Construction on the stadium began in 1936 as a project of the Works Progress Administration under President Franklin D. Roosevelt during the Great Depression.[5] 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.[6] 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 and Miami. During the game, the newly constructed upper deck noticeably swayed whenever fans stood up and cheered.[7] 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.[8][9] 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.[10][11] Meanwhile, unsightly I-beams installed to hold up the upper deck now blocked seats in the lower deck that were previously unobstructed.[12][13]
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. 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.[14]
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 107-foot (33 m) 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.[15]
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 before folding after the XFL's merger with the USFL.
The stadium hosted the NFL's all-star game, the Pro Bowl, from 2017 through 2020.[16] 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. Seven NFL preseason games have been held at the stadium.[citation needed]
College football
The stadium has hosted various college football games, including many bowl games:
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 declining their bowl bid, as their two black players would not have been allowed to play.[17][18]
Since 2001, the stadium has hosted a December bowl game, which has undergone several name changes due to sponsorship changes—since May 2023[update], it is known as the Pop-Tarts Bowl.
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 matches, and it was a venue for the 1994 FIFA World Cup. In five matches, attendance averaged over 60,000 per match. In 1996, Olympic soccer matches in both the men's and women's competitions were held at the stadium.
During the 2013 season, Fifth Third Bank owned naming rights 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, 7–4, before a crowd of 20,886.[19] The last soccer event held at Camping World Stadium before its renovation was an international friendly between the women's teams of the United States and Brazil. The U.S. won the match, 4–1, before a crowd of 20,274.[20]
The Orlando Pride, the National Women's Soccer League 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 2022 Florida Cup exhibition soccer match between Arsenal and Chelsea, 4–0, had an attendance of 63,811, a record crowd for a soccer match at the stadium.
WWE returned to Camping World Stadium to host WrestleMania 33, which took place on April 2, 2017.[24] WWE claimed an attendance record of 75,245, exceeding the total of WrestleMania XXIV.[25]
Other events
The Citrus Bowl was the site of two Billy Graham Crusades, the most recent of which took place in 1983.
The Feld Entertainment-promoted Monster Jam shows held there every year featured a track similar to the one at Sam Boyd Stadium 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 AMASupercross Series holds an annual spring event.
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 pandemic.
The stadium hosted Billy Joel 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 Triple Live Stadium Tour on March 26, 2022. The attendance was 70,000, which set a new concert attendance record at the stadium.
By 2005, Orlando-area government officials and officials from the University of Central 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. Furthermore, the stadium was located over 10 miles (16 km) 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 presidentJohn 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 (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 boxes, 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, 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.[28] 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 of 2007–08.
Renovation nearing completion in late 2014
In 2010, the natural grass surface was replaced with AstroTurf 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 20,000-square-foot (1,900 m2) 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.[29]
Orlando City returned to the renovated Camping World Stadium for the 2015 season, their first season in Major League Soccer, while awaiting construction of their ownsoccer-specific stadium. In their first match, a 1–1 draw against fellow expansion team New York City FC on March 8, 2015, they drew a sellout crowd of 62,510, the largest attendance for a soccer match at the venue.[30]
The United States women's national soccer team 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.[31]
The Orlando Pride, the expansion National Women's Soccer League 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.[32]
On November 19, 2015, CONCACAF and CONMEBOL announced that Camping World Stadium would be one of the host venues for the Copa América Centenario soccer tournament in 2016.[33]
On April 26, 2016, Florida Citrus Sports announced that they had sold naming rights for the stadium to Camping World. 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.[34]
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.[35]
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.[36] The Orange County Board of County Commissioners approved $400 million in tourist development tax revenue for use in the renovation on January 23, 2024.[37]
Seating and attendance
Prior to the 2014 renovation, the stadium had 65,000[38] 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 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.[39]
In popular culture
Camping World Stadium (then still known as the Citrus Bowl) was a filming location for the 1998Adam Sandler 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.[citation needed]
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.[citation needed]
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