Giants Stadium Era
Home of the Giants and Jets, and a landmark of Meadowlands sports history.
Giants Stadium (sometimes referred to as Giants Stadium at the Meadowlands) was a stadium located in East Rutherford, New Jersey, in the Meadowlands Sports Complex. The venue was open from 1976 to 2010, and primarily hosted sporting events and concerts. It was the home field of the New York Giants (from 1976 to 2009) and the New York Jets (from 1984 to 2009), as well as the New York Cosmos (1977–1984) and the New York Red Bulls (1996–2009).
Quick Facts
- Notable event
- Hosted multiple NFL playoff games
- concerts
- and international soccer matches
Lore & Background
Giants Stadium was the first major league sporting venue in New Jersey. Its modernist design was heavily inspired by Arrowhead Stadium, with the firm Kivett and Myers borrowing the overall layout, intimacy, and exterior spiral ramps. The stadium closed following the 2009 NFL season after the construction of MetLife Stadium in the surrounding parking lot. The final event was a January 3, 2010, game featuring the Jets hosting the Cincinnati Bengals. Demolition began a month later and was completed on August 10, 2010.
Reader's Guide
The stadium's maximum seating capacity was 80,242. It was 756 ft long, 592 ft wide, and 144 ft high from service level to the top of the seating bowl (178 ft to the top of the south tower). The volume was 64.5 million cubic feet, using 13,500 tons of structural steel and 29,200 tons of concrete. The field was aligned northwest to southeast, with the press box along the southwest sideline. It was owned and operated by the New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority.
Did You Know?
- The Jets' first game at Giants Stadium was on September 6, 1984.
- Giants Stadium hosted seven games of the 1994 FIFA World Cup, including the Italy vs. Bulgaria semifinal.
- The stadium broke Wrigley Field's record for most NFL games hosted, reaching 365 games in 2003.
- The New Orleans Saints used Giants Stadium as a 'home' venue in 2005 after Hurricane Katrina damaged the Louisiana Superdome.
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