It also boasts the 31st biggest high-definition TV screen in the world. The stadium's building cost increased from $650 million to $1.15 billion, making it one of the most costly sports arenas ever built. It was completed in 2008 after seven years and two months of construction.
The stadium is owned by the University of Maryland, which also plays its home games in College Park. UMD originally planned to fund, design, and construct a new football stadium for itself. However, due to declining attendance rates at McDonough Stadium, which had been their home since 1952, the school decided to sell the rights to game day operations and advertising revenue associated with those games to the highest bidder. In April 2004, UMD announced that they had sold the rights to GameDay Inc., a company founded by former Maryland player and coach Ralph Friedgen, for $7 million over four years.
In October 2004, UMDA, the university's sports marketing arm, entered into a 20-year contract with Washington, D.C.-based AMC Networks to show all Maryland football games beginning with the 2005 season. The deal is said to be worth up to $20 million per year.
However, the contract included an option for another five years. If Maryland fails to meet certain attendance thresholds by 2010, then AMC has the right to terminate the contract.
It was the most costly stadium ever built in America at the time of its construction, costing around $1.6 billion. MetLife Stadium is one of only two NFL stadiums that is shared by two teams... design
| Lower bowl | Mid-bowl | Upper bowl |
|---|---|---|
| 33,346 | 21,323 | 27,897 |
The new stadium was intended to cost $1.2 billion, with the NFL committing a record-breaking $300 million. A name rights contract would have certainly brought in another $250 million to $300 million. Construction began in 2016 and was scheduled for completion in 2019, but it was halted after only one season due to concerns about safety measures following the death of former San Diego State University star linebacker Junior Seau.
In fact, the investigation that led to the filing of criminal charges against former team owner Eddie DeBartolo Jr. had anything to do with concerns about safety at the site of the new stadium. He is accused of withholding information from officials about ground conditions at the facility that he was responsible for building.
DeBartolo has pleaded not guilty and claims his failure to report dangerous conditions at the stadium was an innocent mistake. A trial is scheduled for July 2020.
Meanwhile, the stadium remains unfinished while the team plays its home games at Mexico City's Estadio de Azteca Stadium during the interim period before the next phase opens in 2024. The new venue is expected to be worth $1.5 billion when all is said and done.
Out of the money
According to a 2010 NCSL survey, more than 45 sports venues have been erected or rebuilt since 2000. During this time period, the average cost of constructing or upgrading a stadium was $412 million. Since the early 1960s, 91 sports stadiums have been erected using public cash, 22 of which have been entirely paid for. The most expensive stadium to date is also one of the most expensive objects in space: NASA's $20 million Discovery Starshade experiment will be deployed during an attempt at lunar orbit insertion on October 21, 2019.
The first stadium built with only public funds was Boston's Fenway Park, which opened in 1912. Six other stadiums were built between 1920 and 1950 using only public money. In 1962, Oakland County (now part of Metro Detroit) became the first county to approve a plan to build a stadium with only local taxes. Since then, several other cities have followed suit. Albany, New York; Charlotte, North Carolina; Las Vegas, Nevada; Lincoln, Nebraska; and Tulsa, Oklahoma are some examples of cities that have built stadiums without any federal assistance.
Stadiums are constructed for various reasons. Some cities want to get out of the baseball business while others want to host major events such as World Cups or Olympics. Still other cities need to replace aging facilities and build new ones that are affordable. It all depends on where you live and what interests your city council or board of directors may have.
According to a Construction Disputes blog, SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California, is the most costly stadium ever built, even when inflation is included in. Larger seats, higher capacity, and a greater number of boxes and suites are just a few of the ways sports clubs are extending the amenities available at stadiums.
The $300 million (280 million euros) facility was built by soccer's Los Angeles Galaxy and opens this week. It holds 55,000 people and features a three-story tall video board that is 70 feet wide and 500 pounds. The board can be rotated to show different images during games.
Stadiums have always been a luxury item, but they're now expected to be one of the biggest expenses for teams. The cost of building a stadium has increased as businesses seek out more profitable projects and investors look for guaranteed profits. Some cities won't allow sports franchises to build new stadiums because of the expense to taxpayers.
In addition to selling tickets and merchandise, club owners hope to generate revenue through advertising, naming rights, and sponsorship deals. For example, Manchester City Football Club Ltd., which owns the English Premier League team Manchester City FC, earned $20 million (18 million euros) in 2010 alone through such partnerships.
The New England Patriots owned company that builds facilities for NFL teams earned $125 million (112 million euros) in 2005.
The project cost $350 million at the time it was completed in 2019 and has 20,000 seats including 12,500 for football. The Los Angeles Rams will play their home games there from 2020 until at least 2049.
It is estimated that building SoFi Stadium took about 19 months, from the time the shovel hit dirt in April 2017 until it was officially opened on January 20, 2019 by the Los Angeles Rams and Chargers teams. The total cost of the stadium includes $150 million in public funds provided by the city and county of Los Angeles and another $200 million in private funds raised by the team owners, AEG.
The original plan was to build a stadium for under $300 million but after several changes to the design, the final price tag came close to $400 million. Even with those increases, it remains one of the most affordable sports stadiums in America.
Its roof is made of transparent material called "Titan Roofing Systems" that allows fans to see through the surface of the stadium up into the sky.
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