| San
Diego Chargers - Qualcomm Stadium |
| Address: |
9449 Friars Road
San Diego, CA 92108 |
|
| Name: |
Qualcomm Stadium |
| Home Team:
|
San Diego Chargers |
| Capacity:
|
70,000 |
| Playing
Surface: |
Grass |
| Year Opened:
|
1967 |
|
Home of the San Diego Chargers
for more than three decades, Qualcomm Stadium looks much different
than it did when it opened. In the early 1960’s sportswriter
Jack Murphy began to build up support for a multipurpose stadium
for the area. When built, the stadium would become home of the
Charges and a MLB team, that the city hoped to attract. In November
of 1965, a $27 million bond was passed allowing construction
to began on a stadium. Construction on the stadium began one
month later. When completed, the facility was named San Diego
Stadium. The Chargers played
the first game ever at the stadium on August 20, 1967. San
Diego Stadium had a capacity of around 50,000 multicolored
seats when it opened. The three tier grandstand was in the
shape of a horseshoe, with the south end open. The team was
the main tenant of the stadium until 1969, when MLB granted
the area a team, the Padres. After the death of Jack Murphy
in 1981, San Diego Stadium was renamed in honor of him. The
stadium remained basically the same until 1983.
Over 9,000 bleachers were added to the
lower deck on the open end of the stadium raising the capacity
of Jack Murphy Stadium to 59,022. Sixteen years later the
most substantial addition was completed at Jack Murphy Stadium.
In 1997, Jack Murphy Stadium was fully enclosed, with the
exception of where the scoreboard is located. Nearly 11,000
seats were added in readiness for the Super Bowl in 1998,
bringing the capacity to over 71,000. Also in 1997, the facility
was renamed Qualcomm Stadium after Qualcomm Corporation paid
$18 million for the naming rights. Today, Qualcomm Stadium
is one of the NFL’s finest facilities. Many of the multicolored
seats have been replaced with new blue seats. Qualcomm Stadium
has several amenities including over 100 luxury suites, over
7,000 club seats, and the Charges Gold Club which is available
to Charges season ticket holders, and allows service at their
seats, and access to air conditioned lounges. The Chargers
are now the main tenant of the stadium, as the Padres have
moved into their own ballpark, Petco Park. Currently, the
Chargers are looking into possibly building their own stadium
in the San Diego area.
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