A packed NBA arena can make a ton of noise that belies its size — the largest venue in the league is the United Center in Chicago, home of the Bulls, and it holds just under 21,000 fans. Dodger Stadium is as big as MLB baseball stadiums get, as it sits 56,000 fans, but that’s nowhere near as many as the largest NFL stadium — that would be MetLife Stadium, where the Jets and the Giants play, with a capacity of 82,500.
Think of how many people all of those venues feel like they hold while you’re in them. And then consider that none of them even crack the top 10 — nor do they come anywhere close — of the largest sports venues in the United States. A six-digit capacity is a requirement to make it to that list, and for that, there is only college football and racing, in various forms.
West Shore Home Field at Beaver Stadium (Penn State Nittany Lions, College Football) 106,572
There are eight college football stadiums that seat at least 100,000 fans, and all but one of those was built in the 1920s. The lone exception is the home of Penn State’s football team, the Nittany Lions, constructed in 1960. In its current form, anyway: there are parts of the stadium that are well over a century old themselves, as they were part of Penn State’s previous venue, a 30,000 seater named New Beaver Field, was disassembled and made part of Beaver Stadium when it opened in 1960.
Michigan Stadium (Michigan Wolverines, College Football) 107,601
The rivalry between the Michigan Wolverines and Ohio State Buckeyes goes back and forth again and again, to the point that the former won the rivalry game this year but the latter ended up as national champions. If there’s one thing that Michigan can lord over Ohio forever, though, it’s that Michigan Stadium is larger than The Shoe.
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Texas Motor Speedway (NASCAR, INDYCAR) 112,662
Texas Motor Speedway used to host INDYCAR races, until 2023, but now finds itself exclusively as the home of multiple NASCAR racing series, like the NASCAR Cup Series, NASCAR Xfinity Series, and NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series. While it’s massive compared to the capacity for so many other sports, as far as speedways in America goes not everything is actually bigger in Texas.
Las Vegas Motor Speedway (NASCAR) 116,000
While the idea of Las Vegas as a sports city is relatively new — the NHL (Golden Knights, 2017), WNBA (Aces, 2018), and NFL (Raiders, 2020) all arrived within the last decade, and the Las Vegas Athletics are planned as the next addition to the city — the Las Vegas Motor Speedway and NASCAR have been in town for much longer. The track opened up all the way back in 1971, and the Speedway has hosted NASCAR events for nearly three decades now.
Circuit of the Americas (Formula One, NASCAR, MotoGP) 117,439
Formula One’s United States Grand Prix runs at the Circuit of the Americas, as does NASCAR’s EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix, and other various automobile races besides. And there is non-car racing, too, as MotoGP’s Motorcycle Grand Prix of the Americas takes place at this Austin Texas circuit. Circuit of the Americas is constructed differently depending on what kind of race is going on there, naturally, but even with its huge track layout, there are larger racing venues out there.
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Atlanta Motor Speedway (NASCAR) 125,000
The Atlanta Motor Speedway used to host INDYCAR as well as the IMSA GT Championship, but it’s now used for various NASCAR events that are part of the NASCAR Cup Series, NASCAR Xfinity Series, and the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series. It opened way back in 1960, and while it bears Atlanta’s name, it’s actually located in a suburb of the city, Hampton. The population of Hampton? Just 8,368 as of the 2020 census… unless there happens to be a race going on, of course.
Michigan International Speedway (NASCAR) 137,243
Michigan loves its large venues — maybe Comerica Park should consider adding another 10,000-plus seats so it can match up with what old Tiger Stadium used to seat. Speaking of Comerica, the Michigan International Speedway fits more than what three of that stadium could, with room to spare. It currently plays host to NASCAR Cup Series races, as well as the NASCAR Truck Craftsman Series.
Bristol Motor Speedway (NASCAR) 153,000
Bristol Motor Speedway, located in Tennessee, is the largest NASCAR track, which is also why it’s going to be home to an MLB game between the St. Louis Cardinals and Cincinnati Reds in 2025 (airing on FOX) — it will surely be the highest-attended game in league history, considering it seats nearly 100,000 additional fans than the league’s largest stadium, Dodger Stadium, can. It plays host to NASCAR Cup Series, Xfinity Series, and Craftsman Truck Series races.
Churchill Downs (Kentucky Derby) 170,000
Horse racing is an old sport, and Churchill Downs, home of the Kentucky Derby, is an old venue: it opened back in 1875, or, so long ago that it was already around 50 years old by the time many of the larger college football stadiums first broke ground. To give you a sense of the size of Churchill Downs in comparison to other horse-racing venues, Pimlico Race Course, home of the Preakness, falls short of 100,000 seats, and the Belmont Stakes are run at Belmont Park, which fits exactly 100,000.
Indianapolis Motor Speedway (INDYCAR) 350,000
And then you have the home of the Indianapolis 500, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. As far as permanent seats go, Indianapolis Motor Speedway can seat 250,000. After general admission is accounted for, though, the speedway can hold 350,000 fans — more than twice as much as the next-largest venue, Churchill Downs. A fitting home for “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing,” no?
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