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Qwest Field is a multipurpose stadium located in Seattle, Washington, USA. It serves as the home field for the NFL’s Seattle Seahawks, and Major League Soccer’s Seattle Sounders FC beginning in 2009. It opened in July 2002 and was built on the site of the Kingdome, the previous stadium for the Seahawks, Major League Baseball’s Seattle Mariners, and several other Seattle sports teams. On March 26, 2000, to make way for the construction of the stadium, the Kingdome fell in the world’s largest implosion of a single concrete structure.

	Capacity		67,000
	Opened		2002
	Owner		Washington State Public Stadium Authority
	Cost		$300 million
	Architect		Ellerbe Becket & First and Goal, Inc

The stadium was originally named Seahawks Stadium. The name Qwest Field was announced on June 2, 2004, after Qwest bought the naming rights for $75 million (for 15 years). Although some people began using the new name immediately, the official approval wasn’t given until twenty-two days later (June 24) by the Washington State Public Stadium Authority. Seahawks owner Paul Allen funded $160 million of the stadium’s $460 million cost out of his pocket, the remainder being paid by a funding package of user fees, sports lottery revenue, and taxes on related industries. Construction was authorized by a state-wide special election paid for by the Seahawks ownership.

Allen was intimately involved in the stadium design. He rejected plans for a retractable roof and directed the architects to minimize the stadium footprint as much as possible to bring fans closer to the action. A special feature was added in 2003 after Allen hired star sports marketing executive Tod Leiweke as the Seahawks’ new CEO. Leiweke, who had turned the Minnesota Wild into one of the hottest tickets in the NHL, notably had a large flagpole installed in the south end zone. Leiweke began a pregame tradition in which a local celebrity, often a former Seahawk, raised a large blue flag numbered “12″ on this flagpole to the roars of the crowd. The “12″ represents the fans as the “12th man”; the Seahawks had retired #12 in honor of their fans in the 1980s. The flag-raising is now a regular feature of network television coverage of Seahawks games.

Qwest Field has earned a reputation as arguably the loudest stadium in the NFL. Allen had the architects design the structure of the stadium, especially the roof, to direct as much crowd noise as possible on the field. In addition, the north end zone seating, called the “Hawks Nest”, was specifically designed for rowdy fans; the seating consists of metal bleachers which reflect sound, and fans often stomp to create even more.

The biggest crowd ever to attend a Seattle Seahawks football game was 68,331 on Monday, November 12, 2007 against the San Francisco 49ers. Fans experienced their first snow game in the history of Qwest Field on November 27, 2006 against the Green Bay Packers with the Seahawks winning 34-24 with Shaun Alexander rushing for 202 yards. The first playoff game in the history of Qwest Field was on January 8, 2005, when the St. Louis Rams beat the Seahawks team for the third time that season, 27-20.

Features

Within Qwest Field, there is a Seahawks tribute to high school football of the State of Washington. A section of the Stadium entitled “The State of Football”, features a large depiction of the State of Washington and holds replica football helmets from every high school football team in the State. Another tribute to the high school sport is hosting the annual Emerald City Kickoff Classic, a season opening series of games between some of the best teams in the state. The games also feature a meeting between one of the best teams in Washington and one of the best from another state. The most memorable of these games was in 2004 when the 3 time consecutive Washington State 3A champions the Bellevue Wolverines ended the high school record 155 game winning streak of the De La Salle Spartans of Concord, California.

College Football

The stadium has hosted a Washington State University “home game” each year since its opening in 2002. The Cougars have won all but one of these games, losing to University of Colorado in 2004. The University of Washington played an “away” game in the stadium in 2005, falling to the Air Force Falcons in Tyrone Willingham’s first game as the head coach.

The NCAA Division II football teams of Western Washington University and Central Washington University face each other every year at Qwest Field in game called the “Battle in Seattle”. The Western Vikings and Central Wildcats are intense rivals.

(source .. wikipedia) reproduced under GFDL

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Qwest Field website
Qwest Field wikipedia entry
Seattle Seahawks website
Seahawk Blue Fansite
Seahawk Sal Fansite
Seahawks Central Fansite
Seahawks Huddle Fansite
12 Seahawks Street Fansite
Becky’s Seahawks Fansite

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