Kingdome

The idea of constructing a covered stadium for a major league football or baseball team was first proposed to Seattle officials in 1959. Voters rejected separate measures to approve public funding for such a stadium in 1960 and 1966, but the outcome was different in 1968, when King County voters approved the issue of $40 million in municipal bonds to construct the stadium. Construction began on November 2, 1972, with the stadium designed by the architectural firms Naramore, Skilling & Praeger, and structural engineering by Skilling, Helle, Christiansen & Robertson, Inc. The general contractors were Donald M. Drake Company from 1972 to 1974 and Peter Kiewit Sons Construction Company from 1974 to 1976. The Kingdome opened on March 27, 1976, at a total cost of $67 million, equivalent to about $379 million in 2025. The stadium measured 660 feet wide from its inside walls and was one of the largest concrete domed stadiums in the world when built. The Seattle Seahawks of the NFL began play there in their inaugural 1976 season, and the Seattle Mariners of MLB moved in the following year, 1977. The NBA's Seattle SuperSonics played at the Kingdome from 1978 to 1985, winning their only NBA championship there in 1979, before moving back to the Seattle Center Coliseum. The NASL's Seattle Sounders also called the Kingdome home from 1976 to 1983, using it for both outdoor and indoor soccer. The stadium hosted numerous major sports events, including the Soccer Bowl in August 1976, the Pro Bowl in January 1977, the MLB All-Star Game in July 1979, the NBA All-Star Game in 1987, and the NCAA Final Four in 1984 and 1989. The Kingdome was also known for its notoriously loud acoustics, which made it a formidable venue for visiting teams and earned the Seahawks a formidable home-field advantage. By the late 1990s, the stadium had become outdated, and both the Seahawks and Mariners were seeking new venues. The Mariners moved to Safeco Field, now T-Mobile Park, in July 1999, and the Seahawks played their final game at the Kingdome on January 9, 2000. The Kingdome was demolished by implosion on March 26, 2000, exactly 24 years after its opening. The site is now occupied by Lumen Field, originally opened as Seahawks Stadium in 2002, which was built on the parking lot north of the Kingdome's footprint.

The Kingdome, officially King County Stadium, was a multi-purpose domed stadium in Seattle that opened on March 27, 1976, and was demolished by implosion on March 26, 2000, exactly 24 years after its opening. It had a capacity of 66,000 for football and 59,166 for baseball and measured 660 feet wide from its inside walls. The stadium cost $67 million to build, equivalent to about $379 million in 2025. It was home to the Seattle Seahawks from 1976 to 1999, the Seattle Mariners from 1977 to 1999, the Seattle SuperSonics from 1978 to 1985, and the Seattle Sounders of the NASL from 1976 to 1983. The SuperSonics won their only NBA championship at the Kingdome in 1979. The stadium was famous for its notoriously loud acoustics, which made it a formidable venue for visiting teams and helped establish the Seahawks' formidable home-field advantage that continues at its successor, Lumen Field. The Kingdome hosted the Soccer Bowl in 1976, the Pro Bowl in 1977, the MLB All-Star Game in 1979, the NBA All-Star Game in 1987, and the NCAA Final Four in 1984 and 1989. The idea for a covered stadium was first proposed in 1959, but voters rejected funding measures in 1960 and 1966 before finally approving $40 million in municipal bonds in 1968. The stadium was the first to host all four major American sports leagues: the NFL, MLB, NBA, and NASL. Its demolition by implosion was one of the largest controlled demolitions in history at the time.