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Raymond James Stadium
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BUY Raymond James Stadium
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Located at One Buccaneer Place in Tampa, Florida and home to the NFL's Tampa Bay
Buccaneers, Raymond James Stadium is a fantastic football stadium. Raymond James
Stadium is also home to the University of South Florida football team and is additionally
a well used soccer facility. The stadium seats just over 66,000 fans, but is expandable
to 75,000 for special events. The stadium hosts the annual Outback Bowl on New Year's
Day and the grand daddy of monster truck events in mid January. Super Bowl XXXV
was held there on January 28, 2001 between the Baltimore Ravens and New York Giants.
Raymond James Stadium is slated to host Super Bowl XLIII in 2009 as well.
Raymond James Stadium officially opened on September 20, 1998, when the Tampa Bay
Buccaneers defeated the Chicago Bears, 27-15. The final cost of the publicly funded
stadium was 168.5 million dollars. Originally referred to as Tampa Community Stadium,
the naming rights were bought for 32.5 million dollars by St. Petersburg-based Raymond
James Financial.
One of the most recognizable features of the stadium is a 103-foot, 43 ton steel
and concrete replica pirate ship. The ship fires soft rubber footballs and confetti
each time the Tampa Bay Buccaneers score points. The cannons fire six times for
a touchdown, once for an extra point or if the Bucs get into their opponent's red
zone, twice for a safety or two point conversion, and three times for a field goal.
In addition, when the Buccaneers enter their opponent's red zone, stadium hosts
hoist team flags around the perimeter of the upper deck. The pirate ship is definitely
unique and is intimidating to visiting teams. There is no other stadium to boast
such a unique grand structure that fits perfectly into the home teams' moniker.
When it opened, Raymond James Stadium was dubbed the "crown jewel" of the NFL. Buc
Vision, a pair of 92 foot wide video screens, are among the largest in the league
and offer fans in any section a great view of replays. Buccaneer Cove features a
weathered, two-story fishing village facade, housing stadium concessions and restrooms.
The stadium uses Bermuda Grass as a playing surface. With a mere seating capacity
of 66,000 fans for football, temporary bleachers had to be put up in the endzones
for Super Bowl XXXV, and the stadium set an attendance record with 71,921 fans.
Despite its "crown jewel" status, the stadium did have problems with its chairs.
After seven years of being open, the red seats of the stadium faded to pink. The
Tampa Sports Authority sued for warranty concerns, stating the seats did not have
the UV inhibitor as per the building contract. After a nearly two year long legal
battle, the TSA came to a settlement with the manufacturer of the stadium seats
and the seats were replaced in the spring of 2006.
The Raymond James Stadium was publicly funded when the voters of Hillsborough County,
Florida approved a thirty-year, half-cent sales tax to build new schools, improve
public safety/infrastructure and build the new stadium in 1996. The bill was expertly
crafted to insure public opinion of funding for the stadium was positive. Voting
precincts reported record turnouts and the bill passed by a 53% to 47% margin. It
was one of the closest margins in NFL stadium history.
Although there are no official nicknames for the stadium, it is sometimes referred
to as "Ray Jay", "The New Sombrero" (a spinoff of the former Bucs' home, as coined
by Chris Berman of ESPN), or humorously by local residents as "the CITS", which
stands for the Community Investment Tax Stadium.
Raymond James Stadium is an expertly crafted stadium and offers visitors a complete
almost magical experience. The large ship that blasts out confetti and the fishery
themed concession area make the stadium more than a place to just watch football.
Raymond James Stadium is a total entertainment experience that only the warm sunshine
state can provide. Good seats go fast and seating capacity is less than a lot of
other NFL stadiums so tickets to Raymond James Stadium often go fast! Buy your tickets
now!
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BUY Raymond James Stadium
TICKETS NOW! |
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