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Believe it or not Cleveland, Ohio has the total package for sporting venues.. All 3 of them right there in Downtown, all accessible by Train or public transit. Browns stadium is right on the lake next to Rock n Roll Hall of Fame. Indians and Cavs are connected to tower city by an underground tunnel. And when the teams are good, its a blast. Those ppl up there have nothing better to do but follow their sports teams.. Ive been to some games there of all 3 sports, great experiences and GREAT VENUES in a vibrant downtown area.
With the newly renovated Arrowhead and Kauffman Stadium along with state of the art arena, the Sprint Center and a forthcoming soccer stadium, Kansas City should be considered for this.
With all the new venues opening up in the past 20 years, I think it's time to throw out the "beauty" factor in determining the "best" stadium/arena. You could probably count the number of "bad" stadiums on one hand right now. Mellon Arena in Pittsburgh, Candlestick Park in SF (or whatever it's called now), and the Oakland Coliseum all come to mind as being aesthetically "bad". But the most important aspects of a major sporting venue come down to two things: atmosphere and ease of transit. With that in mind, Chicago, Boston, and St. Louis are my top three. All have top-notch atmosphere (except when the Rams are pathetic), and all are accessible by car or train (I think train is easier in all three cities). I've been to StL and Boston for baseball games, and I was highly impressed with both Busch and Fenway. I haven't yet seen the new Busch, but I'm sure it's better to watch a game than old Busch was.
I'd have to disagree with the Kansas City consideration. While I've seen a Royals game, the stadiums are so far away from after-game hangouts that it makes it impossible to go to a game and catch a quick beer afterwards. The tailgating at Arrowhead is quite the spectacle, though
I'd have to disagree with the Kansas City consideration. While I've seen a Royals game, the stadiums are so far away from after-game hangouts that it makes it impossible to go to a game and catch a quick beer afterwards. The tailgating at Arrowhead is quite the spectacle, though
The question is about the best sports venues, not the areas surrounding them.
Hi everybody...
I'm from Italy and... we have such awful arenas in here !
I've been playing basketball for 5 years, and all the arenas I went in, and all the ones I saw on TV, were overlighted, had nightmare-bathrooms and, in general, had too many sponsor advertisements inside, so we got our eyes not pointing at the game, but attracted by the exagerate light and colors that there were in.
Moreover, I've sometimes seen someone smoking during a nationwide broadcasted game (!!), and if you were watching too, you could have noticed what highest ring seated poeple were doing during the game (e.g. eating, talking each other, sleeping, drinking or ...). Kinda Big Brother, men !!
I usually like arenas in which light allows you to concentrate on the game, on the court, having darker-lighted seats as you reach the uppermost part.
You know what ? Somohow, it seems like you're playing or watching a game in a place whom roof is the night sky !!
For this reason, McNichols Sports Arena (Denver, CO), Alamodome (San Antonio, TX) and Target Center (Minneapolis, MN) are the ones that I prefere.
At the same time, I really cannot forget about Galen Center (Los Angeles, CA), USC Trojans homecourt. Taking a look at downtown LA while watching a game is something unbelievable. Just imagine you're there, all seats vacated, lights turned out, and only sunset light showing you your pathway !!
The arena I hate most is undoubtedly Amway Arena (a.k.a. TD Waterhouse Center), in Orlando, FL. Light inside there is too disturbing. Don't like at all.
PS::: Will BOK Center be home to the NBA D-League team Tulsa 66ers ?
The new arena will host the WNBA Tulsa Shock which came from Detroit!
Thankfully science has now conducted a rating of 122 sports venues and this debate can be put to rest. As for the best stadium experience, the top 10 are...
1. Minnesota Twins
2. Green Bay Packers
3. Minnesota Wild
4. Seattle Mariners
5. Philadelphia Phillies
6. Milwaukee Brewers
7. San Francisco Giants
8. Indianapolis Colts
9. Pittsburgh Pirates
10. St. Louis Cardinals
1. Historic Madison Square Garden (which is still a pretty nice facility, to boot)
2. Brand new Citifield
3. Brand new Yankee Stadium
4. Brand new Meadowlands Stadium
5. Newly revamped Rutgers Stadium
6. Michie Field at West Point
7. The Prudential Center ("The Rock") in Newark, NJ - a beautiful, new (a few years old) arena
8. Izod Center
NY/NJ tends to dominate any comparison in Pro Sports.
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Cleveland
