Abessinio Stadium
Salesianum School has fielded teams on this ground since 1922. Baynard Field, later Baynard Stadium, held that identity through a 1956 renovation that fixed capacity at 3,000. By 2016 part of the stands had been condemned and pulled out.
What ended that chapter was a single gift. In December 2018, Rocco and Mary Frances Abessinio pledged 16 million dollars toward a full rebuild, run as a public-private partnership between the city of Wilmington and Salesianum. ABHA Architects and Crawford Architects handled the design, Whiting-Turner built it, and the old stadium came down entirely rather than being patched over.
Governor John Carney was there for the first match, which Smyrna Eagles won over Salesianum 42–30. The building has had rougher nights since: a car park collision on 15 October 2021 sent a woman to hospital and forced a game off, and a Delaware Military Academy fixture against Howard High School was halted on 2 September 2022 when trouble broke out in the stands.
No professional tenant plays there now, though two once did — the Wilmington Renegades in the Atlantic Football Conference in the mid-1960s, and Atlantic City FC in the League for Clubs. Salesianum remains the constant.
Who plays here
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Delaware FC
13 matches
Recent matches here
| Date | Match | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 8 Jul | Delaware FC — Eagle FC | 4:1 |
| 28 Jun | Delaware FC — Real Central New Jersey | 5:1 |
| 24 Jun | Delaware FC — Reading United | 1:2 |
| 17 Jun | Delaware FC — PA Classics | 0:2 |
| 14 Jun | Delaware FC — Ocean City Nor'easters | 2:3 |
| 10 Jun | Delaware FC — West Chester United | 1:3 |
| 27 May | Delaware FC — Lone Star II | 4:2 |
| 6 Jul 2025 | Delaware FC — West Chester United II | 1:5 |