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University Stadium (officially Dreamstyle Stadium from 2017 to 2020) is an outdoor
football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...
stadium A stadium ( : stadiums or stadia) is a place or venue for (mostly) outdoor sports, concerts, or other events and consists of a field or stage either partly or completely surrounded by a tiered structure designed to allow spectators to stand o ...
in the
western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
, located on the south campus of the
University of New Mexico The University of New Mexico (UNM; es, Universidad de Nuevo México) is a public research university in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Founded in 1889, it is the state's flagship academic institution and the largest by enrollment, with over 25,400 ...
in
Albuquerque, New Mexico Albuquerque ( ; ), ; kee, Arawageeki; tow, Vakêêke; zun, Alo:ke:k'ya; apj, Gołgéeki'yé. abbreviated ABQ, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of New Mexico. Its nicknames, The Duke City and Burque, both reference its founding in ...
. It is the home field of
New Mexico Lobos football The New Mexico Lobos football team is the intercollegiate football team at the University of New Mexico. The Lobos compete as a member of the Mountain West Conference. Their official colors are cherry and silver. The Lobos play their home games a ...
, which competes as a member of the
Mountain West Conference The Mountain West Conference (MW) is one of the collegiate athletic conferences affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) (formerly I-A). The MW officially began operations o ...
. The stadium opened in September
1960 It is also known as the "Year of Africa" because of major events—particularly the independence of seventeen African nations—that focused global attention on the continent and intensified feelings of Pan-Africanism. Events January * Ja ...
, and currently has a
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 ...
of 39,224. Its  FieldTurf playing surface, named Turner & Margaret Branch Field, has a traditional north-south alignment and sits nearly a
mile The mile, sometimes the international mile or statute mile to distinguish it from other miles, is a British imperial unit and United States customary unit of distance; both are based on the older English unit of length equal to 5,280 English ...
above
sea level Mean sea level (MSL, often shortened to sea level) is an average surface level of one or more among Earth's coastal bodies of water from which heights such as elevation may be measured. The global MSL is a type of vertical datuma standardised g ...
, at an
elevation The elevation of a geographic 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 surface (see Geodetic datum § Vert ...
of .


History


Replacement of Zimmerman Field

Before 1960, Lobos football teams played home games at
Zimmerman Field Zimmerman Field was a stadium located in Albuquerque, New Mexico. It opened in 1938 and hosted the University of New Mexico Lobos football team until they moved to University Stadium in 1960. The stadium continued in use for intramural sports unt ...
, a 16,000-seat stadium which was located just south of the current Zimmerman Library on the university’s main campus. The growth of the university after
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, with the concomitant growth in the popularity of varsity athletics, made it clear by the mid-1950s that a new, larger football venue was needed. Increasing enrollments also meant that space on the main campus was at a premium. As such, it was decided that a new stadium would be constructed off of the main campus, which would both allow adequate space for a much larger stadium, and free up space for desperately needed academic facilities on the main campus. The university purchased land for the new stadium south of campus near the corner of Avenida Cesar Chavez and University Boulevard. This land became known as "south campus," and would eventually become the home of the entire UNM Athletic Department. Today, facilities located on south campus include The Pit,
Isotopes Park Rio Grande Credit Union Field at Isotopes Park, previously known only as Isotopes Park, is a minor league baseball stadium located in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and is the home field of the Albuquerque Isotopes of the Pacific Coast League, the Tr ...
, the Lobo Tennis Club, Lobo Field, Lobo Softball field, the Rudy Davalos Basketball Center, athletics administration buildings, as well as the football stadium. The new stadium was christened as University Stadium upon its opening in
1960 It is also known as the "Year of Africa" because of major events—particularly the independence of seventeen African nations—that focused global attention on the continent and intensified feelings of Pan-Africanism. Events January * Ja ...
. It consisted of grandstands along the east and west sidelines and a press box above the west stands. The stadium was built in an
arroyo Arroyo often refers to: * Arroyo (creek), an intermittently dry creek Arroyo may also refer to: People * Arroyo (surname) Places United States ;California * Arroyo Burro Beach, a public beach park in Santa Barbara County, California * Arroyo ...
, with the seating bowl created by the piling of excavated fill material to form earthen embankments on which the stands could be built. This "berm" style of construction placed the field below ground level with seats extending both above and below the natural grade. The initial construction cost of the stadium was just over $4 million. The inaugural football game at University Stadium took place on September 17, with the Lobos defeating the overmatched
National University of Mexico The National Autonomous University of Mexico ( es, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, UNAM) is a public research university in Mexico. It is consistently ranked as one of the best universities in Latin America, where it's also the bigges ...
Pumas 77–6. A new press box with private suites was built before the
1976 Events January * January 3 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force. * January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea. * January 11 – The 1976 Phila ...
season at a cost of $1.8 million. Because the stadium had been built on earthen fill, the press box had to be supported on large concrete piers that went down to the pre-existing ground level. In
1995 File:1995 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: O.J. Simpson is O. J. Simpson murder case, acquitted of the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman from the 1994, year prior in "The Trial of the Century" in the United States; The ...
, UNM made a major addition to University Stadium with the construction of the L.F. "Tow" Diehm Athletic Facility, a field house and athletic training facility located just beyond the south end zone. For its first 52 seasons, the playing field was natural grass. The athletics department announced in late 2011 that it would be replaced with a synthetic playing surface, and infilled FieldTurf was installed prior to the
2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...
season. Through
2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a ser ...
, the Lobos have a record of at University Stadium.


Naming rights

In 2012, naming rights for the stadium's playing surface were secured by local attorneys Turner and Margaret Branch, who are alumni and long-time donors to the UNM athletic department. Their $1.5 million donation to the “Lobo Leap to Excellence” capital campaign remains the second-largest single gift ever given to the athletic department by a living donor. On May 3, 2017, UNM announced a $10 million, 10-year naming-rights agreement with Dreamstyle Remodeling, a local Albuquerque construction company, covering both the University Stadium and University Arena. The venues were rechristened as Dreamstyle Stadium and
Dreamstyle Arena The Pit is an indoor arena in Albuquerque, New Mexico, serving primarily as the home venue of the University of New Mexico Lobos basketball teams. The facility opened in 1966 as University Arena but gained the nickname "The Pit" due to its inno ...
. On September 18, 2020, after disputes between the University and Dreamstyle, the name was changed back to University Stadium for the time being; in addition, the Dreamstyle Arena was reverted back to The Pit.


Expansion

The stadium was expanded in 2001, with stands, new bathroom and concessions facilities constructed beyond the north end zone. UNM also added a large, state-of-the-art scoreboard that included the "LoboVision" video screen. In 2004, portable bleachers were donated to UNM by the city of
Albuquerque Albuquerque ( ; ), ; kee, Arawageeki; tow, Vakêêke; zun, Alo:ke:k'ya; apj, Gołgéeki'yé. abbreviated ABQ, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of New Mexico. Its nicknames, The Duke City and Burque, both reference its founding in ...
in 2004 to take the stadium's capacity beyond 39,000. Plans for future expansion have been adopted. The next phase of expansion includes renovations of the stadium's southwest and southeast corners, as well as adding five thousand seats to the south end. Additionally, a tunnel connecting Dreamstyle Stadium and the Tow Diehm Facility has also been planned to allow easier player access to locker rooms during games. When the currently planned renovations are completed, the stadium will seat over 43,000 spectators.


Notable events


Zia Bowl

University Stadium hosted the title game of
NCAA Division II Football Championship The NCAA Division II Football Championship is an American college football tournament played annually to determine a champion at the NCAA Division II level. It was first held in 1973, as a single-elimination tournament with eight teams. The tourna ...
, named the
Zia Bowl The Zia Bowl was an American college football bowl game game played at University Stadium in Albuquerque, New Mexico. It decided the NCAA Division II National Football Championship in 1979 and 1980. The bowl was sponsored by the Albuquerque ...
, in early December 1979 and 1980. In Zia Bowl I,
Delaware Delaware ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Maryland to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and New Jersey and the Atlantic Ocean to its east. The state takes its name from the adjacent Del ...
defeated , 38–21. In Zia Bowl II, Cal Poly beat
Eastern Illinois Eastern Illinois University is a public university in Charleston, Illinois. Established in 1895 as the Eastern Illinois State Normal School, a teacher's college offering a two-year degree, Eastern Illinois University gradually expanded into a co ...
, 21–13. Attendance was 4,000 or less for both Zia Bowls, and in 1981 the NCAA Division II title game was moved to
McAllen, Texas McAllen is the largest city in Hidalgo County, Texas, United States, and the 22nd-most populous city in Texas. It is located at the southern tip of the state in the Rio Grande Valley, on the Mexico–United States border. The city limits extend ...
.


New Mexico Bowl

Since December 2006, University Stadium has hosted the
New Mexico Bowl The New Mexico Bowl is an NCAA-sanctioned post-season college football bowl game that has been played annually since 2006 at University Stadium, on the campus of the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Owned and operated by ESPN ...
. The game was funded by a $2 million line of credit from
ESPN ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). The ...
. The inaugural edition featured
New Mexico ) , population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexicano, Neomejicano, Nuevo Mexicano) , seat = Santa Fe , LargestCity = Albuquerque , LargestMetro = Tiguex , OfficialLang = None , Languages = English, Spanish ( New Mexican), Navajo, Ker ...
against
future The future is the time after the past and present. Its arrival is considered inevitable due to the existence of time and the laws of physics. Due to the apparent nature of reality and the unavoidability of the future, everything that currently ...
Mountain West Conference The Mountain West Conference (MW) is one of the collegiate athletic conferences affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) (formerly I-A). The MW officially began operations o ...
foe
San Jose State San José State University (San Jose State or SJSU) is a public university in San Jose, California. Established in 1857, SJSU is the oldest public university on the West Coast and the founding campus of the California State University (CSU) sy ...
, then of the
Western Athletic Conference The Western Athletic Conference (WAC) is an NCAA Division I conference. The WAC covers a broad expanse of the western United States with member institutions located in Arizona, California, New Mexico, Utah, Washington (state), Washington, and Texa ...
. San Jose State won, 20–12. The game was the first
NCAA Division I NCAA Division I (D-I) is the highest level of College athletics, intercollegiate athletics sanctioned by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the United States, which accepts players globally. D-I schools include the major ...
bowl game In North America, a bowl game is one of a number of post-season college football games that are primarily played by teams belonging to the NCAA's Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS). For most of its history, the Division I Bowl Subdivis ...
played in the state of New Mexico.


Soccer

University Stadium hosted a
U.S. 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 the most successful in international women's soccer, winning four Women's World Cup titles (1991, 1999, 2015, an ...
Women's World Cup qualifying match against
Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...
in May
2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 6 ...
. Three U.S. men's national soccer team matches have been played in the stadium, with the most recent being a friendly match with
Honduras Honduras, officially the Republic of Honduras, is a country in Central America. The republic of Honduras is bordered to the west by Guatemala, to the southwest by El Salvador, to the southeast by Nicaragua, to the south by the Pacific Oce ...
in March
2005 File:2005 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf of Mexico; the Funeral of Pope John Paul II is held in Vatican City; "Me at the zoo", the first video ever to be uploaded to YouTube; Eris was discovered in ...
.


Concerts

The stadium has hosted concerts by many famous artists, including
Metallica Metallica is an American heavy metal band. The band was formed in 1981 in Los Angeles by vocalist/guitarist James Hetfield and drummer Lars Ulrich, and has been based in San Francisco for most of its career. The band's fast tempos, instrume ...
&
The Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for six decades, they are one of the most popular and enduring bands of the rock era. In the early 1960s, the Rolling Stones pioneered the gritty, rhythmically d ...
, among others.


Gallery

File:Dreamstyle Stadium Press Box.jpg, University Stadium Press Box exterior File:UNM Stadium.jpg, West stands and press box


See also

*
List of NCAA Division I FBS football stadiums This is a list of stadiums that currently serve as the home venue for NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision, Football Bowl Subdivision college football teams. These include most of the List of U.S. stadiums by capacity, largest stadiums in th ...


References

{{New Mexico college football venues 1960 establishments in New Mexico American football venues in New Mexico College football venues NCAA bowl game venues New Mexico Lobos football venues Soccer venues in New Mexico Sports venues completed in 1960 Sports venues in Albuquerque, New Mexico