Salt Lake, and Utah in general, is an enigma when it comes to rugby events. It's home to some of the greatest rugby in the country with multiple youth teams attached to nearly every major high school, several top college teams (if not the best in BYU), and has a lot of support from from many sources. However, while thousands turn out to watch BYU every weekend and various DI-A and Varsity Cup finals have draw close to or above 10,000 fans on three occasions, the state hasn't exactly been a draw for the Eagles. The last time the Eagles played there was in 2008 when the U.S. played Uruguay. That match looked empty in a brand new Rio Tinto Stadium.
The problem then was that the Eagles didn't have the capacity to fill a 20,000 seat soccer specific stadium. That's now changed as the Eagles have proven four times they can either sell out or come close to selling out a 20k venue. However, if you look at the past few summer series you can see that while a marquee match may be held in a 20k seat stadium the rest of the events usually only bring in 5-10,000 because resources are stretched thin and smaller venues create better atmospheres. For Salt Lake the lack of a more intimate venue was holding them back from having a great shot at landing marquee matches. That could now change.
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A proposal has been put forth to build an 8,000 seat stadium on the Fairgrounds on the west side of the city. According to the Salt Lake Tribune the proposal comes from the owner of Real Salt Lake who want to build a smaller stadium that would be home to Real Salt Lake's minor league team beginning in 2016. The Fairgrounds have been a subject of debate in Salt Lake as other venues have sucked away events that used to make the place profitable. Building a new stadium--which is close to both immigrant Hispanic and Islander communities--would help make the area profitable again. However, the owner is seeking a public-private sponsorship and that could complicate things a lot.
In all likelihood due to less demand than other soccer specific stadiums around the country U.S.A. Rugby could probably afford to use Rio Tinto Stadium. That was the plan in the summer of 2013 before the test against Tonga was moved to L.A. to accommodate an event at Rio Tinto. However, if they felt that the draw would be less then the new stadium would make a good fit.
Having a smaller venue not only makes the area attractive for an Eagles match but also the potential for hosting other events. Salt Lake hosted the highest attended Junior World Rugby Championship back in 2012 at the old Murray Rugby Stadium (which has since been torn down). It's possible the new stadium could be used for similar events. The same goes for Cal Expo Park in Sacramento and other smaller sized venues.
The plan is still very much up in the air but it's positive to see a venue pop up that could help bring more events to one of the country's biggest rugby hotbeds.