Los Angeles California

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Lore & Background

The Coliseum was commissioned as a memorial to L.A. veterans of World War I and rededicated in 1968 to all United States veterans of the war. The groundbreaking ceremony took place on December 21, 1921, with construction completed in just over 16 months, on May 1, 1923. Designed by John and Donald Parkinson, the original bowl's initial construction costs were $954,873. The Coliseum opened in 1923 with a capacity of 75,144, the largest stadium in Los Angeles at the time. Ahead of the 1932 Olympics the stadium was extended upward to 79 rows of seats with two tiers of tunnels, expanding the seating capacity to 101,574. The signature Olympic cauldron was added and the Coliseum was briefly known as Olympic Stadium. The cauldron and the Olympic rings remain above the peristyle at the east end of the stadium. In 1937, one of the first all-electric scoreboards in the nation was installed over the peristyle's center arch, later replaced in 1972. This was replaced in 1983 with a scoreboard and video screen that towered over the peristyle to one side of the arch. In August 2011, construction began on the Coliseum's west end on a new 6,000-square-foot HD video scoreboard, accompanying the existing video scoreboard on the peristyle of the stadium. The video scoreboard officially went into operation on September 3, 2011, at USC football's home opener versus the University of Minnesota. The current jumbotrons to each side of the peristyle were installed in 2017.

In Their Own Story

The Coliseum was the site of the first AFL–NFL World Championship Game (later called Super Bowl I) and Super Bowl VII. It has also been the temporary home of the Los Angeles Dodgers of Major League Baseball from 1958 to 1961, and was the host venue for games three, four, and five of the 1959 World Series. The stadium served as a home field for the 1960 inaugural season for the Los Angeles Chargers, the Los Angeles Raiders of the NFL from 1982 to 1994, and UCLA Bruins football. The Coliseum was the home of the Los Angeles Rams of the NFL from 1946 to 1979 and again from 2016 to 2019. In 1964, the stadium underwent its first major renovation in over three decades. Most of the original pale green wood-and-metal bench seating was replaced by individual theater-type chairs of dark red, beige and yellow; these seats remained until 2018, although the yellow color was eliminated in the 1970s. The seating capacity was reduced to approximately 93,000. With the upcoming 1984 Summer Olympic Games, a new track was installed and the playing field permanently placed inside it. A depiction of the Olympic rings and a 25-step hydraulic staircase were added on the central staircase and arch of the peristyle to allow the cauldron to be lit by lifting up the stairs to the burnable Olympic Rings, which brought the flame to the cauldron on top. The Coliseum underwent a $15 million renovation before the 1993 football season, which lowered the field by 11 feet and replacing the running track with 14 new rows of seats, bringing the first row of seats closer to the playing field. After assuming the Coliseum master lease in 2013, USC unveiled an estimated $270 million project for a massive renovation and restoration in October 2015. Construction began in January 2018 and was completed in time for the 2019 football season, using only university funds. The project budget increased from the initial estimate of $270 million to $315 million mainly due to the tight construction schedule. The upgrades included replacing every seat in the stadium, adding new aisles and widening some seats; construction of a larger and modern press box with new box suites, premium lounges, a viewing deck, a V.I.P. section, and the introduction of LED ribbon boards; restoration and renaming of the peristyle to the Julia and George Argyros Plaza; and adding a new sound system, stadium wide Wi-Fi, two new HD video jumbotrons, new concession stands, upgraded entry concourses, new interior and exterior lighting, modernization of plumbing and electrical systems. Capacity was reduced by about 16,000 seats. The current official capacity of the Coliseum is 77,500, with 42 suites, 1,100 club seats, 24 loge boxes, and a 500-person rooftop terrace.

Reader's Guide

The Coliseum is jointly owned by the State of California's Sixth District Agricultural Association, Los Angeles County, and the City of Los Angeles. It is managed and operated by the University of Southern California. The Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Commission provides public oversight of the master lease agreement with USC. The Commission consists of six voting members appointed by the three ownership interests and meets on a quarterly basis. Under the lease, the university has year-round day-to-day management and operation responsibility for both the Coliseum and BMO Stadium properties. USC's Vice President of Auxiliary Services is the Chief Operating Officer of the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. As of 2016 the facility had a permanent seating capacity of 93,607 for USC football and Rams games, making it the largest football stadium in the Pac-12 Conference and the NFL. For most of its history the Coliseum was among the largest stadiums in the United States, seating over 100,000 for several decades.

Did You Know?

• The Coliseum was commissioned in 1921 and completed in 1923 as a memorial to Los Angeles veterans of World War I.
• It was the site of the first AFL–NFL World Championship Game, later called Super Bowl I, and Super Bowl VII.
• The Coliseum was designated a National Historic Landmark on July 27, 1984, a day before the opening ceremony of the 1984 Summer Olympics.
• It will become the first stadium to have hosted the Summer Olympics three times when it hosts the 2028 Summer Olympics, previously hosting in 1932 and 1984.
• The current official capacity of the Coliseum is 77,500, with 42 suites, 1,100 club seats, 24 loge boxes, and a 500-person rooftop terrace.