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Qwest Field is a football stadium in Seattle, Washington. It serves as the home field for the
NFL's Seattle Seahawks and men's and women's Seattle Sounders soccer teams. The
stadium opened in July 2002 and was built on the site of the Kingdome, the previous
stadium for the Seahawks, Major League Baseball's Seattle Mariners, and several other
Seattle sports teams. On March 26, 2000, to make way for the construction of the stadium,
the Kingdome fell in the world's largest implosion of a single concrete structure.
History
The stadium was originally named Seahawks Stadium and affectionately called "The Hawk",
or the "Hawks Nest". The name Qwest Field was announced on June 2, 2004, after Qwest
bought the naming rights for $75 million (for 15 years). Although some people began using
the new name immediately, the official approval wasn't given until twenty-two days later
(June 24) by the Washington State Public Stadium Authority. Seahawks owner Paul Allen
funded about 30% of the stadium's cost out of his pocket, the remainder being paid by a
funding package of user fees, sports lottery revenue, and taxes on related industries.
Allen was intimately involved in the stadium design. He rejected plans for a retractable roof,
and directed the architects to minimize the stadium footprint as much as possible to bring
fans closer to the action. A special feature was added in 2003 after Allen hired star sports
marketing executive Tod Leiweke as the Seahawks' new CEO. Leiweke, who had turned
the Minnesota Wild into one of the hottest tickets in the NHL, notably had a large flagpole
installed in the south end zone. Leiweke began a pregame tradition in which a local
celebrity, often a former Seahawk, raised a large blue flag numbered "12" on this flagpole
to the roars of the crowd. The "12" represents the fans as the "12th man"; in fact, the
Seahawks had retired #12 in honor of their fans in the 1980s. The flag-raising is now a
regular feature of network television coverage of Seahawks games. However, this new
ritual soon had gotten the attention of Texas A&M University, who claimed that they had the
rights to the name the 12th Man and threatened to sue. In January 2006, however, a
settlement between the university and the Seahawks allowed the use of the 12th Man,
provided that Texas A&M is acknowledged in part.
Qwest Field has earned a reputation as arguably the loudest stadium in the NFL. Allen had
the architects design the structure of the stadium, especially the roof, to direct as much
crowd noise as possible on the field. In addition, the north end zone seating, called the
"Hawks Nest", was specifically designed for rowdy fans; the seating consists of metal
bleachers which reflect sound, and fans often stomp to create even more. Since the 2005
season, more penalties for false starts have been called against visiting teams in Qwest
Field than in any other NFL stadium. At one point during the 2006 season, the New York
Giants complained that Qwest Field was artificially piping in noise in order to distract visiting
quarterbacks from running a count. During the 2005 NFC Championship Game against the
Carolina Panthers, the decibel level recorded by Fox's telecast producers reached 137db.
The biggest crowd ever to attend a Seattle Seahawks football game was 68,175 on
Sunday, November 12, 2006 against the St. Louis Rams. This game, which Seattle won
24-22, was a very important divisional game. The win put the Seahawks two games ahead
in the NFC West. Fans experienced their first snow game in the history of Qwest Field on
November 27, 2006 against the Green Bay Packers with the Seahawks winning 34-24 with
Shaun Alexander rushing for 202 yards. Fans experienced their first playoff game in the
history of Qwest Field on January 8, 2005, when the St. Louis Rams won against the
Seahawks team for the third time that season, 27-20.
NFL's Seattle Seahawks and men's and women's Seattle Sounders soccer teams. The
stadium opened in July 2002 and was built on the site of the Kingdome, the previous
stadium for the Seahawks, Major League Baseball's Seattle Mariners, and several other
Seattle sports teams. On March 26, 2000, to make way for the construction of the stadium,
the Kingdome fell in the world's largest implosion of a single concrete structure.
History
The stadium was originally named Seahawks Stadium and affectionately called "The Hawk",
or the "Hawks Nest". The name Qwest Field was announced on June 2, 2004, after Qwest
bought the naming rights for $75 million (for 15 years). Although some people began using
the new name immediately, the official approval wasn't given until twenty-two days later
(June 24) by the Washington State Public Stadium Authority. Seahawks owner Paul Allen
funded about 30% of the stadium's cost out of his pocket, the remainder being paid by a
funding package of user fees, sports lottery revenue, and taxes on related industries.
Allen was intimately involved in the stadium design. He rejected plans for a retractable roof,
and directed the architects to minimize the stadium footprint as much as possible to bring
fans closer to the action. A special feature was added in 2003 after Allen hired star sports
marketing executive Tod Leiweke as the Seahawks' new CEO. Leiweke, who had turned
the Minnesota Wild into one of the hottest tickets in the NHL, notably had a large flagpole
installed in the south end zone. Leiweke began a pregame tradition in which a local
celebrity, often a former Seahawk, raised a large blue flag numbered "12" on this flagpole
to the roars of the crowd. The "12" represents the fans as the "12th man"; in fact, the
Seahawks had retired #12 in honor of their fans in the 1980s. The flag-raising is now a
regular feature of network television coverage of Seahawks games. However, this new
ritual soon had gotten the attention of Texas A&M University, who claimed that they had the
rights to the name the 12th Man and threatened to sue. In January 2006, however, a
settlement between the university and the Seahawks allowed the use of the 12th Man,
provided that Texas A&M is acknowledged in part.
Qwest Field has earned a reputation as arguably the loudest stadium in the NFL. Allen had
the architects design the structure of the stadium, especially the roof, to direct as much
crowd noise as possible on the field. In addition, the north end zone seating, called the
"Hawks Nest", was specifically designed for rowdy fans; the seating consists of metal
bleachers which reflect sound, and fans often stomp to create even more. Since the 2005
season, more penalties for false starts have been called against visiting teams in Qwest
Field than in any other NFL stadium. At one point during the 2006 season, the New York
Giants complained that Qwest Field was artificially piping in noise in order to distract visiting
quarterbacks from running a count. During the 2005 NFC Championship Game against the
Carolina Panthers, the decibel level recorded by Fox's telecast producers reached 137db.
The biggest crowd ever to attend a Seattle Seahawks football game was 68,175 on
Sunday, November 12, 2006 against the St. Louis Rams. This game, which Seattle won
24-22, was a very important divisional game. The win put the Seahawks two games ahead
in the NFC West. Fans experienced their first snow game in the history of Qwest Field on
November 27, 2006 against the Green Bay Packers with the Seahawks winning 34-24 with
Shaun Alexander rushing for 202 yards. Fans experienced their first playoff game in the
history of Qwest Field on January 8, 2005, when the St. Louis Rams won against the
Seahawks team for the third time that season, 27-20.
