MetLife Stadium
MetLife Stadium is an open-air multi-purpose stadium at the Meadowlands Sports Complex in East Rutherford, New Jersey, 5 mi (8 km) west of New York City. Opened in 2010 to replace Giants Stadium, it serves as the home for the New York Giants and New York Jets of the National Football League (NFL), and is also scheduled to host the final of the 2026 FIFA World Cup. At an approximate cost of $1.6 billion, it was the most expensive stadium built in the United States at the time of its completion.[10]
This article is about the American football stadium. For the Japanese baseball stadium in Tokorozawa, Saitama, see MetLife Dome.Former names
New Meadowlands Stadium (2010–2011, 2026)
1 MetLife Stadium Drive
East Rutherford, New Jersey 07073
United States
MetLife Stadium Company, LLC [1]
82,500[2]
Any event = 93,000 (12th Siyum HaShas, August 1, 2012)
Concert = 89,106 (Ed Sheeran +-=÷x Tour, June 11, 2023)
Professional football = 83,367(New York Jets @ New York Giants, October 29, 2023)
College football = 82,285 (122nd Army Navy Game, December 11, 2021)
Soccer = 82,262 (Manchester United vs. Arsenal, July 22, 2023)
UBU Speed S5-M (2010–2022)[3] FieldTurf Core HD (2023–present)
Four 30 ft × 118 ft (9.1 m × 36.0 m) big-screen monitors
2,100 HD TVs throughout the stadium
One 360 degree ribbon board display
[4]
September 5, 2007[5]
2008–2010
April 10, 2010[9]
Structal–Heavy Steel Construction, a division of Canam Group[8]
MetLife Stadium is one of two NFL stadiums shared by two teams. The other, SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California, is home to the Los Angeles Rams and Los Angeles Chargers. Los Angeles' Crypto.com Arena, which is home to the Los Angeles Lakers and the Los Angeles Clippers of the National Basketball Association (NBA), is only the third facility to currently house two teams from the same sports league in the United States (the Clippers are expected to move into the Intuit Dome in 2024). Additionally, MetLife Stadium is the fifth building in the New York metropolitan area to be home to multiple teams from the same sports league, after the Polo Grounds, which was home to the baseball Giants and Yankees from 1913 to 1922, the third Madison Square Garden which hosted the NHL's Rangers and Americans from 1926 to 1942, Shea Stadium, which housed both the Mets and Yankees during the 1974 and 1975 seasons and both the Jets and Giants in 1975, and Giants Stadium, which hosted both the Giants and Jets from 1984 to 2009. MetLife Stadium hosted Super Bowl XLVIII and will host multiple matches during the 2026 FIFA World Cup, including the final. It is the largest stadium in New Jersey with a capacity of over 80,000.
History[edit]
As Giants Stadium approached 30 years of age, it was becoming one of the older stadiums in the NFL. The Jets, who had been the tenants to the Giants, were looking to have a proposed West Side Stadium built in Manhattan proper. Originally intended to be the 85,000-seat main stadium for New York's bid for the 2012 Summer Olympics, it was designed to be downsized to 75,000 seats for the Jets. However, it would have required significant public funding; progress on the project was halted in 2005 due to opposition from a number of sources, including Cablevision, who owned the nearby Madison Square Garden at the time.[11] The Jets then entered into a joint venture with the Giants to build a new stadium in which the two New York teams would be equal partners.
Awards and recognition[edit]
In 2009, MetLife Stadium was named the "Greenest Stadium" in the NFL by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).[44]
In July 2017, MetLife Stadium was named "Venue of the Year" by the Stadium Business Summit. The award is awarded to the world's best stadium, arena or sports venue, that deserves recognition for an outstanding performance over a 12-month period.[45]
Official website
Media from the New York Jets and New York Giants: