Oakland Coliseum

The Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum, often called the Oakland Coliseum, is a multi-purpose stadium in Oakland, California. It is part of the Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum Complex and sits next to the Oakland Arena.

In 2017, its playing field was named Rickey Henderson Field to honor the famous baseball player Rickey Henderson, who played for the Oakland Athletics.

Today, the Coliseum is home to the San Francisco Unicorns in Major League Cricket. In the past, it was where the Oakland Athletics played baseball and the Oakland Raiders played football. The Raiders moved to Los Angeles, then returned, and later moved again to Las Vegas. For many years, it was the last stadium in the United States used by both a baseball and a football team.

The Coliseum can hold up to 63,132 people, depending on how it is set up. It once had an upper deck called "Mount Davis" added in 1996. Fans and players often said the Coliseum needed many repairs and looked old and worn-out. The Athletics played their last season there in 2024 and moved to West Sacramento’s Sutter Health Park while they plan to go to Las Vegas.

Stadium history

Business and political leaders in Oakland wanted the city to be famous. They thought a big sports stadium would help.

Planning for the stadium began in the 1960s. Leaders chose a spot west of Elmhurst in East Oakland. The Oakland Raiders and baseball teams like the Oakland Athletics would play there. Building took many years because of legal and money problems.

The stadium has had many names. It was called the Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum, then Network Associates Coliseum, McAfee Coliseum, Overstock.com Coliseum, O.co Coliseum, and RingCentral Coliseum. In 2017, the field was named Rickey Henderson Field for the famous baseball player Rickey Henderson.

Design

The Oakland Coliseum has a special design. The playing field is below ground level—about 21 feet (6.4 m) below sea level. When you walk into the stadium, you start on the main area around the seats. You can't see the field right away. Only the top level of seats can be seen from outside the stadium.

When the Coliseum was used for baseball, it had more space between the field and the seats than any other baseball stadium. This meant many balls that would go into the seats in other stadiums were caught before they scored a run. For football games, the field was arranged in two different ways, so both baseball and football teams could use the stadium.

Eventual replacements

Athletics

See also: Oakland Ballpark, Oakland Athletics relocation to Las Vegas, and New Las Vegas Stadium

In 2005, the Oakland Athletics wanted to build a new ballpark near the Coliseum, but the plans stopped in 2006. Later, ideas to move to Fremont or San Jose also stopped. In 2014, the team agreed to stay in Oakland but kept looking for a new stadium. In 2018, they picked a site at the Howard Terminal for a new ballpark. But by 2021, they started thinking about moving to Las Vegas. In April 2023, the Athletics agreed to buy land in Las Vegas for a new stadium, and by June 2023, the move was approved. The team said 2024 would be their last season in Oakland, and games will move to Sutter Health Park in 2025.

Raiders

See also: Allegiant Stadium and Oakland Raiders relocation to Las Vegas

The Raiders looked at many places for a new stadium, like staying in Oakland, moving to San Antonio, or joining the Chargers in Carson. In 2016, they started plans for a stadium in Las Vegas. After getting support from Nevada, the Raiders moved to Las Vegas in January 2020, becoming the Las Vegas Raiders.

Roots and Soul

In March 2024, the Oakland Roots and Oakland Soul soccer teams said they would play at the Coliseum for the 2025 and 2026 seasons while a new soccer-specific stadium is built. They will use 15,000 seats for home matches and will keep the field named Rickey Henderson Field.

Coliseum redevelopment plan

The Oakland Coliseum and Oracle Arena were used by the City of Oakland and the Athletics baseball team. In 2018, the Athletics bought their part from Alameda County. By July 2021, two groups wanted to buy the city's part. One group was led by the African American Sports and Entertainment Group, and the other by Dave Stewart and Lonnie Murray. In November 2021, the city chose the African American Sports and Entertainment Group's plan. On May 23, 2024, Oakland announced plans to sell its part of the Coliseum site for at least $105 million. The new plan includes homes and shops for the area.

Notable events

Raiders and A's move in

The Raiders played their first game at the stadium on September 18, 1966. In 1968, the Kansas City Athletics moved to Oakland and began playing there. Their first game was on April 17, 1968. The stadium cost $25.5 million to build and covers 120 acres of land. On April 17, 1968, Boog Powell hit the first major league home run in the Coliseum’s history. Later that year, Catfish Hunter pitched the ninth perfect game in Major League history at the Coliseum. The Coliseum hosted the 1967 and 1969 AFL championship games, as well as a match in the 1967 NPSL Final.

A Rolling Stones concert in 1969 became an early bootleg recording titled Live'r Than You'll Ever Be.

1970s

From 1970 to 1972, the stadium hosted three college football benefit games. It also hosted the 1971 East–West Shrine Game on January 2, 1971. The Athletics won their first World Series championship since moving to Oakland in 1972.

The stadium was not well maintained during the late 1970s. It was sometimes called the "Oakland Mausoleum" because of its poor condition and low attendance.

1980s

In 1980, the Raiders won Super Bowl XV. Two years later, they moved to Los Angeles, leaving the Athletics as the only team at the Coliseum. The Athletics’ owner agreed to sell the team but was prevented from moving it out of Oakland. New scoreboards and a video screen were added in the late 1980s. The 1987 Major League Baseball All-Star Game was held there, and the Athletics won the World Series in 1989.

1990s

In 1995, the Raiders agreed to return to Oakland if the Coliseum was renovated. Renovations began that year and continued into the summer of 1996. The Raiders’ return introduced a group of fans known as the "Black Hole."

2000s

In 2006, the broadcast booth was renamed for Bill King, a famous Bay Area sportscaster. In 2007, the San Jose Earthquakes planned to play some games at the stadium before moving to their new home. A "no re-entry" policy was introduced, meaning each ticket could only be used once.

2010s

In 2010, Dallas Braden pitched the 19th perfect game in Major League history at the Coliseum. In 2014, a new $10 million scoreboard system was installed. In 2017, the tarp covering part of the stadium was removed, increasing capacity. The Athletics made several improvements to the Coliseum, including a new outdoor plaza and a restaurant.

In 2018, the Athletics held a free admission game to celebrate the 50th anniversary of their first game in Oakland. In 2019, the Raiders played their last game at the Coliseum.

2020s

In 2020, the San Diego Padres and the Athletics played a very hot game at the Coliseum. In 2023, Athletics fans organized a protest against the team’s management. Domingo Germán pitched the 24th perfect game in Major League Baseball history at the Coliseum later that year.

The Athletics played their final game at the Coliseum in 2024 before moving to Sacramento. In 2025, Major League Cricket planned to host matches there.

Concerts

The stadium hosted annual concerts called "Day on the Green" from 1973 into the early 1990s. Famous performances included Marvin Gaye in 1974 and Led Zeppelin in 1977. Other notable acts included Parliament-Funkadelic, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Bruce Springsteen, Metallica, Guns N’ Roses, U2, Green Day, and Rolling Loud music festival.

In popular culture

The Coliseum appeared in the music videos for Huey Lewis & the News’ "Jacob’s Ladder" and Richard Marx’ "Take This Heart." It was used for scenes in the movies Angels in the Outfield and Moneyball. The novel There There by Tommy Orange also takes place there.

Other events

The stadium has hosted AMA Supercross Championship rounds since 2011 and Monster Jam events since 2008.

International soccer matches

Criticism

Baseball

In 2011, a website said this stadium was one of the worst in baseball because it has a big foul area. In 2017, a newspaper called it a plain, dull concrete building that many people don’t like.

Two years later, another article from the same newspaper said nice things about the Coliseum. The writer said the Coliseum is cheap, rough, and fun. He liked the Coliseum as much as famous ballparks like Fenway Park and Wrigley Field. He said the Coliseum was cheaper for fans, with hot dogs and drinks costing only $7 together. It was also more open, letting fans see great catches by players. But even though some fans liked it, not enough people came to games for the team to stay there.

Public debt

A big upgrade of the stadium in 1996 cost $220 million, paid by local government. As of spring 2018, the city still owed $135 million for this upgrade.

In December 2019, county officials sold their share of the stadium to the baseball team for $85 million. This helped the county pay off its part of the debt.

Mount Davis

Main article: Mount Davis (Oakland)

In 1996, the stadium got more than 10,000 new seats high up, covering the view of the hills. Fans called this area “Mount Davis” after a former team owner. It made the stadium look more like a football stadium and less like a baseball stadium. From 1997 to 2005, these seats weren’t counted in the official stadium size, even though they were there.

In 2006, the team covered these seats with a tarp, making the stadium smaller. This made some fans and city leaders unhappy. In 2013, the football team also covered some seats to help more games be shown on TV. In 2017, the baseball team opened some seats again, increasing the size a bit. Sometimes, the tarp is removed for special games.

Facility issues

On June 16, 2013, after a game, the stadium had a big sewage problem. Water leaked into showers and offices. This happened because the old pipes couldn’t handle many fans at once.

This wasn’t the first time sewage problems happened. Sometimes, even when no games were going on, sewage leaked. In 2014, people thought possums lived inside the stadium. During games, possums sometimes ran onto the field. Fans liked them and called them the “Rally Possum”. By 2023, possums were still living there, and one was even seen in the broadcast booth for visiting teams.