Although there is only one professional team that competes in one of the major sports leagues in the country, the state in the South Central region is still home to some amazing stadiums in the U.S.
The Oklahoma City Thunder is a basketball team that competes in the NBA and the Oklahoma Sooners are one of the most successful college football teams in history.
Other popular professional sports teams in Oklahoma are the Tulsa Golden Hurricane football team and the Tulsa Oilers ice hockey team.
In this article, you’ll discover some of the biggest stadiums in Oklahoma. This list also features 2 amazing indoor arenas.
Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium is by far the largest stadium in Oklahoma. It has a history that dates back to the early 1920s when the stadium was established with temporary bleachers in 1923. 2 years later, a permanent 16,000-seat stand was constructed.
The stadium has been expanded multiple times throughout its history to become one of the biggest stadiums in the world. It’s the home of the Oklahoma Sooners, the football team representing the Unversity of Oklahoma, one of the most successful college football teams in history.
Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium / Toniklemm / Wiki Commons
2. Boone Pickens Stadium
Location: Stillwater
Capacity: 55,509
Boone Pickens Stadium is a stadium that first opened its doors even earlier as it has a history that goes back to 1919. This makes it the oldest stadium in the Big 12 Conference as it has been the home of the Oklahoma State Cowboys football team ever since.
The first stand of the stadium was completed in 1920 and could seat 8,000 spectators. It wasn’t until the early 1970s that the stadium could seat over 50,000 people. The stadium received a complete facelift between 2003 and 2009 to become one of the most amazing stadiums in Oklahoma and even the entire country.
Boone Pickens Stadium / Wiki Commons
3. H.A. Chapman Stadium
Location: Tulsa
Capacity: 30,000
H.A. Chapman Stadium is officially known as Skelly Field at H. A. Chapman Stadium and is the stadium located on the campus of the University of Tulsa. It’s the home of the Tulsa Golden Hurricane football team and has been since it first opened its doors in 1930.
The stadium had a capacity of 40,385 seats between 1965 and 2004 but has been completely renovated in the early 21st century. The stadium can hold 30,000 spectators following the 2008 renovation and was also renamed to its official name back then in honor of the main sponsor of this project.
H.A. Chapman Stadium / Wiki Commons
4. Paycom Center
Location: 18,203
Capacity: Oklahoma City
Paycom Center is the amazing home of the only major league sports team in Oklahoma, the Oklahoma City Thunder of the NBA. The massive arena was completed between 1999 and 2002 for $89.2 million and is located in downtown Oklahoma City.
The former names of this arena were Ford Center (2002-2010), Oklahoma City Arena (2010-2011), and (Chesapeake Energy Arena (2011-2021). What’s remarkable is that the arena also briefly served as the home of the New Orleans Hornets between 2005 and 2007 following Hurricane Katrina.
Paycom Center / Wiki Commons
5. BOK Center
Location: Tulsa
Capacity: 17,839
BOK Center is the name of another amazing indoor area in Oklahoma. It’s located in Tusla and was constructed between 2005 and 2008 for $196 million, the equivalent of well over $250 million today. It’s a multi-purpose arena that can be used for ice hockey, basketball, arena football, and concerts.
The main tenant of the arena is the Tulsa Oilers, a popular local ice hockey team that calls BOK Center home. What’s remarkable about this incredible feat of architecture is that it was designed by César Pelli (1926-2019), the architect who also designed the Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpur.
