University Stadium, also known as Knight–Newbrough Field and formerly known as Seagram Stadium, is a football stadium in

Waterloo, Ontario Waterloo is a city in the Canadian province of Ontario. It is one of three cities in the Regional Municipality of Waterloo (formerly Waterloo County, Ontario, Waterloo County). Waterloo is situated about west-southwest of Toronto. Due to the c ...

with a capacity of 6,000. It is home to the

Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks The Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks, commonly shortened to Laurier Golden Hawks, is the name used by the varsity sports teams of Wilfrid Laurier University in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. The university's varsity teams compete in the Ontario University ...

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 ...

rugby Rugby may refer to: Sport * Rugby football in many forms: ** Rugby league: 13 players per side *** Masters Rugby League *** Mod league *** Rugby league nines *** Rugby league sevens *** Touch (sport) *** Wheelchair rugby league ** Rugby union: 1 ...

, and

lacrosse Lacrosse is a team sport played with a lacrosse stick and a lacrosse ball. It is the oldest organized sport in North America, with its origins with the indigenous people of North America as early as the 12th century. The game was extensively ...

teams. It also served for several years as the home field of soccer side K–W United FC which ceased operations in 2018. Facilities include space for recreational programs and Kinesiology classrooms; there is also a large gym and the football field. The stadium is closed to the public. The field was also used by the nearby

University of Waterloo The University of Waterloo (UWaterloo, UW, or Waterloo) is a public research university with a main campus in Waterloo, Ontario Waterloo is a city in the Canadian province of Ontario. It is one of three cities in the Regional Municipality ...

Warriors for their home football games. The Warriors played their final season at the stadium in 2008; they then moved to the new

Warrior Field Warrior Field is a sports stadium in Waterloo, Ontario with a seated capacity of 1,700 in the grandstand, and 5,700 overall including lawn and endzone areas. It is home to the Waterloo Warriors football, soccer, and field hockey teams while also ...

on the University of Waterloo north campus on Columbia St.

History

Seagram Stadium was built for the University of Waterloo in 1957 with a $250,000 donation from Joseph E. Seagram and Sons Ltd. and additional contributions from

Ontario Hydro Ontario Hydro, established in 1906 as the Hydro-Electric Power Commission of Ontario, was a publicly owned electricity utility in the Province of Ontario. It was formed to build transmission lines to supply municipal utilities with electricity ge ...

and the City of Waterloo. It formally opened on May 7, 1958. The Waterloo College Mules played the first football game on October 5 of that year. Initially owned by Waterloo College, the stadium was sold to UW which sold it to the City of Waterloo on August 12, 1974 for $1 million, after leasing it to the city from 1968 to 1974. At that time, the stadium was in need of extensive repairs. In July 1992, the city sold the facility to

Wilfrid Laurier University Wilfrid Laurier University (commonly referred to as WLU or simply Laurier) is a public university in Ontario, Canada, with campuses in Waterloo, Brantford and Milton. The newer Brantford and Milton campuses are not considered satellite campuses ...

, also for $1 million.

Artificial turf Artificial turf is a surface of synthetic fibers made to look like natural grass. It is most often used in arenas for sports that were originally or are normally played on grass. However, it is now being used on residential lawns and commer ...

was installed in 1994 at a cost of $1.7 million. The stadium was renamed University Stadium and Sports Centre in March 1995. In 2007, the stadium underwent a major $5-million renovation which changed the layout; that included replacing the field's playing surface with Fieldturf, overhauling the bleachers, rearranging existing rooms and expansion of the entrance, concession areas and washrooms. The football field was then renamed Knight–Newbrough Field (although the name of the field itself has changed, the stadium as a whole retains the name University Stadium.) The name honours two influential figures in Laurier athletics history, former football head coaches for the Laurier Golden Hawks and UW Warriors

Dave "Tuffy" Knight David "Tuffy" Knight (born May 17, 1936) is a former coach of Canadian university football and a member of the Canadian Football Hall of Fame. Knight was a high school football, track, and basketball coach in Southeastern Ohio who moved to Can ...

and Rich Newbrough. University Stadium is located near

Waterloo Park Waterloo Park is an urban park situated in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada on land within Block 2 of the Haldimand Tract. Spanning 111 acres within the Uptown area of Waterloo, it opened in 1893 and is the oldest park in the city. Managed by the Cit ...

on Seagram Drive.

References

{{Wilfrid Laurier University Canadian football venues in Ontario Sports venues in Waterloo, Ontario Wilfrid Laurier University Athletics (track and field) venues in Ontario Sport in Waterloo, Ontario University sports venues in Canada Soccer venues in Ontario