Top 10 Biggest Stadiums in Ohio

If you want to watch a sports game in Ohio, then you have a chance to watch a game at the highest level of all 5 major sports in the United States.

There are 8 professional sports teams in this densely populated state and Ohio has a representative in the major football, baseball, basketball, ice hockey, and soccer leagues.

These teams are the NFL’s Cincinnati Bengals and Cleveland Browns, the MLB’s Cincinnati Reds and Cleveland Guardians, the NBA’s Cleveland Cavaliers, the MLS’s Columbus Crew SC and FC Cincinnati, and the NHL’s Columbus Blue Jackets.

The state is also home to one of the biggest stadiums in the US, which automatically makes it one of the biggest stadiums in the world.

Let’s dive in and check out some of the biggest stadiums in Ohio!

1. Ohio Stadium

• Location: Columbus
• Capacity: 102,780

Ohio Stadium is by far the biggest stadium in Ohio and it’s the home of the Ohio State Buckeyes football team. It’s nicknamed “The Horseshoe” or “The Shoe” because of its distinctive horseshoe design. It underwent several renovations and expansion phases.

The stadium was constructed way back in 1922 and already had a very respectable 66,210 seating capacity. Because of its extended history in American sports, Ohio Stadium was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1974.

2. FirstEnergy Stadium

• Location: Cleveland
• Capacity: 67,431

FirstEnergy Stadium is the magnificent home of the Cleveland Browns football team which competes in the NFL. It’s a multi-purpose arena that is also sometimes used for concerts, soccer games, and games played by high school football teams.

The stadium was constructed between 1997 and 1999 for $283 million, the equivalent of well over $460 million today. What’s remarkable is that the stadium had 73,200 seats upon completion but this was reduced to 67,431 seats following a renovation phase in 2014.

3. Paycor Stadium

• Location: Cincinnati
• Capacity: 65,515

Paycor Stadium is another beautiful stadium in Ohio that was originally known as Paul Brown Stadium. It’s the home venue of the Cincinnati Bengals football team of the NFL and has been since the stadium was completed between 1998 and 2000. Paul Brown was the Bengals’ founder.

The stadium cost $455 million to build which is the equivalent of approximately $720 million today. The stadium’s seats are green and it’s therefore nicknamed “The Jungle.” That’s a reference to both the Bengal tigers and also to the Guns N’ Roses song “Welcome to the Jungle” which serves as the team’s unofficial anthem.

4. Great American Ball Park

• Location: Cincinnati
• Capacity: 43,500

Great American Ball Park is the biggest baseball stadium in Ohio and the home venue of the Cincinnati Reds of Major League Baseball. It was constructed between 2000 and 2003 and replaced the former home of the Reds called “Cinergy Field” or “Riverfront Stadium.”

The name of the stadium is a reference to the Great American insurance company which bought the stadium’s naming rights. They paid $75 million for 30 years to add their name to the stadium. The stadium itself cost $290 million to build, the equivalent of over $430 million today.

5. Nippert Stadium

• Location: Cincinnati
• Capacity: 40,000

Nippert Stadium is yet another major sports arena in Cincinnati that is located on the campus of the University of Cincinnati. Although it’s a multi-purpose stadium that is also used for soccer games, it serves as the home of the Cincinnati Bearcats football team.

The stadium has a history that goes back to the year 1901 when it was nothing more than a field with temporary bleachers. The first concrete stands were constructed on both sides in 1915 and it became a horseshoe stadium during an extensive expansion phase in 1924. These remarkable details make it the fifth-oldest stadium in college football.

6. Progressive Field

• Location: Cleveland
• Capacity: 34,830

Progressive Field is the name of an amazing baseball park that is located in downtown Cleveland. It’s the home venue of MLB’s Cleveland Guardians and is located right next to an indoor arena named the Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. Together, both sports venues form the Gateway Sports and Entertainment Complex.

The stadium was constructed between 1992 and 1994 for a total price tag of $175 million. That’s the equivalent of well over $320 million today. It opened its doors as Jacobs Filed and replaced the iconic Cleveland Stadium, a multi-purpose stadium and one of the first of its kind to be used for more than one sport.

7. InfoCision Stadium–Summa Field

• Location: Akron
• Capacity: 30,000

InfoCision Stadium–Summa Field is the home of the Akron Zips football team which represents the University of Akron. The stadium was constructed between 2008 and 2009 and was built to replace the former home of the Akron Zips called the Rubber Bowl.

The naming rights of the stadium are owned by the InfoCision Management Corporation and Summa Health System. That’s not all though because the seats on the west side are named after Huntington Bancshares and the press box after Towpath Credit Union. This means 4 different companies own naming rights in this stadium in Ohio.

8. Peden Stadium

• Location: Athens
• Capacity: 27,000

Peden Stadium is officially known as Frank Solich Field at Peden Stadium and is a stadium that is located on the campus of Ohio University in Athens. The stadium has been the home of the Ohio Bobcats Football team since it first opened its doors in 1929.

The stadium was named in honor of Don C. Peden who was a football coach and the director of athletics at Ohio University for 27 years. The first version of Peden Stadium cost $185,000, featured two grandstands on each side, and could seat 12,000 people. The stadium was expanded in both 1986 and 2001 to reach its current capacity of 27,000 seats.

9. Glass Bowl

• Location: Toledo
• Capacity: 26,038

The Glass Bowl is a stadium in Toledo, Ohio, that is primarily used for football games. It’s the home of the Toledo Rockets football team which represents the University of Toledo. The stadium is located on the university campus just south of the Ottawa River.

It’s yet another famous stadium in Ohio that has a history that goes back multiple decades. It was constructed in 1937 and could seat 8,000 spectators back then on two grandstands. A large project completed in the 1990s cost $18.5 million and added both additional seats and a large pressbox to the Glass Bowl.

10. Dix Stadium

• Location: Kent
• Capacity: 25,319

Dix Stadium is a stadium located in the city of Kent n the northeastern part of the state of Ohio. The multi-purpose stadium is used as the home venue of the Kent State Golden Flashes football team but is also used by the women’s soccer and lacrosse teams.

The stadium was constructed between 1968 and 1969 and cost $3.5 million to build, the equivalent of about $26 million today. It was originally known as the Memorial Stadium between 199 and 1973 but was renamed in honor of Robert C. Dix, a member of Kent State’s Board of Trustees for over 3 decades.