Tampa Stadium

Tampa Stadium
"The Big Sombrero"
Tampa (Houlihan's) Stadium in early 1999
Map
Full nameTampa Stadium
Former namesTampa Stadium (November 4, 1967 – December 28, 1995)
Houlihan's Stadium (January 16, 1996 – April 11, 1999)
Address4201 N Dale Mabry Hwy
LocationTampa, Florida
Coordinates27°58′44″N 82°30′13″W / 27.97889°N 82.50361°W / 27.97889; -82.50361
OwnerTampa Sports Authority
OperatorTampa Sports Authority
Capacity46,481 (original)
74,301 (final)
SurfaceBermuda grass
Construction
Broke groundOctober 9, 1966
OpenedNovember 4, 1967
Renovated1983, 1990
ExpandedDecember 4, 1974 – June 5, 1975
ClosedSeptember 13, 1998
DemolishedApril 11, 1999
Construction costUS$4.4 million
($40.2 million in 2023 dollars[1])
US$13 million (renovations)
($39.8 million in 2023 dollars[1])
ArchitectWatson & Company Architects, Engineers & Planners
General contractorJones-Mahoney Construction Co.[2]
Tenants
Tampa Spartans (NCAA) (1967–1974)
Tampa Bay Rowdies (NASL / independent / ASL / APSL) (1975–1986, 1988–1990, 1993)
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (NFL) (1976–1997)
Tampa Bay Bandits (USFL) (1983–1985)
Outback Bowl (NCAA) (1986–1998)
Tampa Bay Mutiny (MLS) (1996–1998)
South Florida Bulls (NCAA) (1997)

Tampa Stadium (nicknamed The Big Sombrero and briefly known as Houlihan's Stadium) was a large open-air stadium (maximum capacity about 74,000) located in Tampa, Florida, which opened in 1967 and was significantly expanded in 1974–75. The facility is most closely associated with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League, who played there from their establishment in 1976 until 1997. It also hosted two Super Bowls, in 1984 and 1991, as well as the 1984 USFL Championship Game. To meet the revenue demands of the Buccaneers' new owners, Raymond James Stadium was built nearby in 1998, and Tampa Stadium was demolished in early 1999.

Besides the Bucs, Tampa Stadium was home to the Tampa Bay Rowdies of the original North American Soccer League, the Tampa Bay Bandits of the United States Football League, the Tampa Bay Mutiny of Major League Soccer, and the college football programs of the University of Tampa and the University of South Florida. It also hosted many large concerts, and for a time, it held the record for the largest audience to ever see a single artist when a crowd of almost 57,000 witnessed a Led Zeppelin show in the facility in 1973.

  1. ^ a b 1634–1699: McCusker, J. J. (1997). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States: Addenda et Corrigenda (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1700–1799: McCusker, J. J. (1992). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1800–present: Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. "Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–". Retrieved February 29, 2024.
  2. ^ "Local $ Needed For Stadium". St. Petersburg Times. July 28, 1966. Retrieved March 31, 2012.

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