The brand new Meadowlands Stadium in East Rutherford officially opened its doors last week to host the Big City Lacrosse Classic. After years of planning and construction, fans no longer only have videos and written reports on New Jersey’s newest arena. They can now attend sporting events and concerts there the way Giants Stadium housed them in the past.

Hosting this lacrosse tournament allowed stadium officials to put on an event while calling it a “soft” opening. With the Jets and Giants set to begin playing games in August, stadium officials are intent on working out the kinks before the highly attended events begin. Mark Lamping, CEO of the New Meadowlands Stadium Company, let fans and customers know that there will be an adjustment period for spectators and stadium officials. “Just like in training camp, there’s going to be some fumbles, some dropped passes, things we aren’t going to do as well as we hoped.”

One of the main reasons to host events prior to NFL games will be to encourage football ticket holders to get to know their new Sunday afternoon home. It may be difficult finding seats in some sections, concession stands will be unlike those at Giants Stadium, and tailgating prior to the event will be a challenge due to construction. The ability for fans to experience the stadium before deciding to pay for pricey personal seat licenses also factored into opening up for business early.

Ultimately, this 1.6 billion dollar stadium will feel like home to local fans. For now though, the new Meadowlands Stadium is happy to host schools like Delaware, Hofstra, Virginia, North Carolina, Syracuse, and Princeton in an effort to work the kinks out.