|
With it's classic red-brown exterior
trimmed with limestone and fieldhouse look, Lucas Oil Stadium
breaks away from the current mold of NFL stadiums and is a huge
upgrade from the Colts previous home, the
RCA Dome. Like
nearly every other team in the NFL during the time, the Colts wanted a
new stadium to replace the RCA Dome, as it was one of the smallest
stadiums in the NFL and lacked luxury suites and club seats. In December 2004, the Colts and the
City of Indianapolis agreed to construct a new $720 million stadium for the
team. The Colts paid $100 million
of the total cost and the remaining funding came from the State of Indiana and the City of Indianapolis through
increased taxes on food and beverages. On September 20, 2005
construction began on the stadium, adjacent to the Colts former
home, the RCA Dome. In March 2006,
Lucas Oil Products bought the naming rights to the stadium for
$120 million over 20 years. Prior to the announcement of a new
stadium, there had been talk of the Colts possibly
moving to Los Angeles, but now they will remain in
Indianapolis for years to come.
The
Colts played
their first regular season game at Lucas Oil Stadium on September 7, 2008 against
the Chicago Bears.
Located in downtown Indianapolis, the stadium features a
retractable roof that allows the Colts to play outside for the
first time since the team moved to Indianapolis from Baltimore.
On the outside, the stadium has a facade of brick and
glass  allowing it to blend with the surrounding buildings. Lucas Oil
Stadium has seating for 63,000 fans that is expandable to
seat 70,000 for larger events. The Fieldturf playing field is
25 feet below street level allowing fans easy access to their
seats. Many modern amenities are found throughout the stadium from the
high definition replay/scoreboards to the 150 luxury
suites. Lucas Oil Stadium has one of the largest videoboards in the NFL. Consisting of three screens each, the
97-foot-wide-by-nearly-53-foot-high scoreboards hang in the
northwest and southeast corners of the building. Aside from serving as the home of the Colts, the stadium
hosted the NCAA Basketball March Madness Tournaments in 2009, 2010
and 2011, and will serve as the
permanent back up host for the Final Four Tournament.
It was the site of Super Bowl XLVI on February 5, 2012 as the
New York Giants beat the New England Patriots.
|
