Adjacent to the Cumberland River in downtown Nashville, Nissan Stadium is the home of the Tennessee Titans. This facility started construction on May 3rd, 1997, even though the Houston Oilers started playing in Tennessee in the same year. When the stadium opened in 1999, Tennessee decided to change their team name from the Oilers to the Titans.
The name of the stadium also changed upon opening. It was called the Adelphia Coliseum, before simply being called The Coliseum three years later. In 2006, the stadium was called LP Field. Nissan secured the naming rights for two decades starting with the 2015-2016 season. They've also been allowed to place a Nissan Titan pickup beside the scoreboard.
Funding for initial construction was sourced through an increase in taxes and the sale of personal seat licenses. Fans were rewarded with the “Music City Miracle” during the first season – when a tricky kickoff return for a last second TD cemented a comeback victory against the Bills, vaulting them into the playoffs.
Tennessee Titans Stadium
Throughout the entire history of this venue, Titan games have been completely sold out, aided by the personal seat license system and the long waiting list for fans to acquire these licenses. Since the beginning, the Titans have done well at Nissan Stadium, beginning with a perfect home record during their debut year. However, over the past five years, their home winning percentage has dipped to .400 sharply due to a 1-7 season, resulting in a 16-24 record over that span.
In terms of field quality, the recent 2010 NFLPA survey states that players consider the natural turf to by 10th best and 9th worst in the league, suggesting that it's considered an average surface. The type of natural grass used is Tifsport Bermuda Sod. This stadium hosts many football games every year, which increases the overall wear and tear of the sod, requiring resurfacing on a near annual basis.
A recent renovation of Nissan Stadium has brought new ribbon displays on the upper levels, a brand new sound system and high-speed elevators for fans. Another big change were the pair of giant, LED HD screens that replaced the old displays, both of which are among the largest in the NFL.
Stadium Vitals
Date Opened: August 27th, 1999
Construction Cost: $290 million
Architect: Populous; Moody Nolan; McKissack & McKissack
Caacity Attendance: 69,143
Playing Surface: Tifsport Bermuda Sod
Previous Tennessee Titan Stadiums
Vanderbilt Stadium; Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium; Houston Astrodome; Rice Stadium; Jeppesen Stadium
Other Major Events
College Football
The Titans have shared Nissan Stadium with two other tenants since the opening of the venue. The Tennessee State Tigers play their games here and the annual Music City Bowl also takes place at this facility.
International Soccer
The United States men's and women's national teams have both played a variety of their games at this stadium, including a world cup qualifier against Trinidad and Tobago in which Jozy Altidore scored a hat-trick – the youngest the do so in the history of the team.
CMA Music Festival
The CMA Music Festival takes place every year in June, including four nights of live concerts that bring many of the best talent from the industry to play at Nissan Stadium.