Columbus Crew Stadium

Columbus Crew Stadium
Crew Stadium
Location	1 Black and Gold Boulevard Columbus, OH 43211-2091
Coordinates	40°0′34″N 82°59′28″W / 40.00944°N 82.99111°W / 40.00944; -82.99111Coordinates: 40°0′34″N 82°59′28″W / 40.00944°N 82.99111°W / 40.00944; -82.99111
Broke ground	August 14, 1998[1]
Opened	May 15, 1999
Owner	Hunt Sports Group
Operator	Hunt Sports Group
Surface	Grass
Construction cost	$28.5 million ($37.6 million in 2011 dollars[2])
Architect	NBBJ
General Contractor	Corna/Kokosing Construction Co.[3]
Capacity	20,145 - (soccer)[4]; 25,000-30,000 - (concerts)[5]
Field dimensions	115 × 75 yards
Tenants
Columbus Crew (MLS) (1999-present) Ohio Machine (MLL) (2012) Ohio Soccer Championships (2000-present) Columbus Public Schools Boys Soccer City Championship (2001-present)

Columbus Crew Stadium is a soccer-specific stadium in Columbus, Ohio and the home stadium of Major League Soccer club, Columbus Crew. Built in 1999, Crew Stadium was the first soccer-specific stadium built for a professional soccer team in the second pro era of American soccer. The stadium present seats 20,145.

Origins

As a charter franchise in Major League Soccer (MLS), the Columbus Crew commenced play at Ohio Stadium in MLS's inaugural season of 1996. As it is principally an American football stadium, the facility was never popular with the team or its fans. When renovations to the American football stadium forced the Crew out, their owner, oil billionaire Lamar Hunt, decided to build the team its own dedicated home. Thus, Crew Stadium was born — purpose-built for the Columbus Crew in the winter of 1998-99. The construction cost of $28.5 million was covered entirely with private funds from Mr. Hunt and his Hunt Sports group.

The facility seats 20,455 ^[6] (with room to expand to 30,000 total seats for concerts) ^[7] and is located on the grounds of the Ohio Expo Center and State Fairgrounds. Columbus Crew Stadium opened on May 15, 1999 with a match between the home side and the New England Revolution, with a seating capacity of 22,555. It is the first major league soccer-specific stadium in the United States,^[8] and has been credited with inspiring the wave of construction of soccer-specific stadiums throughout the league.

In the 2010 Showcase issue of Stadia Magazine, Columbus Crew Stadium is considered the most influential stadium of the last decade stating " Who'd have thought when if opened in 1999 that Major League Soccer first purpose-built stadium would kick-start the wave of dedicated soccer specific stadiums that continue today?" ^[9]

Events

In addition to hosting the Crew's home games, the stadium has hosted numerous United States men's and women's national team matches (most notably, the 2001 World Cup Qualifier between the U.S. and Mexico known as La Guerra Fria due to sub-freezing temperatures), the 2001 MLS Cup championship, the 2000 and 2005 MLS All-Star Games, the 2001 and 2003 NCAA Men's College Cup national football championships, and the 2003 Women’s World Cup. It was the host stadium for the 2002 Major League Lacrosse championship game. Crew stadium has also hosted games for the Ohio High School Athletic Association State Championship tournaments in both American football and soccer. It also hosts the annual Westerville Football Classic, featuring the Westerville Central, Westerville North, Westerville South, and New Albany football teams. It has also been host to the local high school football rivalry of powers Bishop Watterson High School and St. Francis DeSales High School. Crew stadium also hosted the first inaugural USA Sevens Rugby Collegiate Championship Invitational in June of 2010. ^[10]

The stadium also hosts numerous concerts annually, including Rock on the Range, an annual festival of performances by rock bands, and concerts by Rascal Flatts to close out the Ohio State Fair in 2006, 2007 and 2009. A permanent stage, built in 2008, has been constructed in the north end of the stadium to accommodate concerts after the closing of Germain Amphitheater. The addition replaces about 2,100 seats in the north end for soccer games.

Notes

• The stadium features a 384 ft² (36 m²) video board as well as a 32 ft (10 m) of scrolling matrix board.
• It took 274 days from groundbreaking to the inaugural game (9 months, 1 day).
• The stadium is also 48 ft (15 m) tall at its highest point and is built on a 15 acre (61,000 m²) site.
• The first goal was scored by Jeff Cunningham during the inaugural game.^[11]
• Official stadium capacity is reported to be 20,555, though with portable bleacher seating on the stage side of the field the capacity is easily expanded temporarily. This was done for an MLS regular season game on October 4, 2008 against the Los Angeles Galaxy. Reported attendance for that date was 22,685.^[12]
• On February 11, 2009 the stadium hosted the United States Men's National Team vs. Mexico for the 2010 FIFA World Cup Qualifying with expanded seating on the stage and south end. Attendance was 23,776.^[13]
• The U.S. Men's National Team has never lost a game played at Columbus Crew Stadium, and have allowed only one goal against (as of July, 2010).

References

1. ^ http://mlsdigitalpr.drupalgardens.com/sites/mlsdigitalpr.drupalgardens.com/files/2011%20Columbus%20Crew%20Media%20Guide.pdf
2. ^ Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–2008. Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. Retrieved December 7, 2010.
3. ^ http://www.kokosing.biz/Capabilities/Stadiums/TheColumbusCrewSoccerStadium/tabid/184/Default.aspx
4. ^ http://www.crewstadium.com/stadium_info.html
5. ^ "Crew Stadium adds concert stage" January 10, 2008
6. ^ http://www.dispatch.com/live/content/life/stories/2008/01/10/1A_CREW_STAGE_ART_01-10-08_D1_9P90UIL.html
7. ^ http://www.crewstadium.com/?s=stadium&h=facts
8. ^ http://www.crewstadium.com/?s=about
9. ^ "10 From Ten.". http://viewer.zmags.com/publication/5e0480a9#/5e0480a9/8. 
10. ^ "USA 7’s Rugby Collegiate Championship Invitational 2010.". http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/36196025/ns/sports-rugby_7s/. Retrieved June 5, 2010. 
11. ^ "mlsnet.com's inaugural game recap.". http://columbus.crew.mlsnet.com/t102/load.jsp?section=about&content=history99. Retrieved 2007-07-27. ^{[dead link]}
12. ^ "mlsnet.com match report.". http://web.mlsnet.com/scoreboard/game.jsp?match=10042008_LACLB. Retrieved 2008-10-04. ^{[dead link]}
13. ^ "ussoccer.com match report.". http://www.ussoccer.com/articles/viewArticle.jsp_12648448.html. Retrieved 2009-02-11. ^{[dead link]}

External links

• crewstadium.com
• Panorama
• Columbus Crew Stadium Seating Chart

Events and tenants
Preceded by Ohio Stadium	Home of the Columbus Crew 1999 – present	Succeeded by current
Preceded by RFK Stadium	Host of the MLS Cup 2001	Succeeded by Gillette Stadium
Preceded by Kennedy Stadium	Host of Major League Lacrosse championship game 2002	Succeeded by Villanova Stadium