Editing Huntington Bank Field (section)

==History==
{{See also|Cleveland Browns relocation controversy}}
Huntington Bank Field is located on the site of [[Cleveland Stadium]], commonly called Cleveland Municipal Stadium, a multipurpose facility built in 1931 that served as the Browns' home field from their inception in 1946 through the [[1995 Cleveland Browns season|1995 season]]. During the 1995 season, owner [[Art Modell]] announced his plans to move the team to [[Baltimore]], which resulted in legal action from the city of [[Cleveland]] and Browns season ticket holders. The day after the announcement was made, voters in Cuyahoga County approved an extension of the original 1990 [[sin tax]] on alcohol and tobacco products to fund renovations to Cleveland Stadium.<ref>{{cite news |title=PRO FOOTBALL DAILY REPORT : AFC : Tax Measure Passes Easily in Cleveland |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1995-11-08-sp-668-story.html |newspaper=[[Los Angeles Times]] |date=November 8, 1995 |access-date=September 19, 2016}}</ref> Eventually, as part of the agreement between Modell, the city of Cleveland, and the NFL, the city agreed to tear down Cleveland Stadium and build a new stadium on the same site using the sin tax funds. Modell agreed to leave the Browns name, colors, and history in Cleveland and create a new identity for his franchise, eventually becoming the [[Baltimore Ravens]], while the NFL agreed to reactivate the Browns by 1999 through expansion or relocation of another team. Demolition on the old stadium began in November 1996 and was completed in early 1997. Debris from the former stadium was submerged in [[Lake Erie]] and now serves as an [[artificial reef]].

Ground was broken for the new stadium on May 15, 1997, and it opened in July 1999. The first event was a preseason game between the Browns and the [[Minnesota Vikings]] on August 21, followed the next week by a preseason game against the [[Chicago Bears]]. The first regular-season Browns game at the stadium was played the evening of September 12, 1999, a 43–0 loss to the [[Pittsburgh Steelers]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Cleveland Browns - 1999 |url=http://www.clevelandbrowns.com/team/history/year-by-year-results/1999.html |publisher=[[Cleveland Browns]] |year=2015 |access-date=December 9, 2015}}</ref>

In 2011, local comedian and Browns fan [[Mike Polk]] referred to the stadium as the "factory of sadness" in a video recorded outside the stadium in which he complains about the team's futility.<ref name="cleveland.com">{{cite web|url=http://www.cleveland.com/browns/index.ssf/2011/11/cleveland_browns_fans_growing.html |title=Are Cleveland Browns fans at last growing weary of their NFL 'factory of sadness'? |work=Cleveland.com |publisher=[[The Plain Dealer]] |url-status=live |date=November 11, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200803172843/https://www.cleveland.com/browns/2011/11/cleveland_browns_fans_growing.html |archive-date=August 3, 2020 |access-date=December 1, 2015}}</ref> In 2021, after the Browns defeated the Steelers at [[Acrisure Stadium]], local TV station [[WKYC]] broadcast a segment with Polk where he "closed" the "factory of sadness".<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.wkyc.com/article/sports/nfl/browns/mike-polk-jr-officially-closes-the-factory-of-sadness/95-374d0838-4a75-4950-aa0c-a9932ffd773d |title=Mike Polk Jr. officially closes 'The Factory of Sadness' |date=January 8, 2021 |work=WKYC.com |access-date=September 2, 2021}}</ref>

Through the [[2023 NFL season|2023 season]], Huntington Bank Field is the only NFL venue that has yet to host a postseason game of any kind. The Browns are one of five teams who have yet to host a home playoff game in their current stadium, along with the [[Atlanta Falcons]], [[Las Vegas Raiders]], [[Los Angeles Chargers]], and [[New York Jets]]. Those facilities, however, have each hosted the [[Super Bowl]], while the Jets' home, [[MetLife Stadium]], and the Chargers' home, [[SoFi Stadium]], have also hosted home playoff games for their other tenants, the [[New York Giants]] and [[Los Angeles Rams]], respectively.

=== Future ===
The Browns lease at the stadium is set to expire at the end of the 2028 season. Cleveland Mayor [[Justin Bibb]] and the [[Cleveland Browns]] announced in October 2024 that the Browns plan to construct a new indoor stadium in suburban [[Brook Park, Ohio|Brook Park]], at [[Cleveland Engine#Plant 2|a site]] adjacent to [[Cleveland Hopkins International Airport]], in time for the 2029 season.<ref>{{cite news|first=Michelle|last=Jarboe|title=How will the Browns pay for a new stadium in Brook Park? Here's what we know|url=https://www.news5cleveland.com/news/local-news/how-will-the-browns-pay-for-a-new-stadium-in-brook-park-heres-what-we-know|publisher=[[WEWS-TV]]|date=October 18, 2024|access-date=May 10, 2025}}</ref> The current naming rights deal specifies that the Huntington Bank Field name will be transferred to the new facility once it opens.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Piazza |first=Jake |date=2024-10-17 |title=NFL's Browns plan to leave Cleveland stadium for dome in the suburbs |url=https://www.cnbc.com/2024/10/17/cleveland-browns-stadium-brook-park-ohio.html |access-date=2024-10-22 |website=CNBC |language=en}}</ref>