Stadiums

[noonthirtyjoe]

Rank the NFCN by stadium. 1. LameBlow field. I like old school stuff. 2. Ford field? Is it still called that? Either way I like the setup. 3. MN. The new place looks amazing. 4. Solider field Not a fan. Not a bad place but to modern for Bear fans. We cavemen.

 

[Think McFly Think]

Appreciate you putting 'LameBlow' at 1, I agree it has a rich history and tradition. Next I'd say Minnesota, with Ford Field pretty close, they are pretty nice looking as you mentioned. Soldier Field seems pretty basic, nothing overly special about it.

 

[leomaz]

1..Soldier Field........awesome place. Not a bad siteline in the stadium. Ample room in the "individual" seating. From what I've been told the food is top notch. Easy access to bathrooms.


Haven't been to lambeau. Ford Field or the yet to be built Vikings Stadium

 

[Think McFly Think]

1..Soldier Field........awesome place. Not a bad siteline in the stadium. Ample room in the "individual" seating. From what I've been told the food is top notch. Easy access to bathrooms.


Haven't been to lambeau. Ford Field or the yet to be built Vikings Stadium

Yeah, I've only been to Lambeau out of these stadiums, so I'm basing this basically from what I see on TV. I went to the Pontiac Silverdome as a kid and Ford Field seems 20 times more immaculate than that place was.

 

[leomaz]

don't let your emotions overtake your thought process

Yeah, I've only been to Lambeau out of these stadiums, so I'm basing this basically from what I see on TV. I went to the Pontiac Silverdome as a kid and Ford Field seems 20 times more immaculate than that place was.

Been to the Metrodome. 8-10 times......Tampa Stadium...a Bears loss.....Pontiac Silverdome...the final game before the Super Bowl run.and Sun Devil Stadium...seen the Cardinals play the NY. Giants. From just seeing lambeau on tv it doesn't look anything better than Soldier Field.

 

[Think McFly Think]

Been to the Metrodome. 8-10 times......Tampa Stadium...a Bears loss.....Pontiac Silverdome...the final game before the Super Bowl run.and Sun Devil Stadium...seen the Cardinals play the NY. Giants. From just seeing lambeau on tv it doesn't look anything better than Soldier Field.

I'm sure I could have a little bias towards putting Lambeau at 1, lol. Other stadiums I've been to: Bank of America Stadium (Panthers), FedEx Field and RFK (Redskins), Heinz Field (Steelers). Been to a number of baseball stadiums and basketball/hockey arenas, but I think that's it for football.

 

[richig07]

Haven't seen the new MN stadium.

1- Lambeau 2- Soldier Field... it's honestly great. F off with the tradition crap. We needed a new stadium. It was shit, I'm sorry. 3- New MN stadium 4- Ford Field


I just hate domes, sorry. This whole damn division should be played in the outdoors, and in the freezing cold like it was meant to be. That'd be awesome.

 

[Smart]

1. Lambeau
2. Ford
3. Soldier
4. Metrodome

I've seen a game at all but Lambeau, and i've toured Lambeau (was in Green Bay and realized there was nothing else to do). Soldier Field is just so confused...they clearly wanted to keep the old charm and modernize it, but they lost the best of both. Like people say, it's like a UFO landed on the Parthenon. And for all their luxury boxes, the stadium sure doesn't insulate noise well. Ford is nice but unspectacular. Lambeau is overrated (its nothing compared to Ohio Stadium, or even Camp Randall), but it definitely has its charm. The Metrodome was completely outdated. There's no other way to say it. They got 10 more years use out of it than most of the contemporary stadiums, but that fugality came with the price of a bad venue.

The new Vikings Stadium looks very nice. We'll see if they can actually pull it off and keep the price at their projected $1 Billion figure.

 

[leomaz]

There is nothing confusing about Soldier Field to me. I have never had a problem going anywhere in the stadium. I'm not sure what confuses you. Could you elaborate?

 

[Smart]

Other stadiums i've been to (off the top of my head):

Sun Life Stadium (Meh....)
Jones Dome (It's amazing this place is only 20 years old...it has to be the worst stadium in the NFL)
Qwest Field (Very nice...view of the city, designed to be loud, and really embraced by the fans)
BOA Stadium (Average, if not a little below)
Browns Stadium (Not terribly designed, but it's just sad to be at)
LucasOil (Looks ugly from the outside, pretty nice inside)
University of Phoenix (Very nice)

I've seen a few others from the outside as well.

 

[Voltaire26]

1. Lambeau Field ... The way the fans shovel out the stadium, the owners and the history make it number one.

2. Ford Field ... Lambeau Field must be a pretty special place if I (a shameless homer) say its better than Ford Field. The newer stadiums are superior in quality, design and sightlines.

3. Soldier ... The older stadiums are superior to those built around the time of the Metrodome, Silverdome and others.

4. Metrodome ... I can't say anything good about this stadium (both logically and emotionally). I am certain that the new stadium will be far superior.

 

[Smart]

There is nothing confusing about Soldier Field to me. I have never had a problem going anywhere in the stadium. I'm not sure what confuses you. Could you elaborate?

It's not geographically confused, it's confused because it lacks an identity. When they redesigned it, they couldn't decide if they wanted the old character of the classic stadium or luxury, so its muddled.

There are lots of luxury boxes, but they are way up there (too far up to attract football fans), so what you have is a huge dead zone filled with people on corporate outings with no attachment to the game.

There's nothing exceptional about the regular seating. The seats aren't particularly comfy, and they sue don't have the character of the old blue and orange sears.

Aesthetically, it is confused. It looks like a spaceship destroyed a beautiful old stadium.

The entrances are still as small as ever, and it can take 5-10 minutes to get into the stadium. It's fine if you are going for an old school feel (you'll have similar waits at places like Ohio Stadium), but it's a gigantic failure if your goal is luxury.

And the Stadium itself feels like it's empty because its way too spread out. When you take an old school stadium where people were packed in and then you take away the density, it winds up feeling small and empty, which is exactly how Soldier Field feels.

And outside of the bathroom, the facilities really aren't that nice. Concessions have long waits often, and thoroughfares are crowded. It's fairly dirty most of the time.

Soldier Field's not a catastrophe like the Jones Dome, but it's a damn shame that the single biggest NFL market with one team has a stadium which is average after a costly renovation less than a decade ago.

 

[leomaz]

And the Stadium itself feels like it's empty because its way too spread out. When you take an old school stadium where people were packed in and then you take away the density, it winds up feeling small and empty, which is exactly how Soldier Field feels.


??????Its actually closer to the field than the old stadium. I've never had a problem getting in or getting a beer from the concessions. Sorry you have had problems. Not a single complaint from this STH. OPPS......the beer prices could be a tad lower.

 

[Smart]

And the Stadium itself feels like it's empty because its way too spread out. When you take an old school stadium where people were packed in and then you take away the density, it winds up feeling small and empty, which is exactly how Soldier Field feels.


??????Its actually closer to the field than the old stadium. I've never had a problem getting in or getting a beer from the concessions. Sorry you have had problems. Not a single complaint from this STH. OPPS......the beer prices could be a tad lower.

The decks are stacked on top of each other more than in the old stadium, sure. On the sidelines,the stands don't start closer to the field. They do in the endzone. But, again, the old stadium was an old-school bowl design. And when you look at a bowl, it looks vast and unending. We are talking about the stadium that packed 130,000 in to see Tunny-Dempsey. And while that's not loud, it's classic and visually intimidating, providing great sightlines.

New Soldier Field is extremely tall. That's what I mean when I say it is spread out (probably used the wrong phase there). And the density isn't there. The rows are spread out, too. It's how we somehow have the biggest single-city fanbase in the NFL and the smallest stadium in the league. And that leads to related problem of pricing out their own fans, which in turn makes the atmosphere worse.

 

[leomaz]

sorry.

The decks are stacked on top of each other more than in the old stadium, sure. On the sidelines,the stands don't start closer to the field. They do in the endzone. But, again, the old stadium was an old-school bowl design. And when you look at a bowl, it looks vast and unending. We are talking about the stadium that packed 130,000 in to see Tunny-Dempsey. And while that's not loud, it's classic and visually intimidating, providing great sightlines.

New Soldier Field is extremely tall. That's what I mean when I say it is spread out (probably used the wrong phase there). And the density isn't there. The rows are spread out, too. It's how we somehow have the biggest single-city fanbase in the NFL and the smallest stadium in the league. And that leads to related problem of pricing out their own fans, which in turn makes the atmosphere worse.

Sorry...we always( the fans in my section 223 row 16) have a great time. Most of us were together in the old stadium. I still rank it above every stadium in the NFC NORTH. If I haven't been to a stadium I can't rank it above any ones I have been at.

 

[blh7068]

The decks are stacked on top of each other more than in the old stadium, sure. On the sidelines,the stands don't start closer to the field. They do in the endzone. But, again, the old stadium was an old-school bowl design. And when you look at a bowl, it looks vast and unending. We are talking about the stadium that packed 130,000 in to see Tunny-Dempsey. And while that's not loud, it's classic and visually intimidating, providing great sightlines..

True, but the north end was cut off before the Bears started playing there. I have to believe that was a good thing as I cant imagine being able to see anything from the endzones in its original configuration.

 

[noonthirtyjoe]

Soldier field is one of a few structures in our history (USA) that lost its historical status.

 

[blh7068]

Soldier field is one of a few structures in our history (USA) that lost its historical status.

Those things happen when a spaceship lands on your football field...

 

[leomaz]

Never seen a saucer look like that, let alone a flying one. Never understood the UFO thing at all. It does look a bit odd but you could never fly that design anywhere.

 

[richig07]

The advantage Soldier Field has, is that there isn't a bad seat in the house. The decks are stacked on top of each other. IMO, if you sit at midfield lower down in one of the higher decks, it's the best seats in the house. Pretty much the same view you'd get watching film.