Orlando Citrus Bowl Stadium
| Citrus Bowl | |
 | |
 | |
| Former names |
Orlando Stadium (1936–1946) Tangerine Bowl (1947–1975) Citrus Bowl (1976) Orlando Stadium (1977–1982) Florida Citrus Bowl Stadium (1983–2013) Orlando Citrus Bowl (2014–present) |
|---|---|
| Location | 1 Citrus Bowl Place, Orlando, Florida 32805 |
| Coordinates | 28°32′21″N 81°24′10″W / 28.53917°N 81.40278°WCoordinates: 28°32′21″N 81°24′10″W / 28.53917°N 81.40278°W |
| Owner | City of Orlando |
| Operator | Orlando Venues |
| Capacity | Record Attendance: WrestleMania XXIV 74,635 (2008), current capacity: 65,000[1] |
| Field size |
120 yds × 53.3 yds (football) 114 yds × 74 yds (soccer) |
| Surface |
AstroTurf GameDay Grass 3D (2010–present) Grass (1936–2009) |
| Construction | |
| Broke ground | 1936 |
| Opened | 1936 |
| Construction cost |
$115,000 $38 million (1989 renovation) $207 million (2014 renovation) ($1.95 million in 2015 dollars[2]) 1989 renovation: ($72.3 million in 2015 dollars[2]) |
| Tenants | |
|
Citrus Bowl (NCAA) (1947-1972,1974–present) Russell Athletic Bowl (NCAA) (2001–present) AutoNation Cure Bowl (NCAA) (2015) Florida Classic (NCAA) (1997–present) MEAC/SWAC Challenge (NCAA) (2008–2013, 2015) Orlando City SC (MLS) (2011-13) (2015–present) UCF Knights football (NCAA) (1979–2006) Orlando Broncos (SFL) (1962–1963) Orlando Panthers (CFL) (1966–1970) Florida Blazers (WFL) (1974) Orlando Americans (AFA) (1981) Orlando Renegades (USFL) (1985) Orlando Thunder (WLAF) (1991–1992) 1994 FIFA World Cup Orlando Sundogs (A-League) (1997) Drum Corps International (1996–1998, 2003) Orlando Rage (XFL) (2001) Jones High School football WrestleMania XXIV (WWE) (2008) Florida Tuskers (UFL) (2009–2010) East-West Shrine Game (NCAA) (CIS) (2010–2011) Orlando Fantasy ((LFL)) (2011) | |
The Orlando Citrus Bowl Stadium (formerly Orlando Stadium, Tangerine Bowl and the Florida Citrus Bowl) is an outdoor-sports stadium in Orlando, Florida, USA. The stadium is located in Downtown Orlando, home to new sports and entertainment facilities including the Amway Center, the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts and the yet-to-be-built Orlando City Stadium.[3]
The stadium is the current home of the Buffalo Wild Wings Citrus Bowl (formerly known as the Capital One Bowl), Orlando City SC of Major League Soccer, the Russell Athletic Bowl, the Florida Classic between Florida A&M and Bethune-Cookman, the MEAC/SWAC Challenge and Monster Jam. The stadium was built for football, and seats 65,000.[4] In the past, it has served as home of several alternate-league American football teams. From 2011 to 2013, it was the home of the Orlando City Soccer Club, a soccer team in USL Pro.[5] From 1979 to 2006, it served as the home of the UCF Knights football team. It was also one of the nine venues used for the 1994 FIFA World Cup.
History
Construction on the stadium began in 1936 as a project of the Works Progress Administration under President Franklin D. Roosevelt during the Great Depression.[6] The stadium was built to the immediate east of the baseball park Tinker Field, which opened in 1914. The stadium opened later in 1936 with a capacity of 8,900 as Orlando Stadium.[7] The first college football game was played on January 1, 1947. Catawba defeated Maryville 31–6. Two thousand seats were added in 1952. During this period, the stadium was known as the Tangerine Bowl. Five thousand more seats were added in 1968, along with the first press box. From 1974–76 the capacity was raised to 52,000. A capacity of 65,438 was established in 1989, after a $30 million renovation that added the upper decks. In 1983, the Florida Department of Citrus was added as a title sponsor for the facility, at a price of $250,000. From 1999 to 2002, key stadium improvements included the addition of contour seating, two escalators, and a new 107-foot (33 m) wide video screen. A new sound system, along with two full-color displays along the upper decks, was also added. Expansion of the stadium resulted in the upper deck overhanging Tinker Field's right field area, albeit at a significant height.[8]
Football
The Citrus Bowl has been home field to several short-lived professional football teams. In 1974, the Florida Blazers of the World Football League played their only season in existence at the Tangerine Bowl. The USFL's Orlando Renegades played one season in 1985. The Orlando Thunder of the WLAF called the Citrus Bowl home in their two-season existence (1991–1992), the XFL's Orlando Rage played there in 2001, the UFL's Florida Tuskers, who played 2 seasons (2009–2010) before moving to Virginia Beach, Virginia as the Virginia Destroyers in 2011, and the Orlando Fantasy of the Lingerie Football League moved to the stadium in 2011 (after playing its previous two years in UCF Arena).
National Football League preseason football games have been held at the stadium, including the Buccaneers versus Jets in 1997. Several neutral field regular season college football games have been held at the facility; notable games include Florida vs. Mississippi State and Florida State vs. Notre Dame on November 12, 1994.
The varsity football team from nearby Jones High School used the Citrus Bowl as a regular season home field for decades through the end of their 2011 season. The school started playing home football games on their own field beginning on August 31, 2012.
Rollins College, Winter Park, FL, was the first college to use the then named Orlando Stadium as its home field. It played there prior to and after World War II.
Soccer
The playing surface is large enough for use in international soccer matches, and it was a venue for the 1994 FIFA World Cup. In five matches, attendance averaged over 60,000 per match. In 1996, Olympic soccer matches in both the men's and women's competitions were held at the stadium.
It hosted the USISL A-League Orlando Sundogs in 1997. It also hosted the Major League Soccer All-Star Game in 1998. Its most recent high-level soccer game was on January 13, 2008, between Chivas de Guadalajara of the Mexican Premier Division and Deportivo Cali of Colombian Professional Football. Chivas won, 2–1, before 15,121 fans.[9]
The stadium was the home of Orlando City SC, a soccer team in the USL Pro League. In 2013, the investment group that owns that club was awarded an expansion team in Major League Soccer. Orlando City SC is building their own soccer-specific stadium, but will play in the Citrus Bowl for the 2015 MLS season until Orlando City Stadium is ready in 2016.
During the 2013, Fifth Third Bank owned naming rights to the field for Orlando City matches. Its name during those matches was Fifth Third Bank Field at the Citrus Bowl.
Orlando City played their final USL Pro match at the Citrus Bowl on September 6, 2013. They won the USL Pro Championship over Charlotte Eagles, 7-4, before a crowd of 20,886.[10] The last soccer event held at the Citrus Bowl before its renovation was an international friendly between the women's teams of the United States and Brazil. The U.S. won the match, 4-1, before a crowd of 20,274.[11]
1994 FIFA World Cup matches
| Date | Time (EDT) | Team #1 | Res. | Team #2 | Round | Spectators |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| June 19, 1994 | 12.30 | .svg.png){kind=small} Belgium | 1–0 |  Morocco | Group F | 61,219 |
| June 24, 1994 | 12.30 |  Republic of Ireland | 1–2 |  Mexico | Group E | 60,790 |
| June 25, 1994 | 12.30 | Belgium | 1–0 |  Netherlands | Group F | 62,387 |
| June 29, 1994 | 12.30 | Morocco | 1–2 | Netherlands | 60,578 | |
| July 4, 1994 | 12.00 | Netherlands | 2–0 | Republic of Ireland | Round of 16 | 61,355 |
1996 Olympic Men's Soccer tournament matches
| Date | Time (EDT) | Team #1 | Result | Team #2 | Round | Spectators |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| July 20, 1996 | 18:30 |  Spain | 1–0 |  Saudi Arabia | Group B | 28,774 |
| July 21, 1996 | 18:30 |  Nigeria | 1–0 |  Hungary | Group D | 25,303 |
| July 22, 1996 | 18:30 |  France | 1–1 | Spain | Group B | 16,773 |
| July 23, 1996 | 20:30 | Nigeria | 2–0 |  Japan | Group D | 22,734 |
| July 24, 1996 | 19:00 | Spain | 3–2 |  Australia | Group B | 12,050 |
| July 25, 1996 | 20:30 | Japan | 3–2 | Hungary | Group D | 20,834 |
1996 Olympic Women's Soccer tournament matches
| Date | Time (EDT) | Team #1 | Result | Team #2 | Round | Spectators |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| July 21, 1996 | 16:00 |  United States | 2–0 |  Denmark | Group A | 25,303 |
| July 23, 1996 | 18:00 | United States | 2–1 |  Sweden | 28,000 | |
| July 25, 1996 | 18:30 | Denmark | 1–3 | Sweden | 17,020 |
1998 MLS All-Star Game
| Date | Team #1 | Result | Team #2 | Spectators |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| August 2, 1998 | MLS USA | 6-1 |  MLS WORLD | 34,416 |
Concerts
On April 14, 1979, the "Tangerine Bowl" hosted the Florida World Music Festival. The concert was commonly known as "Florrida Jam", named after previous festivals in other states like California Jam and Texxas Jam. The spelling of Florida used two R's like the Texxas Jam that used two X's and preceded it. Acts included Aerosmith, Ted Nugent, Cheap Trick, Frank Marino & Mahogany Rush, Brownsville Station and Blackfoot. Ted Nugent joined Aerosmith on stage during their encore and played a couple of songs with the band.
It was also the only venue where Van Halen and The Rolling Stones played together live, which occurred in October 1981.
The Who played in 1982 with Joan Jett & The Blackhearts and The B-52's as the openers. The B-52's were quickly booed off stage by the crowd. The more persistent Joan Jett & The Blackhearts played a full set.
Metallica and Guns N' Roses brought the Guns N' Roses/Metallica Stadium Tour to the venue on September 2, 1992, with Faith No More as their opening act.
Paul McCartney played a sold out show at the Citrus Bowl on May 9, 1993.
On 31 March 2015, The Rolling Stones announced the Zip Code tour and that they would play on the Citrus Bowl on June 12, 2015
Other events
The Citrus Bowl was the site of two Billy Graham Crusades, the most recent of which took place in 1983.
During the 1996 Summer Olympics, it hosted some of the football (soccer) preliminaries.[12]
Drum Corps International has held its annual World Championships at the Citrus Bowl four times in 1996, 1997, 1998, and 2003
The Feld Entertainment-promoted Advance Auto Parts Monster Jam shows held there every year featured a track similar to the one at Sam Boyd Stadium in 2008 and 2009. The 2014 Monster Jam event on January 25 was the last event held at the Citrus Bowl before its massive reconstruction began.
The Corporate 5K Orlando road race has been based at the stadium for several years.
The AMA Supercross Series holds an annual spring event.
The Citrus Bowl was the site of WWE WrestleMania XXIV in 2008.
The stadium hosted the Rock Super Bowl festivals during the late 1970s and early 1980s.
Renovations
By 2005, Orlando-area government officials and officials from The University of Central Florida expressed dissatisfaction with the state of the facility and lack of revenue, as while UCF was the primary leasing tenant for the facility, it received minimal revenue from football games. Lack of an agreement to rectify these issues led UCF to consider relocating, or spend considerable expense to upgrade the facility at its own cost. In addition, the stadium's capacity was seen as too large for UCF, leaving the stadium an appearance of being empty even with attendance of as much as 30,000–40,000 people per game. UCF's all-time attendance record was 51,978 for the 2005 C-USA Championship Game versus Tulsa. Furthermore, the stadium was located over 10 miles (16 km) from the university's main campus in East Orlando, with travel times of up to a half hour due to traffic. In 2005, UCF officials led by university president John Hitt made the decision to construct a new on-campus stadium called Bright House Networks Stadium, which opened for the 2007 season.
Orlando officials began exploring stadium refurbishment project in 2004, when the Capital One Bowl bid to become a Bowl Championship Series (BCS) game, but was not chosen due to the stadium's aging condition. The Citrus Bowl also submitted a bid for the ACC Championship Game, but lost to Jacksonville Municipal Stadium. The key reasons for losing the bids are the lack of modern luxury boxes, bench seating, and capacity. The hopes for the Citrus Bowl became reality when, on September 29, 2006, Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer announced an agreement on a $175-million renovation of the Citrus Bowl. It is part of the "Triple Crown for Downtown", a $1.1-billion plan to redo the Orlando Centroplex with a new $480-million arena for the Orlando Magic, a new $375-million performing arts center, and the Citrus Bowl improvements. Conceptual drawings for the possible improvements include enclosed concourses on the east and west sides of the stadium and additions to the north side that will finally complete the lower bowl.[13] The Orlando/Orange County Interlocal Agreement was approved by the Orlando City Council on August 6, 2007. However, the plans were heavily affected by the Great Recession of 2007-08.
In 2010, the natural grass surface was replaced with AstroTurf Gameday Grass 3D after the 2009 Champs Sports Bowl and 2010 Capital One Bowl were marred by poor field conditions that led to two football player injuries. Stadium conditions once again prompted a review of the stadiums condition. Finally, it was announced in May 2013 that the Florida Citrus Bowl Stadium would undergo a reconstruction during 2014, at a cost of less than US$200 million. The cost estimate as of March 2014 was US$207 million. The stadium's upper level seating were retained, but the entire lower bowl structure was demolished.
In the newly-reconstructed stadium there are two 360-degree concourses, a 20,000-square-foot plaza deck ("Party Deck") in the north end zone, 41,000 all-new lower bowl seats with six additional inches of leg room & chairbacks, multiple giant video displays, new team facilities including locker rooms training rooms and attached media, new stadium operations facilities to allow better efficiency in food service, security, first aid and maintenance, new concessions and restrooms, and a vibrant open-air façade. The new mezzanine is now referred to as the "Plaza level". The upper deck, previously numbered the "300" level, is now numbered the "200" level.
The reconstruction began immediately following a groundbreaking event held at the stadium on January 29, 2014 and demolition of the entire lower bowl lasted 25 days. The first event at the renovated Citrus Bowl was the 2014 edition of the Florida Classic on November 22, 2014. The Bethune-Cookman Wildcats defeated the Florida A&M Rattlers, 18-17 in overtime.[14]
Seating and attendance
Prior to the 2014 renovation, the stadium had 65,000[4] permanent seats. The lower bowl lacked permanent seats in the north end zone, though temporary bleachers could be erected there if necessary. The temporary bleachers were last used for the 2005 Capital One Bowl, which had an attendance of 70,229.
Following the renovation, the seating capacity was reduced to 61,348 due to the introduction of chair-back seats in the lower bowl and Plaza Level. The upper deck continues to have bleachers. Temporary bleachers can be added in the Plaza level in place of the Party Deck to increase the capacity to 65,194.[15]
In popular culture
The Citrus Bowl was a filming location for the 1998 Adam Sandler movie The Waterboy. In the film, the Citrus Bowl depicted both the home stadium of the fictional University of Louisiana Cougars as well as the venue of the climactic Bourbon Bowl game.
Exterior shots of the Citrus Bowl were used in the television series Coach, starring Craig T. Nelson as Coach Hayden Fox. In the show, the Citrus Bowl was the home stadium of the fictional Orlando Breakers franchise, which Coach Fox led during the series' final 2 seasons (1995–1997). The change, which coincided with a production move to Disney-MGM Studios, reflected the real-life expansion team, the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Footnotes
Works cited
- Now you can watch the Citrus Bowl reconstruction online as it happens
- Whitley Writes: The Citrus Bowl Is Dead, Long Live The Citrus Bowl
References
- ↑ http://www.orlandocitysc.com/club/facilities
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–2014. Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. Retrieved February 27, 2014.
- ↑ City of Orlando Community Venues
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 http://www.floridacitrussports.com/stadium.aspx
- ↑ "GET 2014 SEASON TICKETS TODAY TO GUARANTEE SEAT IN 2015!". Retrieved 5 November 2013.
- ↑ Now you can watch the Citrus Bowl reconstruction online as it happens. Central Florida News 13.
- ↑ "The Orlando Citrus Bowl: A Brief History".
- ↑ "Orlando Citrus Bowl history".
- ↑ Guadalajara 2–1 Deportivo Cali
- ↑ http://orlandocitysc.com/news/?article_id=1585
- ↑ http://www.ussoccer.com/news/womens-national-team/2013/11/131110-wntvbra-report.aspx
- ↑ 1996 Summer Olympics official report. Volume 1. p. 539.
- ↑ http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/local/orange/orl-bk-magic09292006,0,1078507.story
- ↑ http://scores.espn.go.com/ncf/conversation?gameId=400558856
- ↑ http://bungalower.com/2013/12/demolition-florida-citrus-bowl-reconstruction-begins-next-month/
External links
| Events and tenants | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by first stadium ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex |
Home of Orlando City SC 2011 – 2013 2015 |
Succeeded by ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex Orlando City Stadium |
| Preceded by Pro Player Stadium |
Home of Russell Athletic Bowl 2001 – present |
Succeeded by current |
| Preceded by first stadium Florida Field |
Home of Capital One Bowl 1947 – 1972 1974 – present |
Succeeded by Florida Field current |
| Preceded by Memorial Stadium (Wichita Falls) |
Host of the NCAA Division I-AA National Championship Game 1979 |
Succeeded by Hughes Stadium |
| Preceded by Rich Stadium Camp Randall Stadium |
Host of the Drum Corps International World Championship 1996 – 1998 2003 |
Succeeded by Camp Randall Stadium Invesco Field at Mile High |
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