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Typical stadium seating consists of terraces, such as shown here at Sarajevo's Stadium Kosevo. A modern stadium (plural stadiums or stadia) is a place, or venue, for outdoor sports, concerts or other events, consisting of a field or stage partly or completely surrounded by a structure designed to allow spectators to stand or sit and view the event.
The Roman word stadium referred to a unit of measure, approximately 200 metres in length. In early Rome, the length of an arena was 1 stadium, so the name of the unit was also sometimes applied to the building. Greek and Roman stadia have been found in numerous ancient cities, perhaps the most famous being the Stadium of Domitian in Rome.
Most stadiums are open-air, such as this football (soccer) stadium in the Netherlands.
An all-seater stadium has seats for all spectators. Other stadiums are designed so that all or some spectators stand to view the event.
Different sports require fields of different size and shape. Some stadiums are designed primarily for a single sport while other stadiums can accommodate different sports. Stadiums built specifically for some form of football are quite common. The most common multiple use design combines a football field with a running track, a combination generally works fairly well, although certain compromises must be made. The major drawback is that the stands are necessarily set back a good distance from the field, especially at the ends of the field. In the case of some smaller stadiums, there aren't stands at the ends. When there are stands all the way around, the stadium takes on an oval shape. When one end is open, the stadium has a horseshoe shape. All three configurations (open, oval and horseshoe) are common, especially in the case of American college football stadiums. framed New York's Yankee StadiumYankee Stadium The House that Ruth Built Location Bronx, New York Opened April 18, 1923 Re-opened April 15, 1976 Capacity 58,000 ( 1923), 62,000 ( 1926),82,000 ( 1927),67,113 ( 1928),62,000 ( 1929), 71,699 ( 1937),70,000 ( 1942), 67,000 ( 1948),67,205 ( 1 provides a typical example of a baseballBusch Stadium in Saint Louis, Missouri. Baseball is a team sport in which a small hand-sized ball is thrown and hit with a bat. Scoring involves running and touching markers on the ground called bases, hence the name. The ball itself is also called a base stadium. In the United States, where baseballBusch Stadium in Saint Louis, Missouri. Baseball is a team sport in which a small hand-sized ball is thrown and hit with a bat. Scoring involves running and touching markers on the ground called bases, hence the name. The ball itself is also called a base and American footballAmerican football known in the United States simply as football is a competitive team sport that rewards players' speed, agility, skill, tactics, and brute strength as they run and throw a ball, and block, tackle, and outrun each other, trying to force th are the two most popular outdoor spectator sports, a number of football/baseball multi-use stadiums were built beginning in the 1960sCenturies: 19th century 20th century 21st century Decades: 1900s 1910s 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s 2010s Years: 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 Events and trends The 1960s was a turbulent decade of change around, and some of them were successful. However, since the requirements for baseball and football are significantly different, the trend beginning in the 1990sCenturies: 19th century 20th century 21st century Decades: 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s 2010s 2020s 2030s 2040s Years: Events and trends Computers, technology Explosive growth of the Internet; decrease in the cost of computers and other techn has been toward the construction of single-purpose stadums. In several cases a football stadium has been constructed adjacent to a baseball park.
The spectator areas of a stadium are often referred to as terraces, especially in the United KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a state in Western Europe, usually known simply as the United Kingdom the UK Britain or less accurately as Great Britain . The UK was formed by a series of Acts of Union which united the formerly. Originally set out for standing room only, they are now usually equipped with seating. Either way, the term originates from the step-like rows which resemble agricultural terraces.