aka Bears Stadium
Year opened: 1948
Capacity: 76,273, up from 17,000 at opening and 34,000 for the first AFL season.
Names:
Bears Stadium, 1948-68
Mile High Stadium, 1968-2002
Pro football tenants:
Denver Broncos (AFL/NFL), 1960-2000
Denver Gold (USFL), 1983-85
Postseason games hosted:
AFC Divisional playoff, Broncos 34 Steelers 21, Dec. 24, 1977
AFC Championship, Broncos 20 Raiders 17, Jan. 1, 1978
USFL Championship, Panthers 24 Stars 22, July 17, 1983
AFC Divisional playoff, Steelers 24 Broncos 17, Dec. 30, 1984
AFC Divisional playoff, Broncos 22 Patriots 17, Jan. 4, 1987
AFC Divisional playoff, Broncos 34 Oilers 10, Jan. 10, 1988
AFC Championship, Broncos 38 Browns 33, Jan. 17, 1988
AFC Divisional playoff, Broncos 24 Steelers 23, Jan. 7, 1990
AFC Championship, Broncos 37 Browns 21, Jan. 14, 1990
AFC Divisional playoff, Broncos 26 Oilers 24, Jan. 4, 1992
AFC Divisional playoff, Jaguars 30 Broncos 27, Jan. 4, 1997
AFC Wild Card playoff, Broncos 42 Jaguars 17, Dec. 27, 1997
AFC Divisional playoff, Broncos 38 Dolphins 3, Jan. 9, 1999
AFC Championship, Broncos 23 Jets 10, Jan. 17, 1999
Other tenants of note:
Denver Bears/Zephyrs (minor league baseball), 1948-92
Denver Dynamos (NASL), 1974-75
Colorado Caribous (NASL), 1978
Colorado Rockies (MLB – NL), 1993-94
Colorado Rapids (MLS), 1996-2001
Notes: The east stands could be moved in their entirety in order to accommodate baseball. First stadium expansion in late 1950s was in hopes of landing a baseball franchise in the proposed Continental League, which never got off the ground. Stadium was originally privately owned by the Howsam family, owner of the minor league baseball Bears (and later the founding owners of the AFL Broncos), but was sold to the City of Denver in 1968, when it was renamed. Major expansions followed in ’68 and between 1975 and ’77.
Fate: Demolished in 2002, the site is now part of the parking lot for INVESCO Field at Mile High.
(Above is earlier view of then-Bears Stadium, as it looked in early days of AFL. Below view shows the stadium several expansions later)
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