Changing venues

[Splendid Splinter]

What are some examples of sports teams moving to new stadiums and there being a change in their fortunes. I am not suggesting causality though...

Steelers fortunes changed when they moved to Three Rivers.

Dolphins haven't quite been the same since they left the Orange Bowl.

 

[ChrisLong]

UCLA football improved considerably when it moved from the Coliseum to the Rose Bowl. Terry Donahue stated that emphatically at the time he was winning 8 bowl games in a row.

 

[PCLoadLetter]

Arizona Cardinals going from Sun Devil Stadium to Glendale.

 

[maumann]

Definitely the Giants moving from Candlestick to Pac Bell. The whole vibe surrounding the team changed significantly.

 

[heyabbott]

Browns moving to Baltimore.

 

[Baron Scicluna]

Red Sox ended a short title drought by winning their first year at Fenway, then three other titles in that decade before selling the Babe.

Yankees had won two AL pennants in a row, but only won their first Series after they moved to Yankee Stadium. From there, their dynasty took off.

A’s had done nothing for their last 20 years in Philly, did nothing in KC, then started winning when they moved to Oakland.

 

[DanOregon]

I will say the old saw about a new stadium opening up new revenue streams for teams and suddenly making them more competitive is a lot of bunk. Cowboys haven't done squat in Jerry World. I do think the weather at the SF Giants stadium has done a lot for that team. It doesn't feel as distant or as much of a chore to go to a Giants game anymore, you can zip in, zip out. The team still tries to claim they are a "small market" team, but that stadium is already paid for, they rank fifth among all MLB teams in revenue and and are tops in MLB in revenue per fan.
And yet, they still haven't been able to develop an outfielder in their farm system to save their life, or be a top destination for free agents since Bonds.

 

[Cosmo]

The WFT has been largely irrelevant since moving from RFK out to FedEx Field in the Maryland suburbs.

 

[OscarMadison]

Candlestick was awful. I've heard Pac Bell is an improvement every way it can be.

 

[qtlaw]

Cleveland Indians to Jacobs.

Leaving Candlestick was like Siberia to Hawaii.

 

[micropolitan guy]

The Phillies had not won anything since 1915 when they left Connie Mack Stadium for Veteran's Stadium in 1971. It took several years but they were regularly challenging for NL pennants in the mid-1970s and finally won it all in 1980.

The Bills improved considerably when they moved from War Memorial Stadium to (then) Rich Stadium in 1973.

 

[heyabbott]

The Phillies had not won anything since 1915 when they left Connie Mack Stadium for Veteran's Stadium in 1971. It took several years but they were regularly challenging for NL pennants in the mid-1970s and finally won it all in 1980.

The Bills improved considerably when they moved from War Memorial Stadium to (then) Rich Stadium in 1973.

Bills won the 64 & 65 AFL Championship and lost the 66 championship. That’s 2 more championships than they’ve won since. .

 

[goalmouth]

Moving from Yankee Stadium to Yale Bowl just completely discombobulated the Giants' plans.

 

[micropolitan guy]

Bills won the 64 & 65 AFL Championship and lost the 66 championship. That’s 2 more championships than they’ve won since. .

Well, they have won four AFC championships.

They were horrible in their final seasons at the Rockpile after the core of those title teams got old. They improved considerably when they first went to Rich.

 

[HanSenSE]

Definitely the Giants moving from Candlestick to Pac Bell. The whole vibe surrounding the team changed significantly.

OTOH, despite a Super Bowl appearance, Candlestick to Levi's has not been good to the 49ers.

 

[DanOregon]

Is that the worst "new" stadium in the NFL in the last 30 years? Don't know why they oriented it the way they did - unless they didn't have room to flip it 90 degrees so fans wouldn't be staring into the setting sun for three hours. Bad design. Bad traffic.

 

[heyabbott]

Is that the worst "new" stadium in the NFL in the last 30 years? Don't know why they oriented it the way they did - unless they didn't have room to flip it 90 degrees so fans wouldn't be staring into the setting sun for three hours. Bad design. Bad traffic.

I don’t know what it’s like for the rich people in boxes but the new Meadowlands Stadium sucks. Unimaginative design. Lousy concessions, sauerkraut on a hotdog is the height of their cuisine . Cramped narrow seats. Maybe the amenities for the players is awesome but foe the fans it’s a generic experience in New Jersey.

 

[Huggy]

The Blue Jays' fortunes improved considerably - both on the field and at the gate - when they moved from the Ex to the SkyDome. The dome's location and ease of accessibility - unlike the Ex - changed the whole neighbourhood downtown.

 

[wicked]

Patriots when they moved across the street into Gillette Stadium — ol’ Sullivan Stadium was cursed.

The Orioles were decent before Camden, but they had a nice little run with Davey Johnson once they moved in.

The Phillies when they left the Vet for their new ballpark.

I feel like the Reds have been bad since they left Riverfront.

 

[Songbird]