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OAKLAND COLISEUM
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OAKLAND, CA
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Today, with over 60,000 seats
the Oakland Coliseum looks very different than when it opened. In the
mid 1940s Oakland officials first proposed that a new stadium be
built in the area to attempt to lure a professional baseball and
football team.
It was 1960 before a site was chosen to build the stadium, near
the C.W. Nimitz Freeway. Construction on the multipurpose stadium began in 1962. The stadium was
constructed deep in the ground allowing fans to enter on the upper
deck level. Originally named the Oakland Coliseum, it was
completed in four years. The Oakland Raiders played the first game
ever at the the coliseum on September 18, 1966. For years fans
had strongly supported the Oakland Pacific Coast League franchise.
Because of this Kansas City A’s owner Charlie Finley decided to move his
baseball team to the Oakland Coliseum after the 1967 season. The
Kansas City A's were renamed the Oakland A's.
The A's played their
first game on April 17, 1968 when 50,219 fans packed the three
tiered stadium. Built in a circular shape, many of the seats
stretched from foul pole to foul pole, with bleachers beyond the
outfield fence. Two Diamond Vision video/scoreboards were located
above both the left and right field bleachers.
Over the years, few
changes took place at the Oakland Coliseum. The Raiders moved out of
the coliseum to Los Angeles in 1981 but moved back in 1995.The
coliseum remained an excellent place to watch a ballgame until
1995
when the Raiders moved back as drastic changes occurred at the
Oakland Coliseum. As part of an
agreement when the Raiders moved back to Oakland, the coliseum was
expanded. All of the outfield bleachers were removed replaced by a four-tier
section of 22,000 seats. All of the
orange seats were replaced by new green seats. The video
boards are now above the stadium rim down both the left and right
field lines. The coliseum was renamed UMAX Coliseum in 1997, but was
later renamed
Network Associates Coliseum in 1998. After the 2004
season, the stadium was renamed again and was known as McAfee
Coliseum. After the 2008 season McAfee chose not to renew their
naming rights contract and the stadium name reverted back to its
original name, the
Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum. In April 2011 Overstock.com
purchased the naming rights to the coliseum for six
years at $1.2 million annually. In June 2011 the
coliseum was officially named O.co Coliseum. In March
2016, Overstock ended their namings rights agreement
with the coliseum, and it is now known as the
Oakland Coliseum again.
Beginning in 2006,
the A's closed the third deck of Oakland Coliseum moving fans closer
to the action and making the stadium more intimate. Although the
coliseum can seat over 60,000, the official capacity is just over
35,000. Fans can easily arrive at the stadium
via the
BART
Metro or drive and park in many of the lots that
surround the coliseum. Before the game, fans can be found
tailgating, discussing baseball and enjoying each others company.
Upon entering the stadium fans can easily access their seats in the
first or second levels. The main concourse serves both the lower and
second decks of the stadium allowing easy access for fans wanting
views from different parts of the stadium. An all you can eat
section is located in three sections of the upper deck directly
behind homeplate. Only fans with tickets to this section can access
these seats. New for the 2015 season are two new 36 feet high by 145
feet wide HD video/scoreboards. Costing $10 million
they replace the existing dot-matrix videoboards.
The Athletics continue to seek to
have a new ballpark built to replace the five
decade old coliseum either in the City of Oakland or
San Jose. Plans to build a new stadium have yet to
materalize.
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FACTS & FIGURES
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-Tenants:
Oakland A's (MLB), Oakland Raiders (NFL)
-Capacity:
35,067 (MLB)
-Surface:
Grass
-Cost:
$25.5 Million
-Opened:
April 17, 1968
-Dimensions:
330-L, 362-LC, 400-C, 362-RC, 330-R
-Architect:
Skidmore, Owings, Merrill
-Owner: Alameda County -Former Name(s): Oakland Coliseum (1966-'98), Network Associates
Coliseum ('98-'04), McAfee Coliseum ('04-'08), Oakland Coliseum
('09-'11), O.co Coliseum ('11-'15) |
-Naming
Rights: None
-Public
Financing: 100% (original), 100% (1997 renovations) at
$100million
-Private
Financing: None
-Oakland Coliseum Seating
Chart
-Home Dugout: Third Base
-Oakland Coliseum Ground Rules
-Directions & Parking
-Fan Experiences |
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CURRENT WEATHER AT THE
COLISEUM
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MAP & DIRECTIONS TO O.CO
COLISEUM
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Address:
7000 Coliseum
Way, Oakland, California 94621
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HOTELS NEAR O.CO
COLISEUM
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MEMORABLE MOMENTS
AT THE OAKLAND COLISEUM
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All Star Game: 1987
World Series: 1972, '73, '74, '88,
'89 & '90
49 homeruns by rookie Mark McGwire in
1987.
Catfish Hunter's no hitter on May 8,
1968.
1973 AL MVP Reggie Jackson.
Cy Young
Award winner Dennis Eckersley in 1992.
Rickey Henderson steals 132 bases in
1982.
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