The DakotaDome is an indoor
multi-purpose stadium
A multi-purpose stadium is a type of stadium designed to be easily used for multiple types of events. While any stadium could potentially host more than one type of sport or event, this concept usually refers to a design philosophy that stres ...
in the
north central 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 on the campus of the
University of South Dakota in
Vermillion, South Dakota
Vermillion (; "The Place Where Vermilion is Obtained") is a city and the county seat of Clay County. It is in the southeastern corner of South Dakota, United States, and is the state's 12th-most populous city. According to the 2020 census, the ...
. Opened in 1979 at a cost of
$8.2 million, the 9,100-seat venue is the home of the
South Dakota Coyotes 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 ...
, swimming and diving, and
track and field
Track and field (or athletics in British English) is a sport that includes Competition#Sports, athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name used in North America is derived from where the sport takes place, a ru ...
. The approximate
elevation
The elevation of a geographic location (geography), ''location'' is its height above or below a fixed reference point, most commonly a reference geoid, a mathematical model of the Earth's sea level as an equipotential gravitational equipotenti ...
is above
sea level
Mean sea level (MSL, often shortened to sea level) is an mean, average surface level of one or more among Earth's coastal Body of water, bodies of water from which heights such as elevation may be measured. The global MSL is a type of vertical ...
.
For five seasons beginning in 2013, the DakotaDome also hosted
Briar Cliff University 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 ...
(
NAIA); following the 2017 season, the Chargers resumed home games on their campus in
Sioux City,
Iowa
Iowa ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the upper Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west; Wisconsin to the northeast, Ill ...
, to the southeast.
The Dome hosts other events throughout the year, including the
high school football
High school football, also known as prep football, is gridiron football played by High school (North America), high school teams in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular high school sports, interscholastic sports in both c ...
state championships each November. In 2014, a proposal for a new
basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...
arena went through and construction began just south of the Dome. The new arena, the
Sanford Coyote Sports Center, which seats 6,000, opened in the fall of 2016 for volleyball, preceding the
2016–17 basketball season.
Originally an
air-supported structure, numerous roof collapses led to it being replaced by a $13.7 million steel roof in 2001. In early 2019, construction to rebuild the interior of the west side of the stadium began. The project cost was approximately $26.3 million and was completed in 2020.
See also
*
List of NCAA Division I FCS football stadiums
The following is a list of current National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) NCAA Division I, Division I Football Championship Subdivision (formerly Division I-AA) College football, football stadiums in the United States.
Conference affil ...
References
American football venues in South Dakota
Athletics (track and field) venues in South Dakota
College basketball venues in South Dakota
College football venues in South Dakota
College indoor track and field venues in the United States
College swimming venues in the United States
Swimming venues in South Dakota
College volleyball venues in the United States
Defunct college basketball venues in the United States
Covered stadiums in the United States
Indoor track and field venues in the United States
South Dakota Coyotes football
South Dakota Coyotes basketball
Buildings and structures in Vermillion, South Dakota
Tourist attractions in Clay County, South Dakota
Multi-purpose stadiums in the United States
1979 establishments in South Dakota
Sports venues completed in 1979
{{SouthDakota-stadium-stub