Houlihan's Stadium
| "The Big Sombrero" | |
Tampa (Houlihan's) Stadium in early 1999
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| Full name | Tampa Stadium |
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| Former names | Tampa Stadium (November 4, 1967 – December 28, 1995) Houlihan's Stadium (January 16, 1996 – April 11, 1999) |
| Address | 4201 North Dale Mabry Highway |
| Location | Tampa, Florida |
| Coordinates | 27°58′44″N 82°30′13″W / 27.97889°N 82.50361°WCoordinates: 27°58′44″N 82°30′13″W / 27.97889°N 82.50361°W |
| Owner | Tampa Sports Authority |
| Operator | Tampa Sports Authority |
| Capacity | 46,481 (original) 74,301 (final) |
| Surface | Bermuda grass |
| Construction | |
| Broke ground | October 9, 1966 |
| Opened | November 4, 1967 |
| Renovated | 1983, 1990 |
| Expanded | December 4, 1974 – June 5, 1975 |
| Closed | September 13, 1998 |
| Demolished | April 11, 1999 |
| Construction cost | US$4.4 million ($31.6 million in 2017 dollars) US$13 million (renovations) ($31.3 million in 2017 dollars) |
| Architect | Watson & Company Architects, Engineers & Planners |
| General contractor | Jones-Mahoney Construction Co. |
| Tenants | |
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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) USF Bulls (NCAA) (1997) |
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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. It opened in 1967, was significantly expanded in 1974–75, and was demolished in 1999. 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 1990.
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.
To meet the revenue demands of the Buccaneers' new owners, Raymond James Stadium was built at public expense in Tampa Stadium's parking lot in 1998. The older stadium was demolished in early 1999.
The land on which Tampa Stadium was situated had been the perimeter of Drew Field, a World War II-era airfield which was the precursor to Tampa International Airport. In 1949, the city of Tampa bought a 720-acre grassy parcel between the airport and West Tampa from the federal government with the idea of eventually building a community sports complex.Al Lopez Field was the first phase of the project, opening in 1955.
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