Camping World Stadium
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Camping World Stadium is an outdoor stadium in
Orlando Orlando commonly refers to: * Orlando, Florida, a city in the United States Orlando may also refer to: People * Orlando (given name), a masculine name, includes a list of people with the name * Orlando (surname), includes a list of people wit ...
,
Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...
,
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
located in the West Lakes neighborhood of
Downtown Orlando Downtown Orlando is the historic core and central business district of Orlando, Florida, United States. It is bordered by Marks Street in the north, Mills Avenue ( SR 15) in the east, Orange Blossom Trail ( US 441) in the west, and Kaley Avenu ...
, west of new sports and entertainment facilities including the Kia Center, the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts, and Inter&Co Stadium. It opened in 1936 as Orlando Stadium and has also been known as the Tangerine Bowl and Florida Citrus Bowl. The City of Orlando owns and operates the stadium. Camping World Stadium is the current home venue of the Citrus Bowl and the
Pop-Tarts Bowl The Pop-Tarts Bowl is an annual college football bowl game that is played in Orlando, Florida, at Camping World Stadium. Originally commissioned as the Sunshine Classic, it has undergone many name changes due to sponsorship rights. The bowl is op ...
. It is also the regular host of other
college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...
games including the Florida Classic between Florida A&M and Bethune-Cookman, the MEAC/SWAC Challenge, and the
Camping World Kickoff The Camping World Kickoff is an annual college football game played on the opening weekend of the college football season in Orlando, Florida at Camping World Stadium. The game, a collaboration between Florida Citrus Sports and ESPN Events, debu ...
. The stadium was built for
football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...
and in the past, it has served as the home of numerous minor/alternate-league football clubs, including teams from the WFL,
USFL The United States Football League (USFL) was a professional American football league that played for three seasons, 1983 through 1985. The league played a spring/summer schedule in each of its active seasons. The 1986 season was scheduled to be ...
, WLAF, XFL, UFL, and most recently the Orlando Guardians of the 2020 XFL. From 2011 to 2013, it was the home of the
Orlando City SC Orlando City Soccer Club is an American professional soccer club based in Orlando, Florida. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Eastern Conference. Owned by Zygi, Leonard, and Mark Wilf, it is the sister club of ...
, a
soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 Football player, players who almost exclusively use their feet to propel a Ball (association football), ball around a rectangular f ...
team in
USL Pro The USL Championship (USLC) is a men's professional soccer league in the second tier of the United States league system. It is organized by the United Soccer League (USL) as its premier league for men above USL League One. Operating under a f ...
, then it was a temporary home for Orlando City of the
MLS Major League Soccer (MLS) is a professional soccer league in North America and the highest level of the United States soccer league system. It comprises 30 teams, with 27 in the United States and 3 in Canada, and is sanctioned by the United ...
while Inter&Co Stadium was under construction. From 1979 to 2006, the stadium served as the home of the UCF Knights football team. It was one of the nine venues used for the
1994 FIFA World Cup The 1994 FIFA World Cup was the 15th FIFA World Cup, the world championship for men's national soccer teams. It was hosted by the United States and took place from June 17 to July 17, 1994, at nine venues across the country. The United States w ...
, and also hosted 1996 Olympic soccer matches. The stadium has hosted the NFL's
Pro Bowl The National Football League All-Star Game (1939–1942), Pro Bowl (1951–2022), or Pro Bowl Games (since 2023) is an annual event held by the National Football League (NFL) featuring the league's All-star, star players. The format has changed ...
five times.


Stadium history

Construction on the stadium began in 1936 as a project of the
Works Progress Administration The Works Progress Administration (WPA; from 1935 to 1939, then known as the Work Projects Administration from 1939 to 1943) was an American New Deal agency that employed millions of jobseekers (mostly men who were not formally educated) to car ...
under President
Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), also known as FDR, was the 32nd president of the United States, serving from 1933 until his death in 1945. He is the longest-serving U.S. president, and the only one to have served ...
during the
Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...
. The stadium was built to the immediate east of the baseball park Tinker Field, which opened in 1914. The stadium opened later in 1936 with a capacity of 8,900 as Orlando Stadium. The first college football bowl game was played on January 1, 1947. Catawba defeated Maryville 31–6 in the inaugural Tangerine Bowl. 2,000 seats were added in 1952. During this period, the stadium was known as the Tangerine Bowl. 5,000 more seats were added in 1968, along with the first press box. From 1974 to 1976 an expansion project raised the capacity to 50,612, including a 3,600-seat upper deck on the east sidelines. However, shortly after completion the project proved to be a public fiasco and potentially an architectural and engineering failure. On November 27, 1976, the first major game was held at the expanded stadium, a regular season matchup between
Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...
and
Miami Miami is a East Coast of the United States, coastal city in the U.S. state of Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County in South Florida. It is the core of the Miami metropolitan area, which, with a populat ...
. During the game, the newly constructed upper deck noticeably swayed whenever fans stood up and cheered. The deck vibrated, fences and railings shook and creaked, causing an unnerving sensation for the patrons sitting in those sections. The swaying and shaking was noticeable again about a month later during the 1976 Tangerine Bowl game. The swaying was so pronounced that some fans vowed never to sit in those seats again, while some refused to return to the stadium at all. Before long, engineering evaluations, as well as legal investigations, uncovered numerous missteps, rushing, and cut corners in the stadium's design. While it was believed that the upper deck was structurally sound and met building codes, it nevertheless was deemed a failure. Additional problems included inadequate access to restrooms in the upper deck, gaps between the sections which required obstructive fences, and the fact that the upper deck was built at such an angle that it had poor sight lines. Meanwhile, unsightly I-beams installed to hold up the upper deck now blocked seats in the lower deck that were previously unobstructed. The maligned stadium's reputation was heavily tarnished after the upper deck scandal, criticized by public officials, media, and fans. Further complicating the situation was UCF's pending move to the stadium for
1979 Events January * January 1 ** United Nations Secretary-General Kurt Waldheim heralds the start of the ''International Year of the Child''. Many musicians donate to the ''Music for UNICEF Concert'' fund, among them ABBA, who write the song ...
. The city finally received a settlement of $900,500 from the stadium's engineers, architects, and designers, money that was soon appropriated for new improvements. The infamous steel east upper deck was dismantled in May 1980. After various new improvements, and a $30 million renovation that added new concrete upper decks to both sides, a capacity of 65,438 was established in 1989. In 1983, the Florida Department of Citrus was added as a title sponsor for the facility, at a price of $250,000. From 1999 to 2002, key stadium improvements included the addition of contour seating, two escalators, and a new wide scoreboard/video screen. A new sound system, along with two full-color ribbon displays along the upper decks, were also added. The expansion resulted in the upper deck overhanging Tinker Field's right field area, albeit at a significant height.


Events hosted


Football


Professional football

Camping World Stadium has been home field to several short-lived professional football teams. From 1966 to 1970, the stadium was home to the
Orlando Panthers The Orlando Panthers were a professional American football team based in Orlando, Florida. Founded in 1958 as the Franklin Miners, the team spent its first four years in the Eastern Football Conference, then three further years in the Atlantic Co ...
of the
Continental Football League The Continental Football League (COFL) was a professional American football Minor league football (gridiron), minor league that operated in North America from 1965 through 1969. It was established following the collapse of the original United Fo ...
. In 1974, the Florida Blazers of the
World Football League The World Football League (WFL) was an American football league that played one full season in 1974 in sports, 1974 and most of its second in 1975 in sports, 1975. Although the league's proclaimed ambition was to bring American football onto a w ...
played their only season in existence at the Tangerine Bowl. The
USFL The United States Football League (USFL) was a professional American football league that played for three seasons, 1983 through 1985. The league played a spring/summer schedule in each of its active seasons. The 1986 season was scheduled to be ...
's
Orlando Renegades The Orlando Renegades were a professional American football team that played in Orlando, Florida, Orlando, Florida, in the United States Football League (USFL) for a single season in 1985. Before its season in Orlando, the franchise played in Wa ...
played one season in 1985. The
Orlando Thunder The Orlando Thunder was a member of the World League of American Football from 1991 to 1992. The team played their games in the 70,000 seat Florida Citrus Bowl, and was coached by Don Matthews in 1991 and Galen Hall in 1992. The team's most visi ...
of the WLAF called the Citrus Bowl home in their two-season existence during the early 1990s, while the XFL's
Orlando Rage The Orlando Rage was an American football team based in Orlando, Florida as part of the XFL (2001), XFL, begun by Vince McMahon of the World Wrestling Entertainment, World Wrestling Federation and by NBC, a major television network in the Unite ...
played there in 2001 as well as the UFL's
Florida Tuskers Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...
, occupying the stadium for 2 seasons from 2009, before moving to
Virginia Beach Virginia Beach (colloquially VB) is the List of cities in Virginia, most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), U.S. commonwealth of Virginia. The city is located on the Atlantic Ocean at the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay in southeaster ...
as the
Virginia Destroyers The Virginia Destroyers were a professional American football team based in Virginia Beach, Virginia. They began play in the United Football League (UFL) in the 2011 season. They played their home games at the Virginia Beach Sportsplex. The t ...
in 2011. The Orlando Fantasy of the Lingerie Football League moved to the stadium shortly after, having previously used the UCF Arena. In 2022, it was announced that Orlando had been chosen to be the home of one of the third incarnation of the XFL’s eight teams and that the team would play its home games at Camping World Stadium. The Orlando Guardians played in the
2023 XFL season The 2023 XFL season was the second season in the reboot of the XFL, the first under its new ownership group of Dwayne Johnson, Dany Garcia, and Gerry Cardinale (RedBird Capital), and the third in the history of the XFL brand created and origina ...
before folding after the XFL's
merger Mergers and acquisitions (M&A) are business transactions in which the ownership of a company, business organization, or one of their operating units is transferred to or consolidated with another entity. They may happen through direct absorpt ...
with the
USFL The United States Football League (USFL) was a professional American football league that played for three seasons, 1983 through 1985. The league played a spring/summer schedule in each of its active seasons. The 1986 season was scheduled to be ...
. The stadium hosted the NFL's all-star game, the
Pro Bowl The National Football League All-Star Game (1939–1942), Pro Bowl (1951–2022), or Pro Bowl Games (since 2023) is an annual event held by the National Football League (NFL) featuring the league's All-star, star players. The format has changed ...
, from
2017 2017 was designated as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development by the United Nations General Assembly. Events January * January 1 – Istanbul nightclub shooting: A gunman dressed as Santa Claus opens fire at the ...
through
2020 The year 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of even ...
. In 2024, the event returned for a fifth time under the new title Pro Bowl Games. It was the first time since the NFL transitioned the event to a new format of skills competitions and non-contact
Flag football Flag football is a variant of gridiron football (American football or Canadian football depending on location) where, instead of Tackle (football move)#Gridiron football, tackling players to the ground, the defensive team must remove a flag or ...
. Seven NFL preseason games have been held at the stadium.


College football

The stadium has hosted various college football games, including many
bowl game In North America, a bowl game, or simply bowl, is one of a number of postseason college football games primarily played by NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) teams. For most of its history, the FBS did not use a playoff tourname ...
s: * Since 1947 (except for 1973), the stadium has hosted a bowl game, currently known as the Citrus Bowl, typically played on January 1 or January 2. The bowl has also been known by different names, and has also been held during December, at various times during its history. ** The December 1958 edition of the game, then known as the Tangerine Bowl, was notable for the segregation policy of the stadium operators, the Orlando High School Athletic Association (OHSAA), leading to the
University at Buffalo The State University of New York at Buffalo (commonly referred to as UB, University at Buffalo, and sometimes SUNY Buffalo) is a public university, public research university in Buffalo, New York, Buffalo and Amherst, New York, United States. ...
declining their bowl bid, as their two black players would not have been allowed to play. * Since 1997, the stadium has been home to the Florida Classic, an annual game between Bethune–Cookman University and
Florida A&M University Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University (FAMU), commonly known as Florida A&M, is a Public university, public Historically black colleges and universities, historically black land-grant university in Tallahassee, Florida, United States. ...
. * Since 2001, the stadium has hosted a December bowl game, which has undergone several name changes due to sponsorship changes—, it is known as the
Pop-Tarts Bowl The Pop-Tarts Bowl is an annual college football bowl game that is played in Orlando, Florida, at Camping World Stadium. Originally commissioned as the Sunshine Classic, it has undergone many name changes due to sponsorship rights. The bowl is op ...
. * In 2010 and 2011, the stadium hosted the
East–West Shrine Game East West (or East and West) may refer to: *East–West dichotomy, the contrast between Eastern and Western society or culture Arts and entertainment Books, journals and magazines *'' East, West'', an anthology of short stories written by Salm ...
, which then moved to
Tropicana Field Tropicana Field (nicknamed "The Trop") is a domed multipurpose stadium located in St. Petersburg, Florida, United States. "The Trop" was the home of the Tampa Bay Rays of Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1998 Tampa Bay Devil Rays season, 1998 to ...
in
St. Petersburg, Florida St. Petersburg is a city in Pinellas County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 258,308, making it the List of municipalities in Florida, fifth-most populous city in Florida and the most populous city in the sta ...
. * The stadium has hosted the Cure Bowl, a December bowl game, during 2015–2018 and in 2020. The bowl was announced to return in 2024. * The stadium hosted the 1979 NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship Game, 2005 C-USA Championship Game, and 2016 ACC Championship Game. *
Rollins College Rollins College is a Liberal arts college, private liberal arts college in Winter Park, Florida. It was founded in November 1885 and has about 30 undergraduate majors and several master's programs. Florida's fourth oldest post-secondary institut ...
of
Winter Park, Florida Winter Park is a city in Orange County, Florida, United States. The population was 29,795 according to the 2020 census. It is part of the Greater Orlando, Orlando–Kissimmee–Sanford, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area. Winter Park was foun ...
, was the first college to use the then-named Orlando Stadium as its home field. It played there prior to and after World War II.


High school football

The Florida High School Athletic Association state football championships are held at Camping World Stadium. The varsity football team from nearby Jones High School used Camping World Stadium as a regular season home field for decades through the end of their 2011 season. The school started playing home football games on their own field beginning on August 31, 2012.


Soccer

The playing surface is large enough for use in international
soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 Football player, players who almost exclusively use their feet to propel a Ball (association football), ball around a rectangular f ...
matches, and it was a venue for the
1994 FIFA World Cup The 1994 FIFA World Cup was the 15th FIFA World Cup, the world championship for men's national soccer teams. It was hosted by the United States and took place from June 17 to July 17, 1994, at nine venues across the country. The United States w ...
. In five matches, attendance averaged over 60,000 per match. In 1996, Olympic soccer matches in both the
men A man is an adult male human. Before adulthood, a male child or adolescent is referred to as a boy. Like most other male mammals, a man's genome usually inherits an X chromosome from the mother and a Y chromosome from the fa ...
's and
women A woman is an adult female human. Before adulthood, a female child or adolescent is referred to as a girl. Typically, women are of the female sex and inherit a pair of X chromosomes, one from each parent, and women with functional u ...
's competitions were held at the stadium. It hosted the USISL A-League Orlando Sundogs in 1997. It also hosted the
Major League Soccer All-Star Game The Major League Soccer All-Star Game is an annual soccer game held by Major League Soccer featuring selected players from the league against an international club or selected players from another league. MLS initially adopted a traditional all ...
in 1998. The stadium was the home of
Orlando City SC Orlando City Soccer Club is an American professional soccer club based in Orlando, Florida. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Eastern Conference. Owned by Zygi, Leonard, and Mark Wilf, it is the sister club of ...
, a soccer team in the
USL Pro The USL Championship (USLC) is a men's professional soccer league in the second tier of the United States league system. It is organized by the United Soccer League (USL) as its premier league for men above USL League One. Operating under a f ...
League. In 2013, the investment group that owned that club was awarded an expansion team in
Major League Soccer Major League Soccer (MLS) is a professional Association football, soccer league in North America and the highest level of the United States soccer league system. It comprises 30 teams, with 27 in the United States and 3 in Canada, and is sanc ...
. They spent their 2014 season in USL Pro at ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in Lake Buena Vista while Camping World Stadium was being renovated. During the 2013 season,
Fifth Third Bank Fifth Third Bancorp is a bank holding company headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio. It is the parent company of Fifth Third Bank (5/3 Bank), which operates 1,100 branches and 2,400 automated teller machines, which are located in 11 states: Oh ...
owned
naming rights Naming rights are a financial transaction and form of advertising or memorialization where a corporation, person, or other entity purchases the right to name a facility, object, location, program, or event (most often sports venues), typical ...
to the field for Orlando City matches. Its name during those matches was Fifth Third Bank Field at the Citrus Bowl. Orlando City played their final USL Pro match at Camping World Stadium on September 6, 2013. They won the USL Pro Championship over
Charlotte Eagles The Charlotte Eagles is an American amateur soccer team based in Charlotte, North Carolina, United States. Founded in 1991, the team plays in USL League Two, the fourth tier of the American Soccer Pyramid. The team plays its home games at the ...
, 7–4, before a crowd of 20,886. The last soccer event held at Camping World Stadium before its renovation was an
international friendly An exhibition game (also known as a friendly, scrimmage, demonstration, training match, pre-season game, warmup match, or preparation match, depending at least in part on the sport) is a sport, sporting event whose prize money and impact on th ...
between the women's teams of the
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
and
Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...
. The U.S. won the match, 4–1, before a crowd of 20,274. Orlando City, now playing in
Major League Soccer Major League Soccer (MLS) is a professional Association football, soccer league in North America and the highest level of the United States soccer league system. It comprises 30 teams, with 27 in the United States and 3 in Canada, and is sanc ...
, returned to Camping World Stadium for the 2015 and 2016 seasons. The
Orlando Pride The Orlando Pride are an American professional Association football, soccer team based in Orlando, Florida, that competes in the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL). The Pride began play in the 2016 National Women's Soccer League season, 2016 ...
, the
National Women's Soccer League The National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) is a women's professional Association football, soccer league and the highest level of the United States soccer league system#Women's leagues, United States soccer league system (alongside the USL Supe ...
2016 expansion team owned by Orlando City SC, played in Camping World Stadium while the Orlando City (now Exploria) Stadium was completed. Camping World Stadium was one of the venues for Copa América Centenario in June 2016. Three group stage matches were held there, Paraguay vs Costa Rica on June 4, Bolivia vs Panama on June 6 and Brazil vs Haiti on June 8. The stadium hosted the
Mexico national football team The Mexico national football team () represents Mexico in men's international association football, football and is governed by the Mexican Football Federation, Federación Mexicana de Fútbol (). It has been a member of FIFA since 1929 and c ...
vs.
Guatemala Guatemala, officially the Republic of Guatemala, is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico, to the northeast by Belize, to the east by Honduras, and to the southeast by El Salvador. It is hydrologically b ...
"MexTour" on April 27, 2022. The 2022 Florida Cup exhibition soccer match between
Arsenal An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...
and Chelsea, 4–0, had an attendance of 63,811, a record crowd for a soccer match at the stadium. The stadium will be one of twelve venues to host the
2025 FIFA Club World Cup The 2025 FIFA Club World Cup (officially known as the FIFA Club World Cup 2025, also marketed as FIFA Club World Cup 25) is the 21st edition and the first of the expanded FIFA Club World Cup, an international club soccer competition organized ...
.


1994 FIFA World Cup matches


Club friendlies


2025 FIFA Club World Cup


WrestleMania

On March 30, 2008, the stadium hosted
WrestleMania XXIV WrestleMania XXIV was a 2008 professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) List of WWE pay-per-view events, event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE). It was the 24th annual WrestleMania and took place on March 30, 2008, at the Camping Wo ...
, the 2008 edition of
WWE World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) is an American professional wrestling promotion. It is owned and operated by TKO Group Holdings, a majority-owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. A global integrated media and entertainment company, ...
's flagship
professional wrestling Professional wrestling, often shortened to either pro wrestling or wrestling,The term "wrestling" is most often widely used to specifically refer to modern scripted professional wrestling, though it is also used to refer to Real life, real- ...
pay-per-view Pay-per-view (PPV) is a type of pay television or webcast service that enables a viewer to pay to watch individual events via private telecast. Events can be purchased through a multichannel television platform using their electronic program ...
. The first WrestleMania held in Florida, and the second to be held entirely outdoors since
WrestleMania IX WrestleMania IX was a 1993 professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) List of WWE pay-per-view events, event produced by the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now WWE). It was the ninth annual WrestleMania and took place on April 4, 1993, at Caesar ...
at
Caesars Palace Caesars Palace is a luxury hotel and casino in Paradise, Nevada, United States. The hotel is situated on the west side of the Las Vegas Strip between Bellagio and The Mirage. It is one of Las Vegas's largest and best known landmarks. Caesar ...
, it had a reported attendance of 74,635—the largest crowd in stadium history. It was estimated to have brought in $51.5 million in revenue to the local economy. WWE returned to Camping World Stadium to host
WrestleMania 33 WrestleMania 33 was a 2017 professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) and livestreaming List of WWE pay-per-view and livestreaming supercards, event produced by WWE. It was the 33rd annual WrestleMania and took place on April 2, 2017, at Camping Wo ...
, which took place on April 2, 2017. WWE claimed an attendance record of 75,245, exceeding the total of WrestleMania XXIV.


Other events

*The Citrus Bowl was the site of two
Billy Graham William Franklin Graham Jr. (; November 7, 1918 – February 21, 2018) was an American Evangelism, evangelist, ordained Southern Baptist minister, and Civil rights movement, civil rights advocate, whose broadcasts and world tours featuring liv ...
Crusades, the most recent of which took place in 1983. *During the
1996 Summer Olympics The 1996 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXVI Olympiad, also known as Atlanta 1996 and commonly referred to as the Centennial Olympic Games) were an international multi-sport event held from July 19 to August 4, 1996, in Atlanta, ...
, it hosted some of the
football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...
preliminaries. *
Drum Corps International Drum Corps International (DCI) is a governing body for drum and bugle corps. Founded in 1971 and known as "marching music's major league," DCI develops and enforces rules of competition and judges at sanctioned drum and bugle corps competitions t ...
has held its annual
World Championships A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game ...
at the stadium four times in 1996, 1997, 1998, and 2003 *The
Feld Entertainment Feld Entertainment Inc. is an American live show production company which owns a number of traveling shows. The company began with the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus before expanding into additional live events, including Disney on ...
-promoted
Monster Jam Monster Jam is a live motorsport event tour operated by Feld Entertainment. The series began in 1992, and is sanctioned under the umbrella of the United States Hot Rod Association. Events are primarily held in North America, with some addition ...
shows held there every year featured a track similar to the one at
Sam Boyd Stadium Sam Boyd Stadium (formerly the Las Vegas Silver Bowl) is a closed American football, football stadium in Whitney, Nevada, an unincorporated community in the Las Vegas Valley. It honors Sam Boyd (1910–1993), a major figure in the hotel and casin ...
in 2008 and 2009. The 2014 Monster Jam event on January 25 was the last event held at Camping World Stadium before its reconstruction began. *The Corporate 5K Orlando road race has been based at the stadium for several years. *The AMA Supercross Series holds an annual spring event. Supercross later returned in 2021. *British rock band
Pink Floyd Pink Floyd are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1965. Gaining an early following as one of the first British psychedelic music, psychedelic groups, they were distinguished by their extended compositions, sonic experiments ...
performed their only concert in Orlando at the stadium on April 30, 1988, as part of their A Momentary Lapse of Reason tour. *The stadium hosted the Rock Super Bowl festivals during the late 1970s and early 1980s *
Guns N' Roses Guns N' Roses is an American hard rock band formed in Los Angeles, California in 1985 as a merger of local bands L.A. Guns and Hollywood Rose. When they signed to Geffen Records in 1986, the band's "classic" line-up consisted of vocalist Axl R ...
continued their Not in This Lifetime... Tour, playing at the stadium on 29 July 2016 to a sold-out crowd. *The stadium hosted
Beyoncé Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter ( ; born September 4, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and businesswoman. With a career spanning over three decades, she has established herself as one of the most Cultural impact of Beyoncé, ...
and
Jay-Z Shawn Corey Carter (born December 4, 1969), known professionally as Jay-Z, is an American Rapping, rapper, businessman, and record executive. Rooted in East Coast hip-hop, he was named Billboard and Vibe's 50 Greatest Rappers of All Time, the ...
's
On the Run II Tour The On the Run II Tour (stylized as OTR II) was the second co-headlining concert tour by American singer-songwriter Beyoncé and rapper Jay-Z, also known as The Carters. The all-stadium concert tour began on June 6, 2018, in Cardiff, Wales and co ...
on August 29, 2018, to a sold-out crowd. *The stadium hosted the Monster Jam World Finals XX on May 10–11, 2019 and World Finals XXI on May 21–22, 2022. *The stadium has hosted The Bands of America Orlando Regional Championship every fall since 2018 excluding 2020, when it was cancelled due to the
COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...
pandemic. *The stadium hosted
Billy Joel William Martin Joel (born May 9, 1949) is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. Nicknamed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Piano Man" after his Signature song, signature 1973 song Piano Man (song), of the same name, Joel has ha ...
on his only show stop in Florida on his stadium series of the Billy Joel in Concert Tour on March 12, 2022. *The stadium hosted the
Garth Brooks Troyal Garth Brooks (born February 7, 1962) is an American Country music, country singer and songwriter. His integration of pop and rock elements into the country genre has earned him his immense popularity, particularly in the United States, ...
Triple Live Stadium Tour on March 26, 2022. The attendance was 70,000, which set a new concert attendance record at the stadium. *The stadium hosted
Paul McCartney Sir James Paul McCartney (born 18 June 1942) is an English singer, songwriter and musician who gained global fame with the Beatles, for whom he played bass guitar and the piano, and shared primary songwriting and lead vocal duties with John ...
's second and final Florida show on his Got Back Tour on May 28, 2022. *
Def Leppard Def Leppard are an English Rock music, rock band formed in Sheffield in 1977. Since 1992, the band has consisted of Rick Savage (bass, backing vocals), Joe Elliott (lead vocals), Rick Allen (drummer), Rick Allen (drums), Phil Collen (guitar, ...
and
Mötley Crüe Mötley Crüe is an American Heavy metal music, heavy metal band formed in Hollywood, California, in 1981 by bassist Nikki Sixx and drummer Tommy Lee, with guitarist Mick Mars and lead vocalist Vince Neil joining right after. The band has sol ...
performed at the stadium on June 19, 2022, during their The Stadium Tour. *
Shakira Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll ( , ; born 2 February 1977) is a Colombian singer-songwriter. Referred to as the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Queen of Latin Music", she has had a Cultural impact of Shakira, significant impact on the ...
performed at the stadium on June 4, 2025, as part of her
Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran World Tour The Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran World Tour is the seventh ongoing concert tour by Colombian singer-songwriter Shakira, in support of her twelfth studio album, ''Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran'' (2024). The stadium tour commenced on 11 February 2025 at t ...
. *
Stray Kids Stray Kids (often abbreviated to SKZ; ) is a South Korean boy band formed by JYP Entertainment. The band consists of eight members: Bang Chan, Lee Know, Changbin, Hyunjin, Han (musician), Han, Felix (rapper), Felix, Seungmin, and I.N. For un ...
will perform at the stadium on June 14, 2025 for their Dominate World Tour *
The Weeknd Abel Makkonen Tesfaye (; born February 16, 1990), known professionally as the Weeknd, is a Canadian singer-songwriter, record producer, and actor. He is best known for adding Pop music, pop, electronic music, electronic and hip-hop stylings ...
will perform at the stadium on August 24, 2025 for his After Hours til Dawn Tour


Renovations

By 2005,
Orlando Orlando commonly refers to: * Orlando, Florida, a city in the United States Orlando may also refer to: People * Orlando (given name), a masculine name, includes a list of people with the name * Orlando (surname), includes a list of people wit ...
-area government officials and officials from the
University of Central Florida The University of Central Florida (UCF) is a public university, public research university with its main campus in unincorporated area, unincorporated Orange County, Florida, United States. It is part of the State University System of Florida. ...
(UCF) expressed dissatisfaction with the state of the facility and lack of revenue, as while UCF was the primary leasing tenant for the facility, it received minimal revenue from football games. Lack of an agreement to rectify these issues led UCF to consider relocating, or spend considerable expense to upgrade the facility at its own cost. In addition, the stadium's capacity was seen as too large for UCF, leaving the stadium an appearance of being empty even with attendance of as much as 30,000–40,000 people per game. UCF's all-time attendance record was 51,978 for the 2005 C-USA Championship Game versus
Tulsa Tulsa ( ) is the second-most-populous city in the state of Oklahoma, after Oklahoma City, and the 48th-most-populous city in the United States. The population was 413,066 as of the 2020 census. It is the principal municipality of the Tul ...
. Furthermore, the stadium was located over from the university's main campus in East Orlando, with travel times of up to a half-hour due to traffic. In 2005, UCF officials led by
university president A chancellor is a leader of a college or university, usually either the executive or ceremonial head of the university or of a university campus within a university system. In most Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth and former Commonwealth na ...
John Hitt made the decision to construct a new on-campus stadium, which opened for the 2007 season. Orlando officials began exploring stadium refurbishment project in 2004, when the Capital One Bowl bid to become a
Bowl Championship Series The Bowl Championship Series (BCS) was a college football post-season selection system that created four or five bowl game match-ups involving eight or ten of the top ranked teams in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of America ...
(BCS) game, but was not chosen due to the stadium's aging condition. Camping World Stadium also submitted a bid for the ACC Championship Game, but lost to Jacksonville Municipal Stadium. The key reasons for losing the bids were the lack of modern
luxury box The luxury box (or skybox) and club seating constitute the most expensive class of seating in arenas and stadiums, and generate much higher revenues than regular seating. Club ticketholders often receive exclusive access to an indoor part of th ...
es, bench seating, and capacity. The hopes for Camping World Stadium became reality when, on September 29, 2006, Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer announced an agreement on a $175-million renovation of Camping World Stadium. It is part of the "Triple Crown for Downtown", a $1.1-billion plan to redo the Orlando Centroplex with a new $480-million arena for the
Orlando Magic The Orlando Magic are an American professional basketball team based in Orlando, Florida. The Magic compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southeast Division (NBA), Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference (NB ...
, a new $375-million performing arts center, and the Camping World Stadium improvements. Conceptual drawings for the possible improvements include enclosed concourses on the east and west sides of the stadium and additions to the north side that will finally complete the lower bowl. The Orlando/Orange County Interlocal Agreement was approved by the Orlando City Council on August 6, 2007. However, the plans were heavily affected by the
Great Recession The Great Recession was a period of market decline in economies around the world that occurred from late 2007 to mid-2009.
of 2007–08. In 2010, the natural grass surface was replaced with
AstroTurf AstroTurf is an American subsidiary of SportGroup that produces artificial turf for pitch (sports field), playing surfaces in sports. The original AstroTurf product was a pile (textile), short-pile synthetic turf invented in 1965 by Monsanto. Si ...
Gameday Grass 3D after the 2009 Champs Sports Bowl and 2010 Capital One Bowl were marred by poor field conditions that led to two football player injuries. Stadium conditions once again prompted a review of the stadiums condition. Finally, it was announced in May 2013 that the Florida Citrus Bowl Stadium would undergo a reconstruction during 2014, at a cost of less than US$200 million. The cost estimate as of March 2014 was US$207 million. The stadium's upper-level seating was retained, but the entire lower bowl structure was demolished. In the newly reconstructed stadium there are two 360-degree concourses, a plaza deck ("Party Deck") in the north end zone, 41,000 all-new lower bowl seats with six additional inches of leg room & chairbacks, multiple giant video displays, new team facilities including locker rooms training rooms and attached media, new stadium operations facilities to allow better efficiency in food service, security, first aid and maintenance, new concessions and restrooms, and an open-air façade. The new mezzanine is now referred to as the "Plaza level". The upper deck, previously numbered the "300" level, is now numbered the "200" level. The reconstruction began immediately following a groundbreaking event held at the stadium on January 29, 2014, and demolition of the entire lower bowl lasted 25 days. The first event at the renovated Camping World Stadium was the 2014 edition of the Florida Classic on November 22, 2014. The Bethune-Cookman Wildcats defeated the Florida A&M Rattlers, 18–17 in overtime. Orlando City returned to the renovated Camping World Stadium for the 2015 season, their first season in
Major League Soccer Major League Soccer (MLS) is a professional Association football, soccer league in North America and the highest level of the United States soccer league system. It comprises 30 teams, with 27 in the United States and 3 in Canada, and is sanc ...
, while awaiting construction of their own
soccer-specific stadium A soccer-specific stadium, mainly in the United States and Canada, is a sports stadium either purpose-built or fundamentally redesigned for soccer and whose primary function is to host soccer matches, as opposed to a multi-purpose stadium whic ...
. In their first match, a 1–1 draw against fellow expansion team
New York City FC New York City Football Club (often referred to as NYCFC) is an American professional Association football, soccer club based in New York City. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Eastern Conference (MLS), Eastern C ...
on March 8, 2015, they drew a sellout crowd of 62,510, the largest attendance for a soccer match at the venue. The
United States women's national soccer team The United States women's national soccer team (USWNT) represents the United States in international women's soccer. The team is governed by the United States Soccer Federation and competes in CONCACAF (the Confederation of North, Central Ameri ...
returned to Camping World Stadium on October 25, 2015. They defeated Brazil again, 3–1. The attendance of 32,869 was the largest attendance for a standalone USWNT friendly in the state of Florida. The
Orlando Pride The Orlando Pride are an American professional Association football, soccer team based in Orlando, Florida, that competes in the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL). The Pride began play in the 2016 National Women's Soccer League season, 2016 ...
, the expansion
National Women's Soccer League The National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) is a women's professional Association football, soccer league and the highest level of the United States soccer league system#Women's leagues, United States soccer league system (alongside the USL Supe ...
team owned by Orlando City SC, played in Camping World Stadium until the Orlando City Stadium was complete. On April 23, 2016, they broke the record for attendance at an NWSL game, setting at 23,403, when the Pride beat the Houston Dash, 3–1. On November 19, 2015,
CONCACAF The Confederation of North, Central America and Caribbean Association Football, abbreviated as CONCACAF ( ; typeset for branding purposes since 2018 as Concacaf), is one of FIFA's six continental governing bodies for association football. Its 4 ...
and
CONMEBOL CONMEBOL ( ) or CSF (; ; ), is the continental governing body of football in South America and it is one of FIFA's six continental confederations. The oldest continental confederation in the world, its headquarters are located in Luque, Parag ...
announced that Camping World Stadium would be one of the host venues for the Copa América Centenario soccer tournament in 2016. On April 26, 2016, Florida Citrus Sports announced that they had sold
naming rights Naming rights are a financial transaction and form of advertising or memorialization where a corporation, person, or other entity purchases the right to name a facility, object, location, program, or event (most often sports venues), typical ...
for the stadium to
Camping World Camping World Holdings, Inc. is an American corporation specializing in selling recreational vehicles (RVs), recreational vehicle parts, and recreational vehicle service. They also sell supplies for camping. The company has its headquarters in Li ...
. Camping World also became the title sponsor of the stadium's college football kickoff game through at least 2019, and the annual December bowl game held at the stadium was known as the Camping World Bowl from 2017 through 2019. These naming changes did not affect the Citrus Bowl or the Florida Classic. In 2021, Camping World Stadium renovations included modernizing and improving the north endzone seating bowl, concession areas, club-level seating, and new premium mezzanine clubs on east and west. The project was completed on a fast-track schedule of less than 12 months by Construction Manager Barton Malow. During the work, the City of Orlando and Florida Citrus Sports hosted several events at the stadium. All were held without incident due to specialized safety techniques that separated construction activities, visitors, and staff. Florida Citrus Sports released plans for a new renovation on November 14, 2023. Plans included demolition of the upper decks built in the 1980s, and replacing them with a new set of upper decks on the east, west, and south sides of the stadium, integrated with the lower bowl in a 360-degree concourse. The new upper decks would total 18,000 seats. The plans also included a 100,000-square-foot fieldhouse. The Orange County Board of County Commissioners approved $400 million in tourist development tax revenue for use in the renovation on January 23, 2024.


Seating and attendance

Prior to the 2014 renovation, the stadium had 65,000 permanent seats. The lower bowl lacked permanent seats in the north end zone, though temporary bleachers could be erected there if necessary. The temporary bleachers were last used for the 2005 Capital One Bowl, which had an attendance of 70,229. Following the renovation, the
seating capacity Seating capacity is the number of people who can be seated in a specific space, in terms of both the physical space available and limitations set by law. Seating capacity can be used in the description of anything ranging from an automobile that ...
was reduced to 60,219 due to the introduction of chair-back seats in the lower bowl and Plaza Level. The upper deck continues to have bench seats. Temporary bleachers can be added in the Plaza level in place of the Party Deck to increase the capacity to 65,194.


In popular culture

*Camping World Stadium (then still known as the Citrus Bowl) was a filming location for the
1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The ''Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for Lunar water, frozen water, in soil i ...
Adam Sandler Adam Richard Sandler (born September 9, 1966) is an American actor, comedian, producer and screenwriter. Primarily a comedic leading actor in films, List of awards and nominations received by Adam Sandler, his accolades include an Independent Sp ...
movie '' The Waterboy''. In the film, the Citrus Bowl depicted both the home stadium of the fictional University of Louisiana Cougars as well as the venue of the climactic Bourbon Bowl game. *Exterior shots of the then-Citrus Bowl were used in the television series '' Coach'', starring Craig T. Nelson as Coach Hayden Fox. In the show, the Citrus Bowl was the home stadium of the fictional Orlando Breakers franchise, which Coach Fox led during the series' final two seasons (1995–1997). The change, which coincided with a production move to Disney-MGM Studios (now Disney's Hollywood Studios), reflected the real-life expansion team, the
Jacksonville Jaguars The Jacksonville Jaguars are a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida. The Jaguars compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. The team ...
.


See also

*
List of American football stadiums by capacity The following is an incomplete list of current American football stadiums in the USA ranked by capacity. All stadiums in the list are located in the United States. The list contains the home stadiums of all 32 professional teams playing in the N ...
* List of association football stadiums by capacity *
Lists of stadiums The following are lists of stadiums throughout the world. Note that horse racing and motorsport venues are not included at some pages, because those are not stadiums but sports venues. Combined lists *List of stadiums by capacity * List of c ...


References


External links

* {{Authority control College football venues in Florida Former Major League Soccer stadiums Former National Women's Soccer League stadiums NCAA bowl game venues Orlando Rage Orlando Guardians Orlando Renegades stadiums Rollins Tars football Soccer venues in Florida Sports venues in Orlando, Florida Sports venues completed in 1936 UCF Knights football United Football League (2009–2012) venues United States Football League venues Venues of the 1996 Summer Olympics World Football League venues 1936 establishments in Florida