THE CANADIAN PRESS
MONTREAL — The Montreal Impact has added 2,000 seats at Olympic Stadium in a bid to break the city’s attendance record at its Major League Soccer home opener against the Chicago Fire on Saturday.
The team hopes to top the 58,542 who turned out in 1981 for a playoff game by the defunct Montreal Manic of the North American Soccer League, also against Chicago.
The extra seats, priced at $20 each, will boost the seating capacity of the indoor stadium to more than 58,500.
The club said 46,500 tickets have been sold thus far for the match. Work to install a synthetic surface at the stadium began Monday and is expected to be finished ahead of an open house for fans Thursday evening.
The expansion Impact played its first MLS game Saturday, losing 2-0 in Vancouver.