Mile High Stadium
Encyclopedia
Mile High Stadium was a multi-purpose stadium
, that stood in Denver, Colorado
, from 1948
until 2001
.
It hosted the Denver Broncos
, of the AFL
and the NFL
, from 1960
-2000
, the Colorado Rockies
, of the National League
, of the MLB
, from 1993
-1994
, the Colorado Rapids
, of MLS
, from 1996
-2001, the Denver Gold
, of the USFL, from 1983
-1985
and the Denver Bears and Denver Zephyrs, of minor league baseball's Western League
, American Association
and PCL
, from its completion in 1948, until 1992
.
in 1948 at the site of a former landfill
. The stadium initially consisted of a single 17,000-seat grandstand stretching along the north side from the left field foul pole to the right field foul pole on the west side. Luther "Bud" Phillips hit the first official Home Run out of Bears Stadium.
In the late 1950s there was an attempt to form the Continental League
led by the famous Dodger
General Manager, Branch Rickey
. Bob Howsam joined ranks with Rickey, pleading for a major league team in Denver. Advised that to get a major league franchise Denver would need a much larger ballpark, Bears Stadium would begin the first of its many expansions. Over eight thousand seats were added to the south stands, bringing stadium capacity to 23,100. The new east stands increased seating to 34,657.
Major League Baseball
’s answer to the Continental League was to expand the league, which would eventually lead to the folding of the Continental League. Although Denver was not awarded a franchise, MLB promised teams in the future for Denver and other cities. Howsam was now trapped with a large stadium and debt he could not afford. Frantically searching for a solution, he turned to football. After meeting Lamar Hunt
, Bud Adams
, and George Halas
, Howsam helped form the American Football League
(AFL) and Denver was awarded the Broncos
.
, raising the capacity to 34,000.
Howsam's ownership in the AFL was short-lived as overwhelming debt forced Howsam to sell all his sports interests in 1961. His dream of major league baseball in Denver would be placed on hold for another 30 years.
Denver had to settle for the minor league Bears and the AFL Broncos, who resembled football's version of the early New York Mets
. The players looked comical in their yellow and black vertical striped socks and mustard yellow and brown uniforms, and the team was sometimes derided by local fans in the stadium when the Broncos would take the field. It took a few years to gain a following. In 1961
, they drew fewer fans in a year than the Broncos now draw in a single game. In the middle of the 1960s, uniforms changed, there were some wins, attendance turned around and more locals caught what came to be known as "Bronco Fever".
One condition of including Denver in the AFL-NFL merger
announced in 1966
was expanding Mile High Stadium to at least 50,000 capacity. This required adding second and third decks along the west sideline (first base line). This expansion was completed in 1968
, when the stadium was sold to the city of Denver, which renamed it Mile High Stadium and built the upper deck along the west side, thus raising capacity to 50,000. .
-1977
raised the capacity to 75,103 by extending the upper deck along the north side and building a movable triple-decked stands along the east side. When fully retracted, the stands would form a horseshoe for football, but when fully extended by 145 feet (44 m), the stadium could still fit a normal-sized baseball field. The structure was 535 feet (163 m) long, 135 feet (41 m) tall and 200 feet (61 m) deep, weighing nearly 9 million pounds (4,500 short tons, 4,000 metric tons). In order to move the stands over more than 90,000 square feet (8,000 m²) of runways, water was pumped onto the runways and formed a 0.003 inch (76 micrometer) sheet upon which the stands rested. Hydraulic rams then pushed the stands forward at the rate of three feet per minute (15 mm/s), taking about two hours from start to finish.
, 77 luxury suites were added atop the west stands, increasing the official seating capacity
to 76,123.
Billy Graham
held his "Rocky Mountain Crusade" at the stadium in 1987.
The stadium hosted the final show of The 1988 Monsters of Rock
Festival Tour, featuring Van Halen
, Metallica
, Scorpions
, Dokken
and Kingdom Come
, on July 30, 1988.
and Guns N' Roses
brought the Guns N' Roses/Metallica Stadium Tour
to the stadium on September 19, 1992, with Body Count
as their opening act.
The large size of the stadium combined with fan enthusiasm over the new team as well as some of the lowest ticket prices in Major League Baseball allowed the expansion Rockies to set Major League Baseball attendance records
before moving to Coors Field
for the 1995
season. The stadium was known for its loudness, the sound bouncing around within the horseshoe. Because of the large size of center and right fields and foul territory (although left field was shorter than average), as well as the 30-foot (10 m) high fence in center field, the stadium was not as problematic for pitchers as Coors Field
proved to be. The club's 1993 season
attendance was 4,483,350 in 79 home dates (81 games - 2 doubleheaders), an average of 56,751 per home date. The Rockies were on a pace to top that record in 1994
when the ballplayers' strike occurred. They had drawn 3,281,511 in 57 home dates (also 57 games), an average of 57,570 per home date. (Season attendance figures from The Sporting News Baseball Record Book, 2007, p. 234; Game counts are from game logs on Retrosheet.http://www.retrosheet.org/boxesetc/1993/VCOL01993.htmhttp://www.retrosheet.org/boxesetc/1994/VCOL01994.htm)
The stadium played host to Ozzfest
on June 24, 1997.
, in which the Broncos
routed the 49ers
, 38-9.
The stadium again hosted Ozzfest, for the second and last time, on June 21, 2001 and hosted The Area:One Festival
on July 28, 2001. The stadium was featured in Michael Moore
's 2002 documentary Bowling for Columbine
as the backdrop for Moore's interview with controversial rock
musician
Marilyn Manson
during the 2001 Ozzfest tour.
Mile High Stadium was closed in 2001
, after the Denver Broncos
and Colorado Rapids
moved to neighboring Invesco Field at Mile High (currently known as Sports Authority Field at Mile High), upon the completion of the new stadium. The demolition of Mile High Stadium began in January 2002, an event covered extensively by local newspapers and broadcast live on television. The demolition was performed by Spirtas Wrecking Company of St. Louis, Mo., the same group that led the demolition of stadiums in St. Louis
, Pittsburgh
and Seattle
. Mile High Stadium was brought down in segments rather than being imploded
due to the rather complex nature of the structural steel foundation. The process took approximately three months to complete, and when the work was done on April 17, all that remained of Mile High Stadium was some concrete that became the foundation for Invesco Field's parking lot.
Multi-purpose stadium
Multi-purpose stadiums are a type of stadium designed in such a way as to be easily used by multiple sports. While any stadium could potentially host more than one sport, this concept usually refers to a specific design philosophy that stresses multi-functionality over specificity...
, that stood in Denver, Colorado
Denver, Colorado
The City and County of Denver is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Denver is a consolidated city-county, located in the South Platte River Valley on the western edge of the High Plains just east of the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains...
, from 1948
1948 in sports
-American football:* University of Michigan wins college football national championship.* Cleveland Browns 49–7 Buffalo Bills in the All-America Football Conference championship game....
until 2001
2001 in sports
2001 in sports describes the year's events in world sport.-Alpine skiing:* Alpine Skiing World Cup** Men's overall season champion: Hermann Maier, Austria** Women's overall season champion: Janica Kostelić, Croatia-American football:...
.
It hosted the Denver Broncos
Denver Broncos
The Denver Broncos are a professional American football team based in Denver, Colorado. They are currently members of the West Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
, of the AFL
American Football League
The American Football League was a major American Professional Football league that operated from 1960 until 1969, when the established National Football League merged with it. The upstart AFL operated in direct competition with the more established NFL throughout its existence...
and the NFL
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
, from 1960
1960 in sports
1960 in sports describes the year's events in world sport.-Alpine skiing:* The men's Olympic Gold Medal:** Downhill: Jean Vuarnet, France** Slalom: Ernst Hinterseer, Austria** Giant Slalom: Roger Staub, Switzerland** The women's Olympic Gold Medal:...
-2000
2000 in sports
2000 in sports describes the year's events in world sport.-Alpine skiing:* Alpine Skiing World Cup** Men's overall season champion: Hermann Maier, Austria** Women's overall season champion: Renate Götschl, Austria-American football:...
, the Colorado Rockies
Colorado Rockies
The Colorado Rockies are a Major League Baseball team based in Denver, Colorado. Established in 1991, they started play in 1993 and are in the West Division of the National League. The team is named after the Rocky Mountains...
, of the National League
National League
The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League , is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball, and the world's oldest extant professional team sports league. Founded on February 2, 1876, to replace the National Association of Professional...
, of the MLB
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
, from 1993
1993 in sports
1993 in sports describes the year's events in world sport.-Alpine skiing:* Alpine Skiing World Cup** Men's overall season champion: Marc Girardelli, Luxembourg** Women's overall season champion: Anita Wachter, Austria-American football:...
-1994
1994 in sports
1994 in sports describes the year's events in world sport.-Alpine skiing:* January 29 – death of Ulrike Maier , Austrian skier, who broke her neck when she crashed during a World Cup downhill race at Garmisch-Partenkirchen...
, the Colorado Rapids
Colorado Rapids
The Colorado Rapids are an American professional soccer club based in the Denver suburb of Commerce City, Colorado which competes in Major League Soccer , the top professional soccer league in the United States and Canada. It is one of the ten charter clubs of MLS, having competed in the league...
, of MLS
Major League Soccer
Major League Soccer is a professional soccer league based in the United States and sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation . The league is composed of 19 teams — 16 in the U.S. and 3 in Canada...
, from 1996
1996 in sports
1996 in sports describes the year's events in world sport.-Alpine skiing:* Alpine Skiing World Cup** Men's overall season champion: Lasse Kjus, Norway** Women's overall season champion: Katja Seizinger, Germany-American football:...
-2001, the Denver Gold
Denver Gold
The Denver Gold was a franchise in the United States Football League, an attempt to establish a second major professional football league in the United States, playing a springtime season, from 1983 to 1985...
, of the USFL, from 1983
1983 in sports
1983 in sports describes the year's events in world sport.-Alpine skiing:* Alpine Skiing World Cup:** Men's overall season champion: Phil Mahre, United States** Women's overall season champion: Tamara McKinney, United States-American football:...
-1985
1985 in sports
1985 in sports describes the year's events in world sport.-Alpine skiing:* Alpine Skiing World Cup:** Men's overall season champion: Marc Girardelli, Luxembourg** Women's overall season champion: Michela Figini, Switzerland-American football:...
and the Denver Bears and Denver Zephyrs, of minor league baseball's Western League
Western League (defunct minor league)
The Western League is a name given to several circuits in American minor league baseball. Its earliest progenitor, which existed from 1885 to 1899, was the predecessor of the American League...
, American Association
American Association (20th century)
The American Association was a minor league baseball league at the Triple-A level of baseball in the United States from to and to . Together with the International League, it contested the Junior World Series which determined the championship team in minor league baseball, at least for the...
and PCL
Pacific Coast League
The Pacific Coast League is a minor-league baseball league operating in the Western, Midwestern and Southeastern United States. Along with the International League and the Mexican League, it is one of three leagues playing at the Triple-A level, which is one step below Major League Baseball.The...
, from its completion in 1948, until 1992
1992 in sports
1992 in sports describes the year's events in world sport.-Alpine skiing:* Alpine Skiing World Cup* Men's overall season champion: Paul Accola, Switzerland* Women's overall season champion: Petra Kronberger, Austria-American football:...
.
Early years as Bears Stadium (1948-1959)
Mile High Stadium was originally built as Bears Stadium for minor league baseball by Bob HowsamBob Howsam
Robert Lee Howsam was an executive in American professional sport who, in 1959, played a key role in establishing two leagues — the American Football League, which succeeded and merged with the National Football League, and baseball's Continental League, which never played a game but forced...
in 1948 at the site of a former landfill
Landfill
A landfill site , is a site for the disposal of waste materials by burial and is the oldest form of waste treatment...
. The stadium initially consisted of a single 17,000-seat grandstand stretching along the north side from the left field foul pole to the right field foul pole on the west side. Luther "Bud" Phillips hit the first official Home Run out of Bears Stadium.
In the late 1950s there was an attempt to form the Continental League
Continental League
The Continental League was a proposed third major league for baseball, announced in 1959 and scheduled to begin play in the 1961 season...
led by the famous Dodger
Los Angeles Dodgers
The Los Angeles Dodgers are a professional baseball team based in Los Angeles, California. The Dodgers are members of Major League Baseball's National League West Division. Established in 1883, the team originated in Brooklyn, New York, where it was known by a number of nicknames before becoming...
General Manager, Branch Rickey
Branch Rickey
Wesley Branch Rickey was an innovative Major League Baseball executive elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1967...
. Bob Howsam joined ranks with Rickey, pleading for a major league team in Denver. Advised that to get a major league franchise Denver would need a much larger ballpark, Bears Stadium would begin the first of its many expansions. Over eight thousand seats were added to the south stands, bringing stadium capacity to 23,100. The new east stands increased seating to 34,657.
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
’s answer to the Continental League was to expand the league, which would eventually lead to the folding of the Continental League. Although Denver was not awarded a franchise, MLB promised teams in the future for Denver and other cities. Howsam was now trapped with a large stadium and debt he could not afford. Frantically searching for a solution, he turned to football. After meeting Lamar Hunt
Lamar Hunt
Lamar Hunt was an American sportsman and promoter of American football, soccer, basketball, and ice hockey in the United States and an inductee into three sports' halls of fame. He was one of the founders of the American Football League and Major League Soccer , as well as MLS predecessor the...
, Bud Adams
Bud Adams
Kenneth Stanley "Bud" Adams, Jr. is the owner of the Tennessee Titans' National Football League franchise. He was instrumental in the founding and establishment of the former American Football League. Adams became a charter AFL owner with the establishment of the Titans franchise, which was...
, and George Halas
George Halas
George Stanley Halas, Sr. , nicknamed "Papa Bear" and "Mr. Everything", was a player, coach, owner and pioneer in professional American football. He was the iconic longtime leader of the NFL's Chicago Bears...
, Howsam helped form the American Football League
American Football League
The American Football League was a major American Professional Football league that operated from 1960 until 1969, when the established National Football League merged with it. The upstart AFL operated in direct competition with the more established NFL throughout its existence...
(AFL) and Denver was awarded the Broncos
Denver Broncos
The Denver Broncos are a professional American football team based in Denver, Colorado. They are currently members of the West Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
.
The Broncos as the primary tenant (1960-1992)
A large bleacher section was added along the south side and temporary east stands were built in 19601960 Denver Broncos season
The Denver Broncos finished the inaugural American Football League's 1960 season with a record of four wins, nine losses, and one tie, thus finishing last in the AFL's western division.-Regular season:-External links:*...
, raising the capacity to 34,000.
Howsam's ownership in the AFL was short-lived as overwhelming debt forced Howsam to sell all his sports interests in 1961. His dream of major league baseball in Denver would be placed on hold for another 30 years.
Denver had to settle for the minor league Bears and the AFL Broncos, who resembled football's version of the early New York Mets
New York Mets
The New York Mets are a professional baseball team based in the borough of Queens in New York City, New York. They belong to Major League Baseball's National League East Division. One of baseball's first expansion teams, the Mets were founded in 1962 to replace New York's departed National League...
. The players looked comical in their yellow and black vertical striped socks and mustard yellow and brown uniforms, and the team was sometimes derided by local fans in the stadium when the Broncos would take the field. It took a few years to gain a following. In 1961
1961 Denver Broncos season
The 1961 Denver Broncos season was the second season for the team in the American Football League. They finished with a record of three wins and eleven losses, and placed third in the AFL's Western division.-Regular season:-Source:...
, they drew fewer fans in a year than the Broncos now draw in a single game. In the middle of the 1960s, uniforms changed, there were some wins, attendance turned around and more locals caught what came to be known as "Bronco Fever".
One condition of including Denver in the AFL-NFL merger
AFL-NFL Merger
The AFL–NFL merger of 1970 was the merger of the two major professional American football leagues in the United States at the time: the National Football League and the American Football League...
announced in 1966
1966 Denver Broncos season
The 1966 Denver Broncos season was the seventh season for the team in the American Football League. For the second straight season the Broncos posted a record of four wins, and ten losses. They once again finished last in the AFL's Western Division....
was expanding Mile High Stadium to at least 50,000 capacity. This required adding second and third decks along the west sideline (first base line). This expansion was completed in 1968
1968 Denver Broncos season
The 1968 Denver Broncos season was the ninth season for the team in the American Football League. The Broncos improved their record from the previous season by posting a record of five wins and nine losses. They finished fourth in the AFL's Western division for the sixth straight season. There were...
, when the stadium was sold to the city of Denver, which renamed it Mile High Stadium and built the upper deck along the west side, thus raising capacity to 50,000. .
1970s
As ticket sales increased, the stadium expanded to 51,706 seats. With a $25 million bond issue in 1974 another stadium renovation added 24,000 more seats. By 1976, seating was up to 63,000 as the upper decks construction was completed along the north end zone (third base line). An ingenious expansion that took place from 19751975 in sports
1975 in sports describes the year's events in world sport.-Alpine skiing:* Alpine Skiing World Cup** Men's overall season champion: Gustav Thöni, Italy** Women's overall season champion: Annemarie Pröll, Austria-American football:...
-1977
1977 in sports
1977 in sports describes the year's events in world sport.-Alpine skiing:* Alpine Skiing World Cup** Men's overall season champion: Ingemar Stenmark, Sweden** Women's overall season champion: Lise-Marie Morerod, Switzerland-American football:...
raised the capacity to 75,103 by extending the upper deck along the north side and building a movable triple-decked stands along the east side. When fully retracted, the stands would form a horseshoe for football, but when fully extended by 145 feet (44 m), the stadium could still fit a normal-sized baseball field. The structure was 535 feet (163 m) long, 135 feet (41 m) tall and 200 feet (61 m) deep, weighing nearly 9 million pounds (4,500 short tons, 4,000 metric tons). In order to move the stands over more than 90,000 square feet (8,000 m²) of runways, water was pumped onto the runways and formed a 0.003 inch (76 micrometer) sheet upon which the stands rested. Hydraulic rams then pushed the stands forward at the rate of three feet per minute (15 mm/s), taking about two hours from start to finish.
1980s
Mile High Stadium, in the 1970s and 1980s, was the only professional-caliber baseball facility to have an all grass infield, with sliding pits around bases. This unique feature was similar to several newer Major League Baseball stadiums that also used sliding pits, except those other stadiums all had artificial turf infields. In 19861986 Denver Broncos season
-Regular season:The Broncos won their first six games of the season, before being felled by the then-5-1 New York Jets on Monday Night Football. They won two more games to improve to 8–1, tied with the Jets for the best record in the league...
, 77 luxury suites were added atop the west stands, increasing the official seating capacity
Seating capacity
Seating capacity refers to the number of people who can be seated in a specific space, both in terms of the physical space available, and in terms of limitations set by law. Seating capacity can be used in the description of anything ranging from an automobile that seats two to a stadium that seats...
to 76,123.
Billy Graham
Billy Graham
William Franklin "Billy" Graham, Jr. is an American evangelical Christian evangelist. As of April 25, 2010, when he met with Barack Obama, Graham has spent personal time with twelve United States Presidents dating back to Harry S. Truman, and is number seven on Gallup's list of admired people for...
held his "Rocky Mountain Crusade" at the stadium in 1987.
The stadium hosted the final show of The 1988 Monsters of Rock
Monsters of Rock Tour 1988
The Monsters of Rock Tour 1988 was a festival tour of the USA in 1988, headlined by hard rock band Van Halen as part of their promotion for their OU812 album with heavy metal band Metallica as well as other bands including Scorpions, Dokken, and Kingdom Come. It formed the first section of the...
Festival Tour, featuring Van Halen
Van Halen
Van Halen is an American hard rock band formed in Pasadena, California, in 1972. The band has enjoyed success since the release of its debut album, Van Halen, . As of 2007 Van Halen has sold 80 million albums worldwide and has had the most #1 hits on the Billboard Mainstream Rock chart...
, Metallica
Metallica
Metallica is an American heavy metal band from Los Angeles, California. Formed in 1981 when James Hetfield responded to an advertisement that drummer Lars Ulrich had posted in a local newspaper. The current line-up features long-time lead guitarist Kirk Hammett and bassist Robert Trujillo ...
, Scorpions
Scorpions (band)
Scorpions are a heavy metal/hard rock band from Hannover, Germany, formed in 1965 by guitarist Rudolf Schenker, who is the band's only constant member. They are known for their 1980s rock anthem "Rock You Like a Hurricane" and many singles, such as "No One Like You", "Send Me an Angel", "Still...
, Dokken
Dokken
Dokken is an American heavy metal and hard rock band formed in 1978. They split up in 1989 but reformed four years later. The group accumulated numerous charting singles and has sold more than 10 million albums worldwide...
and Kingdom Come
Kingdom Come (band)
Kingdom Come is a hard rock band fronted by Hamburg-born vocalist Lenny Wolf. The group's first album, Kingdom Come was that band's only international hit. It currently consists of an entirely German line-up.-History:...
, on July 30, 1988.
The Colorado Rockies arrive (1990s)
MetallicaMetallica
Metallica is an American heavy metal band from Los Angeles, California. Formed in 1981 when James Hetfield responded to an advertisement that drummer Lars Ulrich had posted in a local newspaper. The current line-up features long-time lead guitarist Kirk Hammett and bassist Robert Trujillo ...
and Guns N' Roses
Guns N' Roses
Guns N' Roses is an American hard rock band, formed in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, in 1985. The band has released six studio albums, three EPs, and one live album...
brought the Guns N' Roses/Metallica Stadium Tour
Guns N' Roses/Metallica Stadium Tour
The Guns N' Roses/Metallica Stadium Tour was a famed joint, co-headlining concert tour by the American rock bands Guns N' Roses and Metallica during 1992...
to the stadium on September 19, 1992, with Body Count
Body Count
Body Count is an American heavy metal band formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1990. The group is fronted by rapper and actor Ice-T, who founded the group out of his interest in heavy metal music, taking on the role of vocalist and writing the lyrics for most of the group's songs. Lead guitarist...
as their opening act.
The large size of the stadium combined with fan enthusiasm over the new team as well as some of the lowest ticket prices in Major League Baseball allowed the expansion Rockies to set Major League Baseball attendance records
Major League Baseball attendance records
-Highest season home totals, by team:-4 million or more home attendance totals:Toronto Blue Jays became the first team in baseball history to draw 4 million mark in attendance in 1991 season. -Progression of the home field attendance record:...
before moving to Coors Field
Coors Field
Coors Field, located in Denver, Colorado, is the home field of Major League Baseball's Colorado Rockies. It is named for the Coors Brewing Company of Golden, Colorado, which purchased the naming rights to the park prior to its completion in 1995...
for the 1995
1995 Colorado Rockies season
The Colorado Rockies' 1995 season was the 3rd for the Rockies. The team competed in the National League West, finishing with a record of 77-67, 2nd in the division. This earned the Rockies the 1995 National League Wild Card, and a first round matchup in the playoffs against eventual World Series...
season. The stadium was known for its loudness, the sound bouncing around within the horseshoe. Because of the large size of center and right fields and foul territory (although left field was shorter than average), as well as the 30-foot (10 m) high fence in center field, the stadium was not as problematic for pitchers as Coors Field
Coors Field
Coors Field, located in Denver, Colorado, is the home field of Major League Baseball's Colorado Rockies. It is named for the Coors Brewing Company of Golden, Colorado, which purchased the naming rights to the park prior to its completion in 1995...
proved to be. The club's 1993 season
1993 Colorado Rockies season
The Colorado Rockies' 1993 season was the first for the Rockies. They played in the National League West. Don Baylor was their manager. They played home games at Mile High Stadium...
attendance was 4,483,350 in 79 home dates (81 games - 2 doubleheaders), an average of 56,751 per home date. The Rockies were on a pace to top that record in 1994
1994 Colorado Rockies season
The Colorado Rockies' 1994 season was the 2nd for the Rockies. They tried to win the National League West. Don Baylor was their manager. They played home games at Mile High Stadium.They finished with a record of 53-64, 3rd in the division...
when the ballplayers' strike occurred. They had drawn 3,281,511 in 57 home dates (also 57 games), an average of 57,570 per home date. (Season attendance figures from The Sporting News Baseball Record Book, 2007, p. 234; Game counts are from game logs on Retrosheet.http://www.retrosheet.org/boxesetc/1993/VCOL01993.htmhttp://www.retrosheet.org/boxesetc/1994/VCOL01994.htm)
The stadium played host to Ozzfest
Ozzfest
Ozzfest is an annual festival tour of the United States featuring performances by many heavy metal and hard rock musical groups. It was founded by Ozzy Osbourne and his wife Sharon Osbourne, both of whom also organize each yearly tour with their son Jack Osbourne...
on June 24, 1997.
Final years (2000-2001)
The final game at Mile High Stadium was December 23, 20002000 NFL season
The 2000 NFL season was the 81st regular season of the National Football League. The season ended with Super Bowl XXXV when the Baltimore Ravens defeated the New York Giants.Week 1 of the season reverted to Labor Day weekend in 2000...
, in which the Broncos
2000 Denver Broncos season
The 2000 Denver Broncos season was the team's 41st year in professional football and its 31st with the National Football League. It also was the team's final year at the famous Mile High Stadium.-Staff:-Schedule:-Standings:-Postseason:...
routed the 49ers
2000 San Francisco 49ers season
The 2000 San Francisco 49ers season was the team's 51st year with the National Football League. Jerry Rice entered the 2000 season as the oldest player in the league at the Wide Receiver position.-Schedule:-Awards and records:...
, 38-9.
The stadium again hosted Ozzfest, for the second and last time, on June 21, 2001 and hosted The Area:One Festival
Area Festival
The Area Festival was a music festival founded by popular electronic musician Moby, who asserted that he was "in large part, inspired by the ethos of Lollapalooza", and wished to create a similarly "genuinely eclectic, interesting, alternative music festival". Moby organized the first such...
on July 28, 2001. The stadium was featured in Michael Moore
Michael Moore
Michael Francis Moore is an American filmmaker, author, social critic and activist. He is the director and producer of Fahrenheit 9/11, which is the highest-grossing documentary of all time. His films Bowling for Columbine and Sicko also place in the top ten highest-grossing documentaries...
's 2002 documentary Bowling for Columbine
Bowling for Columbine
Bowling for Columbine is a 2002 documentary film written, directed, produced, and narrated by Michael Moore. The film explores what Michael Moore suggests are the causes for the Columbine High School massacre and other acts of violence with guns...
as the backdrop for Moore's interview with controversial rock
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
musician
Musician
A musician is an artist who plays a musical instrument. It may or may not be the person's profession. Musicians can be classified by their roles in performing music and writing music.Also....* A person who makes music a profession....
Marilyn Manson
Marilyn Manson
Marilyn Manson may refer to:* Marilyn Manson , an American rock musician* Marilyn Manson , the American rock band led by the singer of the same name...
during the 2001 Ozzfest tour.
Mile High Stadium was closed in 2001
2001 in sports
2001 in sports describes the year's events in world sport.-Alpine skiing:* Alpine Skiing World Cup** Men's overall season champion: Hermann Maier, Austria** Women's overall season champion: Janica Kostelić, Croatia-American football:...
, after the Denver Broncos
Denver Broncos
The Denver Broncos are a professional American football team based in Denver, Colorado. They are currently members of the West Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
and Colorado Rapids
Colorado Rapids
The Colorado Rapids are an American professional soccer club based in the Denver suburb of Commerce City, Colorado which competes in Major League Soccer , the top professional soccer league in the United States and Canada. It is one of the ten charter clubs of MLS, having competed in the league...
moved to neighboring Invesco Field at Mile High (currently known as Sports Authority Field at Mile High), upon the completion of the new stadium. The demolition of Mile High Stadium began in January 2002, an event covered extensively by local newspapers and broadcast live on television. The demolition was performed by Spirtas Wrecking Company of St. Louis, Mo., the same group that led the demolition of stadiums in St. Louis
St. Louis Arena
The St. Louis Arena was an indoor arena located in St. Louis, Missouri, that stood from 1929 to 1999...
, Pittsburgh
Three Rivers Stadium
Three Rivers Stadium was a multi-purpose stadium located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania from 1970 to 2000. It was home to the Pittsburgh Pirates and the Pittsburgh Steelers, the city's Major League Baseball franchise and National Football League franchise respectively.Built as a replacement to...
and Seattle
Kingdome
The Kingdome was a multi-purpose stadium located in Seattle's SoDo neighborhood. Owned and operated by King County, the Kingdome opened in 1976 and was best known as the home stadium of the Seattle Seahawks of the National Football League , the Seattle Mariners of Major League Baseball , and the...
. Mile High Stadium was brought down in segments rather than being imploded
Building implosion
In the controlled demolition industry, building implosion is the strategic placing of explosive material and timing of its detonation so that a structure collapses on itself in a matter of seconds, minimizing the physical damage to its immediate surroundings...
due to the rather complex nature of the structural steel foundation. The process took approximately three months to complete, and when the work was done on April 17, all that remained of Mile High Stadium was some concrete that became the foundation for Invesco Field's parking lot.