with a diversified portfolio of 5-star products that positively impact people’s lives in homes around the world. Powered by two trusted global brands, Shark and Ninja, the company has a proven track record of bringing disruptive innovation to market and developing one consumer product after another, which has allowed SharkNinja to enter more than 30 product categories, driving significant growth and market share gains. Headquartered in Needham, Massachusetts, with over 3,300 associates, the company’s products are sold at over 150 retailers, online and offline, and through distributors worldwide. For more information, please visit www.sharkninja.com.
· The Royals specific NWSL space is 11,048 sf
· New Performance Center has a $3.2MM million dollar construction cost
The NWSL facility includes brand new, state-of-the-art sports medicine and performance-based facilities, the players’ weight and training room, equipped with top-of-the-line equipment. Alongside its new locker room, Royals players will have a dedicated hydrotherapy room, which will include hot and cold tubs, along with an infrared sauna. In addition to the players’ lounge, the Royals’ wing will include a playroom for young children and a lactation room.
