Legion Field

Legion Field
Football Capital of the South Old Gray Lady
Legion Field aerial view
Data
place	400 Graymont Avenue West Birmingham , Alabama 35204
Coordinates	33 ° 30 '41 "  N , 86 ° 50' 34"  W Coordinates: 33 ° 30 '41 "  N , 86 ° 50' 34"  W.
owner	City of Birmingham
operator	University of Alabama at Birmingham
start of building	1926
opening	November 19, 1927
Renovations	1961, 1965, 2005, 2015
Extensions	1934, 1948, 1961, 1965, 1977, 1991
surface	Artificial turf ( FieldTurf )
costs	439,000 US dollars
architect	David O. Whilldin
capacity	71,594
Societies)
Alabama Crimson Tide ( NCAA - college football , 1927-2003) Auburn Tigers (NCAA college football, 1926-1991) UAB Blazers (NCAA college football, 1991-2014, since 2017) Birmingham Thunderbolts ( XFL , 2001) Birmingham Iron ( AAF , since 2019)
Events
Football tournaments of the 1996 Summer Olympics World Games 2021

The Legion Field is a college football - stadium in the US city of Birmingham in the state of Alabama . Opened in 1927, the stadium is named after the American Legion , a veterans' organization for the United States Armed Forces .

Since the upper tier was dismantled in 2004, the Legion Field has accommodated 71,594 spectators. Previously it had 83,091 seats and was entitled "Football Capital of the South" ("Football Capital of the South"). It is also called "The Old Gray Lady" or "The Gray Lady on Graymont". The football team from the University of Alabama at Birmingham (Birmingham Blazers) and the Birmingham Iron from the Alliance of American Football currently play their home games here.

history

In 1926, construction began on a 21,000-seat stadium. This cost 439,000 US dollars , was completed the following year and was named Legion Field. The first college football game in front of 16,800 spectators took place on November 19, 1927 between Howard College and Birmingham Southern College (final score: 9-0).

Over the years the stadium was expanded several times: in 1934 to 25,000 seats, in 1948 to 45,000 seats. In 1961, a second tier with around 9,000 seats was built on the east side of the stadium, which increased the capacity to 54,600 seats. With an additional expansion in 1965, the number of places rose to 68,821.

In 1970 the lawn was replaced by artificial turf (Poly-Turf), in 1975 by AstroTurf . By 1977 the capacity increased to 75,808 places. In 1991 the stadium reached its largest capacity with 83,091 seats. In 1995, the artificial turf was replaced by natural turf, so that games of the football tournament of the 1996 Summer Olympics , which were held in Atlanta , could take place in the stadium. In 2006 the turf was again replaced by artificial turf ( FieldTurf ).

An appraisal in 2004 showed that a thorough renovation of the upper tier would be necessary in order to be able to meet the requirements of the current building regulations. Since the capacity of the stadium was now too high for the users at the time, the city of Birmingham decided instead to demolish the upper tier, which took place in 2005.

The last renovation took place in 2015, during which, among other things, a new display board and an improved public address system were installed.

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Al Myatt: View from the 'ville. In: Bonesville.com. August 2, 2007, accessed March 17, 2019 . 
2. ↑ Legion Field. (No longer available online.) In: ballparks.com. Archived from the original on July 5, 2017 ; accessed on March 17, 2019 (English). 
3. ↑ Legion Field. In: birminghamal.gov. Retrieved March 17, 2019 . 
4. ^ New stadiums: Old Gray Lady and others. In: stadiumdb.com. September 25, 2015, accessed March 17, 2019 . 
5. ↑ 1996 Summer Olympics official report. Volume 1., p. 541. In: LA 84 Foundation. 1997, accessed March 17, 2019 . 

Web links

• birminghamal.gov: Legion Field (English)