Stadiums hosting weird events

Discussing sports stadiums hosting the weirdest events
My Twitter - / realpatrickmcl

[@kingjulian420]

"...obscure events like tennis, *soccer* "

[@danimalman3]

😂😂😂 I know what he means but that's hilarious out of context.

[@AlexSilver9]

Never heard of these events, they entertaining? 🤣

[@Qwnntm]

As a MLB / NFL fan, I'd like to know: what are these events? They sound interesting

[@lewatoaofair2522]

Only in America.

[@tajr7153]

😂😂😂😂😂

[@donkraemer50]

The Lightning used to sell out the Trop during regular season. The fanbase was incredible.

[@tony_m_km6mzp]

Great Video DG! If you do a part two to this, make sure to add AT&T (Oracle) Park hosting the 2018 Rugby Sevens World Cup. It has held during the 2018 MLB season and the San Francisco Giants players said that the fieldwasn't the same afterwards. And don't forget about the L.A> Coliseum hosting a pre-season NASCAR Cup Series dirt race.

[@davidferguson3638]

You should do a video on the RCA Dome aka "Hoosier Dome" !

[@slickrick51583]

In 2018, the current Yankee Stadium hosted college football regular season game between Notre Dame and Syracuse. In fact, Notre Dame wore unis that look similar to the Yankees unis. In 2010, Notre Dame played Army at the current Yankee Stadium as well.

[@reverend_wintondupree]

Rutgers and Army have also played and hosted seperate regular season games at the current Yankee. It has also hosted FCS games (Lehigh/Lafayette, Fordham/Holy Cross) and even DIII Ithaca/Cortland.

[@davelb87]

8:34 if memory serves, the baseball convertibility was a requirement for the Vikings to get public funding for the ballpark. City makes money hand over fist renting to high schools and colleges for early season games.

[@JH-lu9lx]

Wrigley Field was home of the Chicago Bears for 50 years from the early 1920s- to the early 1970s. It was before my time but I have seen several photos of Wrigley hosting Bears Games and one of the end zones was slightly smaller that a normal end zone due to the dimensions of the park.

[@jwbogacki]

I remembered in the original xfl when san francisco had a team and they played their home games at pac bell park (long before it became oracle). And all the nhl winter classic games in football and baseball stadiums.

[@johnm994]

As a San Diego State alumn and supporter I hated the Petco Park game from the beginning. And sure enough it cost us an NCAA Tournament bid that year. You never give a sorry team like USD a gimmick game like that to give them a chance.

[@davidv2700]

I saw a video of hockey players trying crashed ice when it was set up at Fenway Park.

[@jonathanlocy3374]

Hard Rock stadium hosts the Miami open in tennis

[@talldude5841]

How about the Astrodome hosting a basketball game in the late 1960's with Elvin Hayes for Houston against Lew Alcindor of UCLA. Epic. Good show De.

[@richshort8120]

I remember watching the Billie Jean King age 29 "Battle of the Sexes" tennis match against the 55-year-old Bobby Riggs at the Astrosdome in 1973

[@hankaaron3942]

Can you do a video on how you would design the ultimate modern multi sport stadium?

[@MrmalibuVLX]

There was the USBC masters bowling at Miller park.

[@casualportraits]

They’re called the gimmick games

[@billbeliakoff5589]

Wrigley also was home to the Chicago Sting soccer team.

[@andyshepard4309]

Corrections: 1) New Or-luh-ns 2) The baseball configuration was available until the 2011 renovations

[@joshdrenth4526]

Very surprised Fenway isn't on the list with both college football and NHL Frozen Fenway every year

[@rockvilleraven]

Also was home to the AFL Boston Patriots for a few years.

[@gabemorrison9702]

Turner Field was built to accommodate the Olympics then to be converted into a baseball stadium following the Olympics. Everything in the "left field and center field" areas was more or less temporary structures for the Olympics then taken down and the permanent baseball outfield bleachers were built

[@rockvilleraven]

Now Turner Field is Center Park Stadium, home of Georgia State Football and was home to the AAF Atlanta Legends. If the XFL or USFL ever puts a team there, this is more likely where they’d play.

[@rynenavarro1587]

Gotta look up when killer park was used for bowling.

[@DoctorEw220]

The Superdome hosted the New Orleans Pelicans Minor League Baseball team.

[@meadster308]

You didn't mention the NHL's annual Winter Classic or their Stadium Series.

[@dalejensen5828]

The NY Giants called Yankee Stadium home for years after the Polo Grounds demise.

[@JungMeezy]

Air Force's Falcon Stadium hosted an NHL game

[@scottbrzeczek2415]

Needed to have some shots of midget auto racing inside old Hoosier dome.

[@Danielbulldog]

Nascar at Los Angeles coliseum is interesting and weird event

[@cary3517]

The pro bowlers tour had an event at the then miller park

[@haydenjohnson2186]

Wisconsin is a low scoring team they also had pba bowling in am fam

[@davidbonilla7770]

60-50 isn’t really low scoring for a big 12 team

[@559.adrian2]

Petco park💀

[@jcarne7]

The NY Football Giants played at Yankee Stadium for almost 20 years. Also hosted boxing and wrestling. Definition of multi use.

[@meadster308]

Ken Norton best Muhammad Ali at Yankee Stadium.

[@robbarbieri8676]

@@meadster308 No, Norton lost a split decision, obviously very controversial. They showed the fight on one of the networks a few days later with a bunch of sportswriters watching. As I recall, they were pretty much split as to who won. I thought Norton clearly took the last round which would have made him champ. Norton did win the first fight against Ali (a non-title fight, Foreman had the belt) in San Diego, I believe.

[@jbj7599]

​@meadster308 nope that was in California

[@jbj7599]

​@@robbarbieri86762nd was in Inglewood

[@giovannipieve5603]

but it wasn't built as a multipurpose. It was built for baseball and everything else is shoehorned in. Multipurpose is designed to accommodate multiple sports comfortably

[@gocanuckgus]

The LA coliseum hosting NASCAR gotta be one of my favourite ones

[@mityace]

Yes, I'm surprised DG missed that. It's a temporary track laid down each of the last two years. Some of the idea came from the legendary Bowman Gray Stadium in Winston-Salem, NC. However, Bowman Gray has a permanent, paved 1/4 mile track around the football field where running tracks are at many high school stadiums.

[@meadster308]

On the flip side, a college football game was hosted at Bristol Speedway.

[@filipek6401]

And the Stadium Super Trucks in 2013. That track was really cool.

[@firelynx1108]

not to mention Hard Rock Stadium being the paddock area for an F1 race

[@jameshart7659]

Bristol Motor Speedway turned in to a football stadium. College football. Something like 150,000 showed up.

[@yellowsun3164]

Surprised you didn’t include any winter classics Anyways, great video as always. Love your content man

[@JosephCoates]

The Bears played in Wrigley until sometime in the 70s.

[@ymcairedellbball]

At Wrigley, there wasn't enough room by NCAA standards to use the end zone with the outfield wall, so every time possession changed, they flipped the field and scored all the touchdowns in the same direction. A fine example of poor pre-game planning.

[@meadster308]

Which is weird because the Chicago Bears played at Wrigley for a number of years.

[@ymcairedellbball]

@@meadster308 the rules were different back then. Player safety wasn't nearly as big of a concern. Think leather helmets and very little padding.

[@TimmyTickle]

IIRC, one defensive TD was scored in the outfield endzone

[@timelymirror7826]

is that true

[@ymcairedellbball]

@@timelymirror7826 yes

[@JayJ95X]

You missed the Raptors first few seasons where they were playing at Skydome/Rogers Centre (home of the Blue Jays) while Air Canada Centre (now Scotiabank Arena) was being built

[@BusMaxx]

I think the real question is what hasn’t been held at skydome. Argos and the Bills, cricket test matches, then that weird track event with Donovan Bailey ….

[@michaelliszewski5776]

The OG Yankee Stadium should count as a multi-purpose because its RF bleachers were designed to be angled properly to face a football field and its CF and LF we positioned deep enough to accommodate football. Obviously, it wasn't an ideal football venue, but just as the Superdome was a multipurpose facility that was truly only meant for one sport, so was the 1923 Yankee. If you look at early overhead photos of the 1923 Yankee looking in from past LF, it is obvious it was built for two sports.

[@markd2344]

I agree. The third base stands when it first opened always seemed to me to be configured to handle football. When it opened 1923, Yankee Stadium’s capacity far exceeded that of almost all college football stadiums, so there were plenty of “good” seats to go around.

[@cypher515]

That's a bit interesting. You could say that of the Polo Grounds, too, couldn't you? And at least one cookie cutter I'd say was a lot more adequate for one sport than another, because I think Shea feels like it was _abysmal_ for football.

[@markd2344]

@@cypher515 The Polo Grounds' layout was due to the parcel size. There were 2 parcels in Coogan's Hollow. The Giants had built one on the south parcel, which they leased. A team from the short lived Player's League built another park on the north parcel. The Player's League quickly folded and the Giants took over the new stadium and the lease. However, they didn't maintain a lease on the south parcel. As they rebuilt and expanded the ballpark, they were hemmed in by the shape of the parcel. That the Polo Grounds was configured so well for football was more of coincidence than anything else. The wikipedia article on the Polo Grounds is surprisingly accurate.

[@simonhimself1]

Yankee stadium hosting soccer is always a weird event. Great baseball stadium. Worst MLS stadium.

[@Lancer21]

Another weird thing that Miller Park (yeah I still don’t like the name change) hosted was a bowling tournament

[@gablefisk-govphost817]

In 1991, the Kings and Rangers played an outdoor game in an impromptu arena behind Caesar's Palace. The Kings won, and Tie Domi tripped on a grasshopper.

[@bhnddamask]

Awesome video. Thanks for the content and research. Oracle Park in SF hosted Cal Football games during renovations at Cals football stadium. It has also hosted soccer games there.

[@meadster308]

Oracle used to host a college bowl game a number of years ago.

[@SFTrafficObserver]

XFL - San Francisco Demons in 2001

[@Oben01]

Great video bro! You should do a on Turner Field turning into a college football stadium for Georgia State

[@KimJohnstonRadioPersonality]

You totally missed the world snowboard championships this year at Commonwealth Stadium in Edmonton. They built a massive ramp from the top of the stadium down to field level and it looked terrifying!!!

[@geneseofootball1915]

Where did he say that EVERY stadium is in the video? 🙄

[@bluejaysbaseball]

Anthony Bass is under some hot water for supporting the Target boycotts would love to hear your take on it

[@jeremynauman8803]

I don't know if anyone else mentioned it, but Miller Park hosted the 2007 USBC Masters Finals (bowling)

[@markofly76]

We're getting the Winter Classic on January 2024 at T-Mobile Park. They also hosted a Wrestlemania back in 2003, and had a Bowl Game in 2001.

[@manuelgrothe608]

0:17 I vote a Major League Baseball team in New Orleans with a new Stadium instead of Mercedes Benz Superdome

[@NathanMoist]

Miller Park and AT&T Stadium also hosted men and women's professional bowling.

[@CreightonRabs]

If any MLB team is going to play in San Antonio, it'll probably be the Astros, not the Rangers. The Astros seem to have a stronger fan base in San Antonio, and to a lesser extent Austin, than the Rangers.

[@manuelgrothe608]

4:38 imagine Los Angles FC or Los Angles Rams playing at Dodgers Stadium

[@TheoWorkman]

I laughed when you guessed the Lightning played a playoff game in Tropicana Field. They were terrible their first few years; that packed stadium was definitely one of their first games.

[@inter_1097]

they had a Rugby Sevens World cup at the SF Giants stadium before. Sevens rugby is . 7 on 7, instead of the traditional 15 and the matches are about 20 minutes in length (inc halftime, stoppages, etc) so they crammed the entire tournament there in one weekend.

[@rwboa22]

Subaru Park in Chester, Pennsylvania (where the MLS Philadelphia Union play their home matches) has hosted the Rugby Sevens Championships as well as the "Battle of the Blues" football games (being Villanova University v. the University of Delaware; both being NCAA Division I-AA) so the pitch (being of standard FIFA dimensions) can easily accommodate both rugby and American Football.

[@nunya8938]

Churchill Downs (KY derby) hosted a louisville basketball game. Last year our AAA stadium hosted an outdoor louisville basketball game too

[@AlexSilver9]

Shoutout to Fenway Park, host to football, hockey, soccer, boxing, even ski jumping in addition to baseball

[@GregoryZucco-z6m]

My dad saw a Football Game at Fenway during WWII.

[@DragonEnergy25]

Do a video on USF getting a football stadium

[@rhodesfunk2996]

the red bull crashed ice event they did at fenway a few years ago was pretty interesting. They set up massive ice jumps that people did on ice skates, I didn't even know such a thing existed at the time.

[@jjw8283]

didn’t michael jordan play a game at rogers centre home of the blue jays?

[@martincruz8319]

The SkyDome (now known as Rogers Centre) was an occasional host venue for the Toronto Raptors for the first season or so before Sociabank Arena was open.

[@mikes7446]

Wtf the Lightning played at that dump

[@fennrysha]

Can do a ton of these. Just off the top of my head, ski jumping at Fenway and Dodgers Stadium, Red Bull Crashed Ice at Fenway, baseball at the LA Colosseum, I think I remember an NBA game at Indian Wells, the Raptors played several seasons at SkyDome, football and Irish hurling at Fenway, NHL on a golf course in Lake Tahoe...

[@gregsells8549]

Going further back, ski jumping at Soldier Field and the LA Coliseum, bullfighting at the Astrodome along with rodeo (which is now at NRG Stadium), an ice show at the LA Coliseum, and a Mardi Gras parade in the Superdome. A couple of stadiums in Australia hosted parades during COVID: the LGBTQ Mardi Gras at the Sydney Cricket Ground and a Christmas pageant at the Adelaide Oval. There's also a Christmas parade at the McAllen Veterans Memorial Stadium in Texas. The Buccaneer Days parade in Corpus Christi formerly started at the city's Buccaneer Stadium, and during COVID took place in the American Bank Center arena.

[@fennrysha]

@@gregsells8549 definitely a lot of fodder for more of these types of videos!

[@mightymike19848]

U forgot the blues hosting the Blackhawks in Busch stadium

[@andrewhaywood1262]

And every other outdoor NHL game...not to mention the Busch Clash in the LA Coliseum.

[@DamonMurphy1]

Pac Bell (or whatever it's called now - where the SF Giants play) hosted the XFL Demons (in 2000? or 2001?). That was an interesting setup with temp stands in LF. But it seemed to workout pretty well. IIRC, the first few games were well-attended.

[@SFTrafficObserver]

A few Bowl Games before going to Levi's Stadium

[@jojovaldez2766]

I went to Levi s Stadium once The place hosted a WWE WrestleMania event in 2015 but wrestling isn t a weird event. It s sports entertainment

[@donkraemer50]

When Wrigley hosts football now they flip the field when possession changes so the offense is always going to the same endzone, since one is right up against the wall they make the offense run to the endzone with a bigger buffer zone

[@brianstacey2679]

There was no curtain in the Superdome when it hosted baseball. Other than a small handful of MLB exhibitions and I think one season of Pelicans minor league baseball, the most baseball it hosted was the annual Winn Dixie Showdown which had LSU, Tulane, and UNO facing 3 schools from another state.

[@richshort8120]

Cool shot of the Polo Grounds 9:37 My childhood stadium going there from 1962 - 1963 to watch the Mets play there. I wonder it this was a New York Titans game being played there of the old American Football League

[@28451104]

Osaka Stadium in Osaka,Japan once had an ice skate rink. They also hosted a model house exposition. Lots of houses were built in the field during the off season.

[@Hilly_On_The_Go]

Love the videos. Busch Stadium hosted more than just baseball for years. St. Louis Cardinals (MLB) (1966-2005) St. Louis Cardinals (NFL) (1966-1987) St. Louis Stars (NPSL / NASL) (1967-1974) St. Louis Rams (NFL) (1995)

[@MichaelOKeefe2009]

Yankee Stadium also hosted the most NEW YORKA kind of sport..................Boxing.

[@teto85]

The Alamodome was large enough to host Canadian Football League games and it did for one year. And don't forget the NHL Winter Classics. Outdoor hockey around New Year's Day.

[@carlfromtheoc1788]

Bro. You missed the Anaheim Ducks playing the L.A. Kings at dodger Stadium. And you completely overlooked the L.A. Didgers playing in the L.A. Colosseum where they set single game regular season attendance records, single game World Series attendance records, and total World Series attendance records that will likely never, ever be broken. I am disappoint. Oh yeah, the L.A. Colosseum has hosted the opening ceremony of 2 and soon to be 3 Olympics.

[@justsamoo3480]

The most interesting example I think actually happened in Croatia. They used Pula Arena, which is a Roman colosseum for two random hockey games. I don’t even know how they managed to play hockey there since Pula is a really warm place.

[@P00katube]

You left out Shea Stadium with The Jets games, WWWF/WWF wrestling with Superstar Billy Graham and Andre The Giant back in the late 1970's-early 1980's, and of course The Beatles Concerts At Shea Stadium in 1965 and 1966. You also left out Citi Field. There was a International Test Match for the Cricket fans in 2016-17 if i recall correctly.

[@craigphillips3154]

You missed when they did "Big Air" snowboarding at SunTrust Park in Atlanta. I think they did it at Fenway, too. Kennesaw State played a football game at SunTrust, too.

[@maxscameraguy]

At lot missed here. BC Place for baseball, Alamo dome for basketball and Arena football, SkyDome for basketball, Fenway for multiple sports, Citi field for soccer, old Busch stadium for the St. Louis Rams, Oracle for XFL Football to name a few off the top of my head

[@davidscillufo8545]

How about hockey at Dodgers Stadium. And super weird NHL in Vegas. Not Knights but LA Kings outside at Caesars Palace. Not sure of year. 80s or 90s

[@GregoryFariss]

Minnesota stadium was required to be suitable for baseball so U of Minn could play preseason games indoors. NCAA season starts early when there is still snow in Minn. it’s not up to MLB standards.

[@jamesfields2916]

Two of the most famous football games ever played were played at Yankee Stadium. 1946 Army Notre Dame and 1959 Baltimore New York.

[@znxghtmxrez3480]

Fenways had some weird ones over the last few years. Liverpool played Sevilla a few years back as well as the bowl games like Yankee Stadium does ex. Wasabi Bowl. And they’ve also had a snowboarding arena setup for public use in the winter sponsored by Red Bull

[@michaelmcgivern9583]

the Syracuse Orange played Notre Dame at Yankee Stadium during regular season only a few years or so back

[@GregoryFariss]

If multipurpose stadiums suck so bad then why are they playing football games in stadiums built for baseball?

[@kessel12]

The court at Petco Park was tennis, not volleyball, and it was for the Davis Cup in 2014 - US vs GBR as shown in one of the pictures

[@terryd3008]

Surprised you didn’t mention the finals of the 2007 USBC Masters Tournament held at Miller Park

[@_naZKar]

Yo I actually remember going to the snow days in progressive field, I kind of wish they brought it back

[@jonstefanik9400]

WWF's Showdown at Shea in 1980. Also WrestleFest at County Stadium in 1988.

[@billschipper1718]

The Sky dome hosted a NBA game once. It was the largest crowd till last year when the Alamo dome beat it. Also no outdoor hockey games. In the 70s Las Vegas would host boxing matches in their parking lots.

[@T1214-k9c]

Tropicana Field also had wrestling there for WWE during Covid. Ironically they also called it the Thunderdome

[@davidscillufo8545]

Also old Chicago Stadium hosted Chicago Bears or some other football game. It had dirt field no grass. I don't think players wore helmets or face masks. Before forward pass was invented.

[@gordono672]

I'm ok with the US Bank Stadium baseball uaage. Some states/ countries are just happy to have sporting events of any kind so I try not to be too particular about stadiums having an unusual look/ too much seating except that long term it's a waste to have a lot of extra seating.

[@GregoryFariss]

That stuff covering the infield is call ed grass, real life sod. This is what they did for decades in grass multipurpose stadiums after baseball season was over.

[@stuarttupp3541]

What about the Battle At Bristol? 150,000 screaming fans watching a football game at a Speedway!

[@glenashworth9550]

Iwas liked the Wrigley football config. The goalpost connected to the wall. You went out for a pass and would disappear into the ivy.

[@jbj7599]

Miller Park also hosted a bowling tournament! Can't forget Supercross at Big Arenas! Part 2 is needed

[@carlosv3108]

I remember when the Spurs played at the Alamodome for several years including their '99 championship season with the large curtain on one side.

[@griffinperley9247]

The fact you did a video in stadiums hosting weird events and you didn’t include the LA coliseum running a NASCAR race inside is it, is crazy

[@coletonwaller5427]

Chase field hosting the Royal Rumble was an interesting configuration I got to see in person. Also was at that ASU/WV game there

[@danimalman3]

The weirdest thing I've seen was the trop hosting the final four besides the basketball game at American family field.

[@jonathanphillips-yakym3646]

Notre dame played they’re shamrock series game at Yankee stadium a couple years ago. They wore baseball styled football uniforms

[@TheNewChevyRoll48]

Hopefully there's some photos out there, but at one point Daytona Intl. Speedway hosted football games and currently have a soccer event that goes on every march.

[@glenashworth9550]

One I always liked when the Fenway Bowl and if notice they would leave MLB east baseball standing on the scoreboard.