Editing Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum

{{Short description|Stadium in Los Angeles, California, US}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=January 2019}}
{{Infobox venue
| stadium_name = Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum
| nickname = ''The Coliseum''<br />''L.A. Coliseum''<br />''The Grand Old Lady''
| logo_image = La memorial coliseum logo 100th.png
| logo_size = 120
| image = USC vs University of Oregon November 2019.png
| image_size = 
| logo_caption = Logo since 2022, first revealed<br>as the stadium's 100th anniversary (2023).
| caption = The stadium during a USC and University of Oregon football game, November 2019
| address = 3911 South Figueroa Street
| location = [[Los Angeles, California]], United States
| coordinates = {{Coord|34|0|51|N|118|17|16|W|type:landmark_region:US-CA|display=inline,title}}
| broke_ground = {{Start date and age|df=n|1921|12|21}}
| opened = {{Start date and age|df=n|1923|5|1}}
| expanded = 
| renovated = 1930, 1964, 1977–78, 1983, 1993, 1995, 2011, 2017–2019
| pushpin_map = USA Los Angeles Metropolitan Area#USA California#USA
| pushpin_relief = yes
| pushpin_map_caption = Location in [[Los Angeles metropolitan area|L.A. metro area]]##Location in California##Location in the United States
| owner = [[State of California]], [[Los Angeles County]], and [[City of Los Angeles]]
| operator = [[University of Southern California]]
| surface = [[Cynodon dactylon|Bermuda grass]]
| construction_cost = US$954,872.98 (original)<ref name="Ballparks of NA">{{cite book|last=Benson|first=Michael|title=Ballparks of North America: a comprehensive historical reference to baseball grounds, yards, and stadiums, 1845 to present|year=1989|publisher=McFarland|isbn=0-89950-367-5}}</ref>(${{formatprice|{{Inflation|US|954872.98|1923}}}} in {{Inflation-year|US}} dollars{{inflation-fn|US}})<br />$954,869 (renovations in 2010)<br />(${{formatprice|{{Inflation|US|954,869|2010}}}} in {{Inflation-year|US}} dollars{{inflation-fn|US}})<br />$315 million (renovations in 2018){{r|Cost $315 M}}<ref>{{cite news |url=https://news.usc.edu/135433/usc-kicks-off-270-million-renovation-of-coliseum/|title=USC kicks off $270 million renovation of Coliseum - USC News. January 29, 2018|publisher=USC News |date=January 29, 2018 }}</ref><ref name="Kaufman">{{cite web|url=https://www.ocregister.com/2018/05/31/uscs-coliseum-renovation-about-30-million-over-budget/|title=USC's Coliseum renovation about $30 million over budget|last=Kaufman|first=Joey|date=May 31, 2018|work=Orange County Register|access-date=June 1, 2018}}</ref>
| architect = [[John and Donald Parkinson]] (original)<br />[[DLR Group]] (renovations)
| general_contractor = Edwards, Widley & Dixon Company (original)<ref name="Ballparks of NA"/><br />[[Hunt Construction Group|Hunt]] & Hathaway Dinwiddie Construction Company (renovations)
| services engineer = 
| seating_capacity = 77,500<br />93,607 (pre-2018)<br /><ref name=USCColiseum>{{cite web |url=http://www.usctrojans.com/facilities/usc-memorial-coliseum.html |title=Memorial Coliseum |year=2009 |publisher=University of Southern California |access-date=March 28, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100302205334/http://www.usctrojans.com/facilities/usc-memorial-coliseum.html |archive-date=March 2, 2010 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref name="UA">{{Cite web |last=Thiry |first=Lindsey |date=2018-01-29 |title=USC Trojans' home is now officially the United Airlines Memorial Coliseum |url=https://www.latimes.com/sports/usc/la-sp-usc-coliseum-renovation-20180129-story.html |access-date=2024-12-14 |website=Los Angeles Times}}</ref>
| record_attendance = 
| tenants = {{plainlist|
* [[USC Trojans football|USC Trojans]] ([[National Collegiate Athletic Association|NCAA]]) (1923–present)
}}
'''Former'''
{{collapsible list|
* [[LA Giltinis]] ([[Major League Rugby|MLR]]) (2021–2022)
* [[Los Angeles Rams]] ([[National Football League|NFL]]) (1946–1979, 2016–2019)<ref>{{cite web|title=General FAQs|url=http://welcomehomerams.com/|publisher=[[Los Angeles Rams]]|work=welcomehomerams.com|quote=Where will the Rams play?  For the first three seasons we'll play at the L.A. Coliseum. In 2019, we'll move into the most advanced, world-class stadium ever built located in Inglewood, CA.|date=January 18, 2016|access-date=January 18, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160117173845/http://welcomehomerams.com/|archive-date=January 17, 2016|url-status=dead}}</ref>
* [[Los Angeles Christmas Festival]] ([[NCAA]]) (1924)
* [[UCLA Bruins football|UCLA Bruins]] ([[NCAA]]) (1928–1981)
* [[Los Angeles Dons]] ([[All-America Football Conference|AAFC]]) (1946–1949)
* [[Pro Bowl]] ([[National Football League|NFL]]) (1951–1972, 1979)
* [[Los Angeles Dodgers]] ([[Major League Baseball|MLB]]) (1958–1961)
* [[Los Angeles Chargers]] ([[American Football League|AFL]]) (1960)
* [[Los Angeles Wolves]] ([[United Soccer Association|USA]]) (1967)
* [[Los Angeles Toros]] ([[National Professional Soccer League (1967)|NPSL]]) (1967)
* [[Los Angeles Aztecs]] ([[North American Soccer League (1968–84)|NASL]]) (1977, 1981)
* [[Los Angeles Raiders]] (NFL) (1982–1994)
* [[Los Angeles Express (USFL)|Los Angeles Express]] ([[USFL]]) (1983–1985)
* [[Los Angeles Dragons (American football)|Los Angeles Dragons]] ([[Spring Football League|SFL]]) (2000)
* [[Los Angeles Xtreme]] ([[XFL (2001)|XFL]]) (2001)
* [[Los Angeles Temptation]] ([[Legends Football League|LFL]]) (2009–2011, 2015)
}}
| suites = 42
| publictransit = {{rint|losangeles|lacmta}} {{rint|losangeles|expo}} [[Expo Park/USC (Los Angeles Metro station)|Expo Park/USC]] <br /> [[Expo/Vermont station|Expo/Vermont]]
| embedded = {{Infobox NRHP
 | name = Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum
 | embed = yes
 | nrhp_type = nhl
|designated_other1=California
|designated_other1_number=960
 | image = LA Coliseum Dec 23 2022.jpg
 | image_size = 240px
 | caption = The Peristyle plaza entrance to the Coliseum, including the two bronze Olympic statues, December 2022
 | area ={{convert|29.2|acre|1}}
 | architecture= [[Art Moderne architecture|Art Moderne]]<ref name = nrhpinv>{{Cite web | last =  Charleton | first = James H. | title = Los Angeles Memorial.Coliseum | work = National Register of Historic Places – Inventory Nomination Form 
| publisher = [[National Park Service]] | date = June 21, 1984 | url = {{NHLS url|id=84003866}}| format = pdf | access-date = May 22, 2012}}</ref>
 | added = July 27, 1984
 | designated_nrhp_type = July 27, 1984<ref name=NPS-LANDMARK>[http://tps.cr.nps.gov/nhl/detail.cfm?ResourceId=1884&ResourceType=Structure Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071114222329/http://tps.cr.nps.gov/nhl/detail.cfm?ResourceId=1884&ResourceType=Structure |date=November 14, 2007 }}, National Landmarks Program, National Park Service, ''Accessed November 12, 2007.''</ref>
 | refnum=84003866<ref name="nris">{{NRISref|2010a}}</ref>}}
| website = {{URL|https://www.lacoliseum.com/|lacoliseum.com}}
}}
The '''Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum''' (also known as the '''Los Angeles Coliseum''' or '''L.A. Coliseum''') is a [[multi-purpose stadium]] in the [[Exposition Park, Los Angeles|Exposition Park]] neighborhood of [[Los Angeles]], California, United States. Conceived as a hallmark of civic pride, the Coliseum was commissioned in 1921 as a memorial to Los Angeles veterans of [[World War I]]. Completed in 1923, it will become the first stadium to have hosted the [[Summer Olympics]] three times when it hosts the [[2028 Summer Olympics]],<ref name="USC News 2018-03-29"/> previously hosting in [[1932 Summer Olympics|1932]] and [[1984 Summer Olympics|1984]]. It was designated a [[National Historic Landmark]] on July 27, 1984, a day before the [[1984 Summer Olympics opening ceremony|opening ceremony of the 1984 Summer Olympics]].<ref name="NPS-LANDMARK" />

The stadium serves as the home of the [[USC Trojans football|University of Southern California Trojans football]] team of the [[Big Ten Conference]], and is located directly adjacent to the school's main [[University Park, Los Angeles|University Park]] campus.

The Coliseum is jointly owned by the State of California's Sixth District Agricultural Association, [[Los Angeles County, California|Los Angeles County]], and the City of Los Angeles. It is managed and operated by the Auxiliary Services Department of the [[University of Southern California]] (USC).<ref name="auto1">{{Cite web|url=https://aux.usc.edu/|title=USC Auxiliary Services|website=USC Auxiliary Services}}</ref>

USC granted naming rights to [[United Airlines]] in January 2018. After concerns were raised by the Coliseum Commission, which has public oversight of USC's management and operation of the Coliseum, the airline agreed to become the title sponsor of the playing field, naming it '''United Airlines Field at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum'''.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://news.usc.edu/157856/united-airlines-field-coliseum-naming-announcement/|title=USC and United Airlines agree to name field at the Coliseum|work=USC News|date=June 7, 2019}}</ref>

The Coliseum was the home of the [[Los Angeles Rams]] of the National Football League (NFL) from [[1946 Los Angeles Rams season|1946]] to [[1979 Los Angeles Rams season|1979]], when they moved to [[Anaheim Stadium]] in [[Anaheim, California|Anaheim]], and again from [[2016 Los Angeles Rams season|2016]] to [[2019 Los Angeles Rams season|2019]], prior to the team's move to [[SoFi Stadium]] in [[Inglewood, California|Inglewood]]. The facility had a permanent seating capacity of 93,607 for USC football and Rams games, making it the largest football stadium in the [[Pac-12 Conference]] and the NFL.<ref>{{cite web|first1=Bryan|last1=Kalbrosky|date=December 6, 2016|url=http://theramswire.usatoday.com/2016/12/06/los-angeles-rams-home-attendance-memorial-coliseum-san-diego-chargers/|website=Rams Wire|publisher=Gannett Co., Inc|title=Don't judge Rams home attendance based on percentage of seats filled}}</ref> The stadium also was the temporary home of the [[Los Angeles Dodgers]] of [[Major League Baseball]] (MLB) from [[1958 Los Angeles Dodgers season|1958]] to [[1961 Los Angeles Dodgers season|1961]], and was the host venue for games three, four, and five of the [[1959 World Series]]. It was the site of the first AFL–NFL World Championship Game (later called [[Super Bowl I]]) and Super Bowl VII. Additionally, it has served as a home field for a number of other teams, including the [[1960 Los Angeles Chargers season|1960]] inaugural season for the Los Angeles Chargers, the [[History of the Los Angeles Raiders|Los Angeles Raiders]] of the NFL from [[1982 Los Angeles Raiders season|1982]] to [[1994 Los Angeles Raiders season|1994]], and [[UCLA Bruins football]].

From 1959 to 2016, the [[Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena]] was located adjacent to the Coliseum before it closed in March 2016. [[BMO Stadium]], formerly Banc of California Stadium, a [[soccer-specific stadium]] and the home of [[Major League Soccer]] (MLS)'s [[Los Angeles FC]], was constructed on the former Sports Arena site, and opened in 2018.

In 2019, USC completed a two year long major renovation of the stadium that included replacing the seating along with the addition of [[luxury boxes]] and club suites.<ref name="coliseumrenovation.com">{{cite web |url=http://coliseumrenovation.com/ |title=The USC Coliseum Renovation Project Website |access-date=January 20, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180226161951/http://coliseumrenovation.com/ |archive-date=February 26, 2018 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://news.usc.edu/147418/l-a-coliseum-renovation-reaches-halfway-point-with-topping-off-ceremony/|title=Coliseum renovation reaches halfway point with topping-off ceremony|work=USC News|date=August 15, 2018}}</ref> The $315 million project, funded solely by the university and managed by architectural firm [[DLR Group]], was the first major upgrade of the stadium in twenty years.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://news.usc.edu/159518/los-angeles-memorial-coliseum-ribbon-cutting-renovations//|title=USC, L.A. leaders reintroduce the renovated Coliseum|work=USC News|date=August 15, 2019}}</ref> The improvements and added amenities resulted in a reduced stadium capacity from 92,348 to 77,500.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Renovation Unveiled at Iconic Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum |url=https://www.dlrgroup.com/firm-news/la-memorial-coliseum-grand-opening-2/ |access-date=2022-05-19 |website=DLR Group |language=en-US}}</ref>

==Operation==
The Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Commission, which consists of six voting members appointed by the three ownership interests and meets on a quarterly basis, provides public oversight of the master lease agreement with USC.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://lamcc.lacounty.gov/About-Us|title=Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Commission > About Us|website=lamcc.lacounty.gov|language=en-US}}</ref> Under the lease, the university has year-round day-to-day management and operation responsibility for both the Coliseum and BMO Stadium properties.<ref name="auto">{{cite web|url=http://lamcc.lacounty.gov/LinkClick.aspx?fileticket=w03nIl-tEsc%3d&portalid=17|title=Second Amendment to Lease and Agreement by and between the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Commission and University of Southern California effective July 29, 2013|website=www.lamcc.lacounty.gov}}</ref> USC's Vice President of Auxiliary Services is the [[Chief Operating Officer]] of the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, and Coliseum employees are employees of the university.<ref name="auto1"/><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.lacoliseum.com/employment/|title=LA Coliseum Employment}}</ref>

Until 2013, USC had a series of mostly one and two year agreements with the Coliseum Commission &ndash; which up to that time had been directly operating the stadium. Those agreements were limited to the university only renting the stadium for USC home football games.<ref name="r615">{{cite web | last=Farmer | first=Sam | title=Coliseum panel mulls options | website=Los Angeles Times | date=2007-06-06 | url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2007-jun-06-sp-coliseum6-story.html | access-date=2024-12-14}}</ref> On July 29, 2013, after the previously governing Coliseum Commission failed to deliver promised renovations, the Coliseum Commission and USC implemented a significantly more extensive master lease agreement that transferred to USC the responsibility for the long-term management and operation of both the Coliseum and the adjacent BMO Stadium property and the capital renewal of the Coliseum.<ref name="p825">{{cite web | last=Lin II | first=Rong-Gong| title=USC to take over L.A. Coliseum, Sports Arena on Monday | website=Los Angeles Times | date=2013-07-25 | url=https://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-coliseum-usc-20130725-story.html | access-date=2024-12-14}}</ref> The 98-year agreement required the university to make approximately $100 million in initial physical repairs to the Coliseum. Additionally, it requires USC pay $1.3 million each year in rent to the State of California for the state-owned land the property occupies in Exposition Park; maintain the Coliseum's physical condition at the same standard used on the USC Campus; and assume all financial obligations for the operations and maintenance of the Coliseum and BMO Stadium Complex.<ref name="BoardApproves">[https://www.espn.com/los-angeles/college-football/story/_/id/9423259/lease-vote-paves-way-usc-trojans-take-coliseum], "Board approves Coliseum lease". ''[[ESPN]]''. June 26, 2013.</ref><ref>[http://news.usc.edu/#!/article/54741/usc-signs-historic-lease-agreement-with-la-coliseum/], "USC signs historic lease agreement with LA Coliseum" September 5, 2013</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://re.usc.edu/docs/Coliseum%20-%20Second%20Amendment.pdf |title=Second Amendment to Lease and Agreement By and Between Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Commission and University of Southern California|date=July 29, 2013 |access-date=January 5, 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140526024524/http://re.usc.edu/docs/Coliseum%20-%20Second%20Amendment.pdf |archive-date=May 26, 2014 |df=mdy-all }}</ref>

===USC===
The Coliseum is primarily the home of the ''USC Trojans'' football team. Most of USC's regular home games, especially the alternating games with rivals [[UCLA–USC rivalry|UCLA]] and [[Notre Dame–USC football rivalry|Notre Dame]], attract a capacity crowd. The current official capacity of the Coliseum is 77,500, with 42 suites, 1,100 club seats, 24 loge boxes, and a 500-person rooftop terrace.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://losangeles.cbslocal.com/2019/08/15/la-memorial-coliseum-completes-315m-renovation-ahead-of-football-season/|title=LA Memorial Coliseum Completes $315M Renovation Ahead Of Football Season|date=2019-08-15|language=en-US|access-date=2019-08-29}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.lacoliseum.com/restoring-a-classic-the-l-a-coliseum/|title=RESTORING A CLASSIC: THE L.A. COLISEUM – Los Angeles Coliseum|date=August 8, 2018 |language=en-US|access-date=2019-08-29}}</ref> USC's women lacrosse and soccer teams use the Coliseum for selected games, usually involving major opponents and televised games.<ref>[http://www.usctrojans.com/sports/w-soccer/recaps/110714aaa.html], "
Trojans Women Soccer team Battle With No. 1 Bruins at LA Coliseum"</ref> USC also rents the Coliseum to various events, including international soccer games, musical concerts and other large outdoor events.<ref>[http://www.lacoliseum.com/private-events/], "LA Memorial Coliseum & Sports Arena Booking Information"</ref>

In May 2021, due to the previous year of local [[COVID-19 pandemic in Los Angeles|COVID-19]] restrictions, USC held commencement ceremonies in the Coliseum for graduating students from the classes of 2020 and 2021. Ceremonies were held in the Coliseum twice a day for a week, with over 36,000 diplomas (including undergraduate and graduate degrees and certificates) were awarded. It was the first time in 70 years that USC had held its commencement in the stadium.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://news.usc.edu/186359/usc-commencement-classes-of-2020-2021/|title=A commencement two years in the making begins: Classes of 2020 and 2021 walk the Coliseum stage|date=2021-05-14|language=en-US|access-date=2021-05-26}}</ref> In September 2024 the university announced that its main commencement ceremony was regularly attracting more than 60,000 guests and had outgrown all venues on campus, and beginning with the May 2025 ceremony it would be moving to the Coliseum.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://commencement.usc.edu/2024/09/26/update-on-2025-usc-commencement/|title=Update on 2025 USC Commencement|date=2024-09-06|language=en-US|access-date=2024-10-08}}</ref>

==History==
===Planning===
[[File:LAColiseum-under-construction-1922.jpg|thumb|left|The Coliseum under construction in 1922]]
[[File:California - Los Angeles - NARA - 23934521 (cropped).jpg|thumb|left|The Coliseum in 1923]]
The Coliseum was commissioned in 1921 as a memorial to L.A. [[veterans]] of [[World War I]] (rededicated to all United States veterans of the war in 1968).<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.laconservancy.org/locations/los-angeles-memorial-coliseum|title=Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum|website=Los Angeles Conservancy|access-date=March 30, 2019}}</ref> The [[groundbreaking]] ceremony took place on December 21, 1921, with construction being completed in just over 16 months, on May 1, 1923.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://football.ballparks.com/NCAA/Pac10/USC/index.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061019181015/http://football.ballparks.com/NCAA/Pac10/USC/index.htm|url-status=dead|title=Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum<!-- Bot generated title -->|archive-date=October 19, 2006}}</ref> Designed by [[John and Donald Parkinson]], the original bowl's initial construction costs were $954,873. When the Coliseum opened in 1923, it was the largest stadium in Los Angeles, with a capacity of 75,144. In 1930, however, with the Olympics due in two years, the stadium was extended upward to seventy-nine rows of seats with two tiers of tunnels, expanding the seating capacity to 101,574. The physical structure of a bowl-shaped configuration for the Coliseum was undoubtedly inspired by the earlier [[Yale Bowl]] which was built in 1914. The now-signature Olympic torch was added, and the stadium was briefly known as '''Olympic Stadium'''. The [[Olympic cauldron]] torch which burned through both Games remains above the [[peristyle]] at the east end of the stadium as a reminder of this, as do the Olympic rings symbols over one of the main entrances. Originally for the 1984 games, burnable Olympic Rings and a 25-step hydraulic staircase were added inside in the front of the coliseum to allow the cauldron to be lit by lifting up the stairs to the burnable Olympic Rings, which brought the flame to the cauldron on top.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Dwyre |first=Bill |date=2009-07-28 |title=The 1984 Olympics had Rafer Johnson to light the way |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2009-jul-28-sp-dwyre-rafer-johnson28-story.html |access-date=2024-05-29 |website=Los Angeles Times |language=en-US}}</ref> The football field runs east to west with the press box on the south side of the stadium.

The current [[jumbotron]]s to each side of the peristyle were installed in 2017, and replaced a scoreboard and video screen that towered over the peristyle dating back to 1983; they replaced a smaller scoreboard above the center arch installed in 1972, which in turn supplanted the 1937 model, one of the first all-electric scoreboards in the nation. Over the years new light towers have been placed along the north and south rims. The large analog clock and thermometer over the office windows at either end of the peristyle were installed in 1955. In the mid- and late 1950s, the press box was renovated, and the "Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum" lettering and Olympic rings, lighted at night, were added to the eastern face of the peristyle tower. Between the double peristyle arches at the east end is the Coliseum's "Court of Honor" plaques, recognizing many of the memorable events and participants in its  history, including a full list of 1932 and 1984 Olympic gold medalists (the complete roster of honorees can be seen below).

===Renovations===
For many years, the Coliseum was capable of seating over 100,000 spectators. In 1964, the stadium underwent its first major renovation in over three decades. Most of the original pale green wood-and-metal bench seating was replaced by individual theater-type chairs of dark red, beige and yellow; these seats remained until 2018, although the yellow color was eliminated in the 1970s. The [[seating capacity]] was reduced to approximately 93,000.

The Coliseum was problematic as an NFL venue. At various times in its history, it was either the largest or one of the largest stadiums in the league. While this allowed the Rams and Raiders to set attendance records, it also made it extremely difficult to sell out. The NFL amended its [[National Football League television blackout policies|blackout rule]] to allow games to be televised locally if they were sold out 72 hours before kickoff. However, due to the Coliseum's large size, Rams (and later Raiders) games were often blacked out in [[Southern California]], even in the teams' best years.

From 1964 to the late 1970s, it was common practice to shift the playing field to the closed end of the stadium and install end zone bleachers in front of the peristyle, limiting further the number of seats available for sale. For USC&ndash;[[UCLA]] and USC–[[University of Notre Dame|Notre Dame]] games, which often attracted crowds upward of 90,000, the bleachers were moved eastward and the field was re-marked in its original position. When a larger east grandstand was installed between 1977 and 1978, at the behest of Rams owner [[Carroll Rosenbloom]], the capacity was just 71,500. With the upcoming 1984 Summer Olympic Games, and under the direction of [[H. D. Thoreau Jr.]], a new track was installed and the playing field permanently placed inside it. A new scoreboard was also installed in 1983 prior to the 1984 Olympics.<ref>{{Cite report| author=RTKL Associates| date=21 September 2005| title=The Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Renovation: Summary Report for the Cultural Heritage Commission | publisher=Marathon Communications |url=https://expositionpark.ca.gov/epmp/2005%2BLos%2BAngeles%2BMemorial%2BColiseum%2BRenovation%2BSummary%2BReport%2Bfor%2BCultural%2BHeritage%2BCommission.pdf |accessdate=2024-12-21}}</ref> However, the combination of the stadium's large, relatively shallow design, along with the presence of the track between the playing field and the stands, meant that some of the original end zone seats were as far from the field by the equivalent length of another football field. To address these and other problems, the Coliseum underwent a $15 million renovation before the 1993 football season, which included the following:<ref name=USCColiseum />

* The field was lowered by {{convert|11|ft|m|1}} and 14 new rows of seats replaced the running track, bringing the first row of seats closer to the playing field (a maximum distance of {{convert|54|ft|m|1}} at the eastern 30-yard-line).
* A portable seating section was built between the eastern endline and the peristyle bleachers (the stands are removed for concerts and similar events).
* The locker rooms and public restrooms were "modernized".
* The bleachers were replaced with individual seating.<ref>[http://www.stadiumsofnfl.com/past/LAColiseum.htm Stadiums of the NFL-Los Angeles Coliseum-Los Angeles Rams/Raiders] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070205140916/http://www.stadiumsofnfl.com/past/LAColiseum.htm |date=February 5, 2007 }}</ref>

Additionally, for Raiders home games, [[tarpaulin]]s were placed over seldom-sold sections, reducing seating capacity to approximately 65,000. The changes were anticipated to be the first of a multi-stage renovation designed by [[HNTB]] that would have turned the Coliseum into a split-bowl stadium with two levels of mezzanine suites (the peristyle end would have been left as is). However, after the [[1994 Northridge earthquake]], the $93 million was required from government agencies (including the [[Federal Emergency Management Agency]]) to repair earthquake damage, and the renovations demanded by the Raiders were put on hold indefinitely. The Raiders then redirected their efforts toward a proposed stadium at [[Hollywood Park Racetrack]] in [[Inglewood, California|Inglewood]] before electing to move back to the [[Oakland Coliseum]] prior to the [[1995 NFL season]]. In 2000, Bentley Management Group (BMG) was hired as the project manager to complete work at the Coliseum and Sports Arena funded by FEMA. In addition to seismically bracing the Sports Arena while it remained open for events, BMG also coordinated the Coliseum's new press box elevator, various concession stands, restroom improvements, and concrete spalling repairs.

====New videoboard====
In August 2011, construction began on the Coliseum's west end on a new {{convert|6000|sqfoot|adj=on}} [[High-definition video|HD video]] scoreboard, accompanying the existing video scoreboard on the peristyle (east end) of the stadium.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.usctrojans.com/blog/2011/04/coliseum-video-board.html|title=USC Official Athletic Site – USCTrojans.com|website=www.usctrojans.com}}</ref> The video scoreboard officially went into operation on September 3, 2011, at USC football's home opener versus the [[Minnesota Golden Gophers football|University of Minnesota]], with the game being televised on [[ABC College Football|ABC]].

====2018–2019 renovation project====
 
After USC took over the Coliseum master lease in 2013, they began making plans for major renovations needed and as stipulated in the master lease agreement. On October 29, 2015, USC unveiled an estimated $270 million project for a massive renovation and restoration the Coliseum.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://abc7.com/sports/usc-proposes-multi-million-renovation-plan-for-la-coliseum/1058370/ |title=USC PROPOSES ESTIMATED $270-MILLION RENOVATION PLAN FOR LA COLISEUM |publisher=[[KABC-TV|ABC 7 Los Angeles]] |date=October 29, 2015 |access-date=October 31, 2015}}</ref> The upgrades included: replacing all seats in the stadium, construction of a larger and modern [[press box]] (with new box suites, premium lounges, a viewing deck, a V.I.P. section, and the introduction of [[LED]] ribbon boards), adding new aisles and widening some seats, a new [[surround sound|sound system]], restoration and renaming of the peristyle to the Julia and George Argyros Plaza, stadium wide [[Wi-Fi]], two new [[High-definition video|HD video]] [[jumbotron]]s, new [[concession stands]], upgraded entry concourses, new interior and exterior lighting, modernization of plumbing and electrical systems, and a reduction in capacity of about 16,000 seats, with the final total at approximately 78,500 seats.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.usctrojans.com/sports/m-footbl/spec-rel/102915aad.html|title=USC Official Athletic Site – USCTrojans.com|website=www.usctrojans.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Preserving an Icon for Future Victories |url=https://www.dlrgroup.com/work/university-of-southern-california/ |access-date=2022-05-19 |website=DLR Group |language=en-US}}</ref>

The plans were met with mixed reactions from the public.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.espn.com/blog/colleges/usc/post/_/id/20695/coliseum-renovation-a-hot-topic-among-usc-trojans-faithful|title=Coliseum renovation a hot topic among USC Trojans faithful|date=November 2, 2015|website=ESPN.com}}</ref> The [[Los Angeles bid for the 2028 Summer Olympics|Los Angeles 2028]] Olympic bid committee contemplated additional renovations to support its bid.<ref>{{cite web |last=de Artola |first=Alicia |date=August 25, 2015 |title=LA Coliseum To Undergo Major Renovations For Olympic Bid |url=https://reignoftroy.com/2015/08/25/la-coliseum-to-undergo-major-renovations-for-olympic-bid/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150826073940/https://reignoftroy.com/2015/08/25/la-coliseum-to-undergo-major-renovations-for-olympic-bid/ |archive-date=August 26, 2015 |website=Reign of Troy}}</ref>

On January 8, 2018, USC began the project to renovate and improve the Coliseum. The project, which was solely funded by the university, was completed by the 2019 football season, and was the first major upgrade of the stadium in 20 years.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ocregister.com/2018/01/08/construction-starts-on-renovations-to-coliseum-2/|title=USC-driven construction starts on renovations to Coliseum|last=Kaufman|first=Joey|date=January 8, 2018|work=Orange County Register|access-date=January 20, 2018}}</ref><ref name="coliseumrenovation.com"/> The project budget increased from the initial estimate of $270 million to $315 million mainly due to the tight construction schedule.{{r|Cost $315 M}}{{r|Kaufman}}

===Naming rights===
 
On January 29, 2018, [[Chicago]]-based [[United Airlines]] became the stadium's first naming rights partner.<ref name="UA" /><ref name="USC News 2018-03-29">{{cite web|url=http://news.usc.edu/135477/united-airlines-memorial-coliseum-to-be-new-name-for-l-a-landmark/|title=United Airlines Memorial Coliseum to be new name for L.A. landmark|first= Ron |last=Mackovich |date=January 29, 2018|website=USC News}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sportsbusinessdaily.com/Daily/Closing-Bell/2017/05/18/United.aspx|title=United Gets L.A. Coliseum Naming Rights In College-Record Deal|website=www.sportsbusinessdaily.com|date=May 18, 2017 }}</ref> Originally, Memorial Coliseum was to be retained in the name of the stadium by the condition of the Coliseum Commission's requirement in its master lease agreement with USC.<ref name="auto"/> However, veterans groups and the new president of the Coliseum Commission raised concern about the new name,<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.cpr.org/news/story/la-memorial-coliseum-will-take-a-corporate-name-in-august-vets-aren-t-happy-about-it|title=Vets Aren't Happy That LA Memorial Coliseum Will Take A Corporate Name In August|date=May 22, 2019|website=Colorado Public Radio|language=en|access-date=2019-05-23}}</ref> while United did not approve of any change from the stadium and stated that they were willing to step away from the deal.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web|url=https://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-usc-united-coliseum-naming-rights-20190330-story.html|title=The $69-million Coliseum naming-rights deal between USC and United is in limbo|last=Gerber|first=Marisa|date=March 31, 2019|website=[[Los Angeles Times]]|access-date=2019-04-02}}</ref>

On March 29, 2019, USC suggested the name United Airlines Field at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum instead of the planned United Airlines Memorial Coliseum. Although United also did not support this and considered withdrawal,<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.latimes.com/sports/usc/la-sp-united-airlines-coliseum-naming-deal-20190329-story.html|title=United Airlines offers to withdraw from Coliseum naming rights deal with USC|via=[[Los Angeles Times]]|publisher=AP|date=2019-03-29|language=en|access-date=2019-03-30|df=mdy-all}}</ref> the two parties agreed to the name on June 7.<ref name="Cost $315 M">{{cite news|url=https://usctrojans.com/news/2019/6/7/usc-trojans-united-airlines-los-angeles-memorial-coliseum-field-agreement-football.aspx|title=The University of Southern California and United Airlines Agree to Field Naming|work=[[USC Trojans]]|date=June 7, 2019|access-date=June 7, 2019}}</ref>

During Los Angeles Rams home games for the [[2019 Los Angeles Rams season|2019 season]], the stadium reverted to its original name, and all signage indicating "United Airlines Field" was covered due to the franchise's sponsoring partnership with [[American Airlines]].<ref>{{cite web |author=Rich Hammond |url=https://twitter.com/Rich_Hammond/status/1165453155548549120 |title=So when the Rams play here, it's not United Airlines Field. |website=twitter.com |date=August 24, 2019 |access-date=17 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210308131123/https://twitter.com/Rich_Hammond/status/1165453155548549120 |archive-date=8 March 2021 |url-status=live}}</ref>

===Notable events===
====1920s====
[[File:Pomona-USC football game at the Los Angeles Coliseum.jpg|thumb|The inaugural game at the Coliseum between [[Pomona-Pitzer Sagehens football|Pomona]] and [[1923 USC Trojans football team|USC]]]]
On October 6, [[1923 college football season|1923]], [[Pomona-Pitzer Sagehens football|Pomona]] and [[1923 USC Trojans football team|USC]] played in the inaugural game at the Coliseum,<ref name=cusplpo>{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=zMQxAAAAIBAJ&pg=1268%2C543126 |work=Berkeley Daily Gazette |location=California |title=U.S.C. plays Pomona |date=October 6, 1923 |page=7}}</ref> with the Trojans prevailing 23–7. Situated just across the street from Exposition Park, USC agreed to play all its home games at the Coliseum, a circumstance that contributed to the decision to build the arena.

From [[1928 UCLA Bruins football team|1928]] to [[1981 UCLA Bruins football team|1981]], the UCLA Bruins also played home games at the Coliseum. When USC and UCLA [[UCLA–USC rivalry#Football rivalry|played each other]], the "home" team (USC in odd-numbered years, UCLA in even), occupied the north sideline and bench, and its band and rooters sat on the north side of the stadium; the "visiting" team and its contingent took to the south (press box) side of the stadium. Excepting the mid-1950s and 1983–2007, the two teams have worn their home jerseys for the [[UCLA–USC rivalry#Football rivalry|rivalry games]] for the [[Victory Bell (UCLA–USC)|Victory Bell]]. This tradition was renewed in [[2008 UCLA Bruins football team|2008]], even though the two schools now play at different stadiums. UCLA moved to the [[Rose Bowl (stadium)|Rose Bowl]] in [[Pasadena, California|Pasadena]] in [[1982 UCLA Bruins football team|1982]].

====1930s–1940s====
[[File:Cérémonie d&#039;ouverture des Xe JO, à Los Angeles.jpg|thumb|left|1932 Summer Olympics at the Coliseum]]

In 1932, the Coliseum hosted the [[1932 Summer Olympics|Summer Olympic Games]], the first of two Olympic Games hosted at the stadium. The Coliseum served as the site of the [[Field hockey at the 1932 Summer Olympics|field hockey]], [[Gymnastics at the 1932 Summer Olympics|gymnastics]], the [[show jumping]] part of the [[Equestrian at the 1932 Summer Olympics|equestrian]] event, and [[Athletics at the 1932 Summer Olympics|track and field]] events, along with the opening and closing ceremonies.<ref>[http://www.la84foundation.org/6oic/OfficialReports/1932/1932s.pdf 1932 Summer Olympics official report.] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080410231532/http://www.la84foundation.org/6oic/OfficialReports/1932/1932s.pdf |date=April 10, 2008 }} pp. 61–8.</ref> The 1932 games marked the introduction of the [[Olympic Village]], as well as the victory podium.<ref name=NPS-LANDMARK />

[[File:California - Los Angeles - NARA - 23934475.jpg|thumb|[[George S. Patton|Generals George Patton]] and [[Jimmy Doolittle]] at the Coliseum on June 9, 1945<ref>{{cite web |title=Patton and Doolittle |url=https://www.lacoliseum.com/timeline/patton-and-doolittle/ |website=Los Angeles Coliseum}}</ref>]]

The former Cleveland Rams of the National Football League relocated to the Coliseum in [[1946 NFL season|1946]], becoming the Los Angeles Rams; however, the team later relocated again, first to [[Anaheim, California|Anaheim]] in [[1980 NFL season|1980]], then to [[St. Louis, Missouri|St.Louis]] in [[1995 NFL season|1995]], only to move back to Los Angeles in [[2016 NFL season|2016]]. The [[Los Angeles Dons]] of the [[All-America Football Conference]] played in the Coliseum from 1946 to 1949, when the franchise merged with its NFL cousins just before the two leagues merged.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=52HGfXAUdOAC&dq=%22miami+seahawks%22+owner+1946+aafc&pg=PA438 James P. Quirk and Rodney D. Fort, ''Pay Dirt: The Business of Professional Team Sports'', p. 438], {{ISBN|0-691-01574-0}}
</ref> The Coliseum hosted the [[NCAA Men's Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships]] in [[1934 NCAA Track and Field Championships|1934]], [[1939 NCAA Track and Field Championships|1939]], [[1949 NCAA Track and Field Championships|1949]], and [[1955 NCAA Track and Field Championships|1955]]. It also hosted several Coliseum Relays and several Compton-Coliseum Invitational (track and field) events from the 1940s until the 1970s.<ref>LA84, Track and Field Meet Results c1964. [https://la84foundation.on.worldcat.org/search?databaseList=&queryString=Track+and+field+meet+results#/oclc/38451670//] Retrieved Oct. 31, 2020</ref>

====1950s–1960s====
[[File:MemorialColiseumDimensions.svg|thumb|right|Field dimensions for Major League Baseball from 1958 to 1961]]
Among other sporting events held at the Coliseum over the years were [[Major League Baseball]] (MLB) games, which were held when the [[Los Angeles Dodgers|Brooklyn Dodgers]] of the [[National League (baseball)|National League]] relocated to the West Coast in 1958. The Dodgers played here until [[Dodger Stadium]] was completed in time for the [[1962 Major League Baseball season|1962 season]]. The Coliseum was extremely ill-suited even as a temporary baseball venue due to the fundamentally different sizes and shapes of football and baseball fields. A baseball field requires roughly 2.5 times more area than a football gridiron, but the playing surface was just barely large enough to accommodate a baseball diamond. As a result, foul territory was almost nonexistent down the first base line, but was expansive down the third base line, with a very large [[backstop (baseball)|backstop]] for the catcher. Sight lines also left much to be desired; some seats were as far as {{convert|710|ft|m|0}} from the plate. Also, from baseball's point of view, the locker rooms were huge as  they were designed for [[American football|football]] (not baseball) teams.

Even allowing for its temporary status, the corners that were cut in order to shoehorn even an approximation of a baseball field onto the playing surface were especially severe. The left-field fence was set at only {{convert|251|ft|m}} from the plate. This seemed likely to ensure that there would be many "[[Chinese home run]]s", as such short shots were called at the time. Sportswriters began jokingly referring to the improvised park as "O'Malley's Chinese Theatre"<ref name="Mover and Shaker">{{cite book|last1=McCue|first1=Andy|title=Mover and Shaker: Walter O'Malley, the Dodgers, and Baseball's Westward Expansion|date=2014|publisher=University of Nebraska Press|location=Lincoln, Nebraska|isbn=9780803255050|pages=221–22|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vh0KAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA221|access-date=March 18, 2015}}</ref> or "The House that [[Charlie Chan]] Built", drawing protests from the [[Chinese American]] community in the Los Angeles area.<ref name="Close Shave">{{cite book|last1=Szalontai|first1=James D.|title=Close Shave: The Life and Times of Baseball's Sal Maglie|date=2002|publisher=McFarland & Company|location=Jefferson, North Carolina|isbn=9780786411894|page=356|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=sxQ0aNbCw-kC&pg=PA356|access-date=March 18, 2015}}</ref> They also expressed concern that cherished home run records, especially [[Babe Ruth]]'s 1927 seasonal mark of 60, might be in danger. ''[[Sports Illustrated]]'' titled a critical [[editorial]] "Every Sixth Hit a Homer!"<ref name="Mover and Shaker" /> Players also complained, with [[Milwaukee Braves (1953–65)|Milwaukee Braves]] [[ace (baseball)|ace]] [[Warren Spahn]] calling for a rule that would require any home run to travel at least {{convert|300|ft}} before it could be considered a home run.<ref name="2008 NYT story">{{cite news|last=Schwarz|first=Alan|author-link=Alan Schwarz|title=201 Feet to Left, 440 Feet to Right: Dodgers Play the Coliseum|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/26/sports/baseball/26coliseum.html|newspaper=The New York Times|date=March 26, 2008|access-date=March 14, 2015}}</ref>

[[Commissioner of Baseball|Baseball Commissioner]] [[Ford Frick]] ordered the Dodgers to erect a {{convert|42|ft|m|1}} screen in left field to prevent 251-foot pop flies from becoming home runs. Its cables, towers, wires, and girders were in play.<ref name="Cathedrals">{{cite book|last=Lowry|first=Phillip|title=Green Cathedrals|url=https://archive.org/details/greencathedralsu0000lowr_u1c9|url-access=registration|year=2005|publisher=Walker & Company|location=New York City|isbn=0-8027-1562-1}}</ref> The "short porch" in left field looked extremely attractive to batters. In the first week of play during [[1959 Major League Baseball season|the 1959 season]], the media's worst preseason fears seemed to be realized when 24 home runs were hit in the Coliseum, three of them by [[Chicago Cubs]] outfielder [[Lee Walls]], not especially distinguished as a hitter. However, pitchers soon adapted, throwing outside to right-handed hitters, requiring them to pull the bat hard if they wanted to hit toward left. Perhaps no player took better advantage than Dodgers outfielder [[Wally Moon]], who figured out how to hit high fly balls that dropped almost vertically just behind the screen. By the end of the season, he had hit 19 homers, all but five of them in the Coliseum. In recognition, such homers were dubbed "[[Moonshot (baseball)|Moon Shots]]".<ref name="2008 NYT story" />

Nonetheless, the number of home runs alarmed Frick enough that he ordered the Dodgers to build a second screen in the stands, {{convert|333|ft|m|abbr=on}} from the plate. A ball would have had to clear both screens to be a home run; if it cleared the first, it would have been a ground-rule double. However, the Dodgers discovered that the earthquake safety provisions of the Los Angeles building code forbade construction of a second screen.<ref name="2008 NYT story" />

Unable to compel the Dodgers to fix the situation, the major leagues passed a note to Rule 1.04 stating that any stadium constructed after June 1, 1958, must provide a minimum distance of {{convert|325|ft|m|0}} down each foul line. Also, when the expansion [[Los Angeles Angels]] joined the [[American League]] in 1961, Frick vetoed their original request to use the Coliseum as a temporary facility.<ref name="TBT">{{cite book |title=The Team-by-Team Encyclopedia of Major League Baseball |last=Purdy |first=Dennis |year=2006 |publisher=[[Workman Publishing Company|Workman]] |location=New York City |isbn=0-7611-3943-5 }}</ref> This rule was revoked (or perhaps, simply ignored) when the [[Baltimore Orioles]] launched the "retro ballpark" era in 1992, with the opening of [[Oriole Park at Camden Yards]]. With a right field corner of only {{convert|318|ft}}, this fell short. However, baseball fans heartily welcomed the "new/old" style, and all new ballparks since then have been allowed to set their own distances.

[[File:LA Coliseum 1959 World Series.jpg|thumb|The Coliseum during the [[1959 World Series]] (LA Dodgers and Chicago White Sox)]]

Late that season, the screen figured in the National League [[pennant (sports)|pennant]] race. When the Braves were playing the Dodgers at the Coliseum on September 15, 1959, [[Joe Adcock]] hit a ball that cleared the screen but hit a steel girder behind it and got stuck in the mesh. According to  ground rules, this should have been a home run. However, the umpires ruled it a ground-rule double. The fans shook the screen, causing the ball to fall into the seats. The umpires changed the call to a homer, only to rule it a ground-rule double<ref name="Cathedrals"/> while Adcock was left stranded on second. The game was tied at the end of nine innings, and the Dodgers won in the tenth inning.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/LAN/LAN195909150.shtml|title=Milwaukee Braves at Los Angeles Dodgers Box Score, September 15, 1959 - Baseball-Reference.com|website=Baseball-Reference.com}}</ref> At the end of the regular season, the Dodgers and Braves finished in a tie. The Dodgers won the ensuing playoff and went on to win the World Series.

Although less than ideal for baseball due to its poor sight lines and short dimensions (left field at {{convert|251|ft}} and power alleys at {{convert|320|ft|m}}), the Coliseum was ideally suited for large paying crowds. Each of the three games of the 1959 World Series drew over 92,000 fans, with game five drawing 92,706, a [[Major League Baseball attendance records|record]] unlikely to be seriously threatened anytime soon given the smaller seating capacities of today's baseball parks. In May 1959, an exhibition game between the Dodgers and the [[New York Yankees]] in honor of legendary catcher [[Roy Campanella]] drew 93,103, the largest crowd ever to see a baseball game in the Western Hemisphere until a 2008 exhibition game between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the [[Boston Red Sox]] to mark the 50th anniversary of MLB in Los Angeles. The Coliseum also hosted the second [[1959 Major League Baseball All-Star Game (second game)|1959]] [[Major League Baseball All-Star Game|MLB All-Star Game]].

The Coliseum was also the site of [[John F. Kennedy]]'s memorable acceptance speech at the [[1960 Democratic National Convention]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-coliseum-name-change-hahn-gabbard-20190413-story.html|title=Supervisor Janice Hahn and presidential candidate Tulsi Gabbard oppose Coliseum name change|last=Sahagun|first=Louis|date=April 14, 2019|website=[[Los Angeles Times]]|access-date=2019-04-15}}</ref> It was during that speech that Kennedy first used the term "the [[New Frontier]]".

[[File:SuperBowl I - Los Angeles Coliseum.jpg|thumb|Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum during [[Super Bowl I]]]]

The Rams hosted the [[1949 NFL Championship Game|1949]], [[1951 NFL Championship Game|1951]] and [[1955 NFL Championship Game|1955]] NFL championship games at the Coliseum. The Coliseum was also the site of the first NFL–AFL Championship Game in 1967, an event since renamed the [[Super Bowl]]. It also hosted Super Bowl VII in 1973, but future Super Bowls in the Los Angeles region would instead be hosted at the Rose Bowl, which has never had an NFL tenant. The Coliseum was also the site of the NFL Pro Bowl from [[1951 NFL season|1951]] to [[1972 NFL season|1972]], and again in [[1979 NFL season|1979]]. In [[List of American Football League seasons#1960 .5B1.5D|1960]], the [[American Football League]] (AFL)'s [[Los Angeles Chargers]] played at the Coliseum before relocating to San Diego the next year; the team moved back to the L.A. area in [[2017 NFL season|2017]].

The [[United States men's national soccer team]] played its first match at the stadium in 1965, losing to Mexico in a 1966 World Cup qualifier. Also, the Los Angeles Wolves of the [[United Soccer Association]] played their home games at the Coliseum for a year (1967) before moving to the Rose Bowl.

====1970s–1980s====
In June 1970, the first Senior Olympics (known as the Senior Sports International Meet) took place at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.<ref>San Bernardino County Sun, June 23, 1970. [https://www.newspapers.com/image/61274678/?terms=Los%20Angeles%20Coliseum&match=1//] Retrieved Oct. 29, 2020</ref> In July 1972, the Coliseum hosted the "Super Bowl" of [[Motocross]]. The event was the first motocross race held inside a stadium.<ref name="Brobdingnagian In Lilliput">{{cite web |url=http://www.motorcyclistonline.com/features/122_0903_the_first_supercross/index.html |title=The First Supercross |publisher=motorcyclistonline.com |access-date=March 30, 2011 }}</ref> It evolved into the [[American Motorcyclist Association|AMA]] [[Supercross]] championship held in stadiums across the United States and Canada. The Coliseum last hosted the event in 1998.<ref name="ESPN Coliseum of Dirt">[https://www.espn.com/los-angeles/news/story?id=5415906 A Coliseum of dirt] - Brian Kamenetzky, ESPN, 28 July 2010</ref> On August 20, 1972, [[Wattstax]], also known as "Black-Woodstock", took place in the Coliseum. Over 100,000 black residents of Los Angeles attended this concert for African-American pride. Later in 1973, a documentary was released about the concert.

In 1973, [[Evel Knievel]] used the entire distance of the stadium to jump 50 stacked cars. Knievel launched his motorcycle from atop one end of the Coliseum, jumping the cars in the center of the field, and stopping high atop the other end. The jump was broadcast on [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]]'s ''[[Wide World of Sports (American TV program)|Wide World of Sports]]''.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://espn.go.com/abcsports/wwos/e_knievel.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20021207015610/http://espn.go.com/abcsports/wwos/e_knievel.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=December 7, 2002|title=ABC Sports – Wide World of Sports|website=[[ESPN]]}}</ref> Also in 1973, the Coliseum was host to Super Bowl VII, which saw the AFC champion [[Miami Dolphins]] defeat the NFC champion [[Washington Redskins]] 14–7, becoming the only team in NFL history to attain an undefeated season and postseason. The [[Mickey Thompson Entertainment Group]] hosted the first stadium short course off-road race at the Coliseum in 1979.<ref name="Stadium Trucks">{{cite web|url=https://www.motortrend.com/features/robby-gordon-stadium-super-trucks/ |title=Back to the Future |author=Craig Peronne |website=Four Wheeler |date=2013-07-16}}</ref> The event was last held in 1992. 

The Los Angeles Rams played their home games in the Coliseum until 1979, when they moved to [[Anaheim]] prior to the [[1980 NFL season]]. They hosted the NFC Championship Game in 1975 and 1978, in which they lost both times to the [[Dallas Cowboys]] by lopsided margins. The [[Los Angeles Aztecs]] of the [[North American Soccer League (1968–84)|North American Soccer League]] used the Coliseum as their home ground in 1977 and 1981.

In [[1982 NFL season|1982]], the former [[Oakland Raiders]] moved in. The same year, UCLA decided to move its home games to the [[Rose Bowl (stadium)|Rose Bowl]] in [[Pasadena, California|Pasadena]].

The Coliseum was also home to the [[United States Football League|USFL]]'s [[Los Angeles Express (USFL)|Los Angeles Express]] between 1983 and 1985. However, Express games, like those of the Rams and Raiders before them, were frequently swallowed up in the environment. It was so cavernous that even crowds of 25,000 people, a decent-sized crowd by USFL standards, looked sparse. During their run, the Express hosted the longest professional [[American football]] game in history: on June 30, 1984 (a few weeks before the start of the 1984 Summer Olympics), a triple-overtime game between the Express and the [[Michigan Panthers]] that was decided on a 24-yard game-winning touchdown by Mel Gray of the Express, three and a half minutes into the third overtime, to give Los Angeles a 27–21 win. Until 2012, this game marked the only time in the history of professional football that there was more than one kickoff in overtime play in the same game.<ref>[http://www.usfl.info/panthers/ Michigan Panthers] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080111143253/http://www.usfl.info/panthers/ |date=January 11, 2008 }} USFL.info</ref> 

[[File:Olympic Torch Tower of the Los Angeles Coliseum.jpg|thumb|left|240px|The Coliseum during the opening ceremony of the [[1984 Summer Olympics]]]]

The Coliseum was also the site of the [[1982 Individual Speedway World Championship|1982 Speedway World Final]], held for the first and only time in the United States. The event saw [[Newport Beach, California|Newport Beach]] native [[Bruce Penhall]] retain the title he had won in front of 92,500 fans at London's [[Wembley Stadium (1923)|Wembley Stadium]] in [[1981 Individual Speedway World Championship|1981]]. An estimated 40,000 fans were at the Coliseum to see Penhall retain his title before announcing his retirement from [[motorcycle speedway]] to take up an acting role on the television series ''[[CHiPs]]''.

Los Angeles hosted the 1984 Summer Olympics, and the Coliseum became the first stadium to host the [[Summer Olympic Games]] twice, again serving as the primary [[Athletics at the 1984 Summer Olympics|track and field]] venue and as the site of the opening and closing ceremonies.<ref>[http://www.la84foundation.org/6oic/OfficialReports/1984/1984v1pt1.pdf 1984 Summer Olympics official report.] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101102235952/http://www.la84foundation.org/6oic/OfficialReports/1984/1984v1pt1.pdf |date=November 2, 2010 }} Volume 1. Part 1. pp. 72–9.</ref> The Coliseum played host to the California World Music Festival on April 7–8, 1979.<ref>[http://www.wolfgangsvault.com/ted-nugent/poster-art/poster/LAC790407.html California World Music Festival Poster].</ref>

[[The Rolling Stones]] played at the stadium on their 1981 ''Tattoo You'' tour (October 9 and 11),<ref>[[The Rolling Stones American Tour 1981]]</ref> supported by [[George Thorogood]], the [[J. Geils Band]], and [[Prince (musician)|Prince]]. Relatively unknown at the time, Prince was not well-received by fans and booed off the stage the first night. He did not intend to return for the second show until convinced by Stones frontman [[Mick Jagger]] to do so.<ref name="prince">{{cite web|url=https://www.lacoliseum.com/timeline/rolling-stones-america-tour/ |title=The Rolling Stones with Prince |website=Los Angeles Coliseum}}</ref> The Stones played for 90,000 for each of 2 nights in 1981 and a record 90,000 fans for 4 nights in 1989.

[[File:Bochini maradona coliseum.jpg|thumb|right|150px|[[association football|Soccer]] players [[Ricardo Bochini]] and [[Diego Maradona]] at the Coliseum, where [[Argentina national football team|Argentina]] played against [[Mexico national football team|Mexico]] in May 1985]]

The [[Argentina national football team|Argentina national soccer team]] played a friendly match against [[Mexico national football team|Mexico]] on May 14, 1985,<ref>[https://www.rsssf.org/tablesa/arg-intres.html ARGENTINA NATIONAL TEAM ARCHIVE] by Héctor Pelayes on the RSSSF</ref> as part of Argentina's tour of North America prior to the [[1986 FIFA World Cup]] that would be won by the squad managed by [[Carlos Bilardo]]. [[Bruce Springsteen]] and the [[E Street Band]] concluded their [[Born in the U.S.A. Tour]] with four consecutive concerts on September 27, 29, 30, and October 2, 1985, in front of 82,000 people each night. These shows were recorded and eight songs from the show of September 30 appear on their box set ''[[Live 1975–85]]''. The September 27 show was released through Springsteen's website in 2019.

[[U2]] played at the stadium during leg three of their breakout [[The Joshua Tree Tour|Joshua Tree tour]] on November 17 and 18, 1987. They later returned to the stadium for their [[PopMart Tour]] on June 21, 1997. Los Angeles natives [[Mötley Crüe]] played at the stadium on December 13, 1987, during the second leg of their [[Girls, Girls, Girls (Mötley Crüe album)|Girls, Girls, Girls]] World Tour, with fellow Los Angeles band [[Guns N' Roses]] as the opening act. At that time, Mötley Crüe was one of the most popular and successful acts in the world, while Guns N' Roses was one of the largest up-and-coming acts. The latter would later return for four shows in October 1989 as the opening act for the Rolling Stones, then again on September 27, 1992, as part of their infamous [[Guns N' Roses/Metallica Stadium Tour|co-headlining tour]] with [[Metallica]].

The stadium played host to The [[Monsters of Rock Tour 1988|Monsters of Rock]] Festival Tour, featuring [[Van Halen]], [[Scorpions (band)|Scorpions]], [[Dokken]], Metallica, and [[Kingdom Come (German band)|Kingdom Come]], on July 24, 1988. A second show was planned to take place on July 23, but was later canceled. The stadium also played host to [[Amnesty International]]'s [[Human Rights Now!]] Benefit Concert on September 21, 1988, headlined by [[Sting (musician)|Sting]] and [[Peter Gabriel]] and also featuring [[Bruce Springsteen]] and the E Street Band, [[Tracy Chapman]], [[Youssou N'Dour]], and [[Joan Baez]].

====1990s–2000s====
The Raiders began looking to move out of the Coliseum as early as 1986. In addition to the delays in renovating the stadium, they never drew well; even after they won [[Super Bowl XVIII]] in 1984, they had trouble filling it. The NFL scheduled all of the Raiders' appearances on [[Monday Night Football]] as road games since the Los Angeles market would have been blacked out due to the Coliseum not being sold out. Finally, in 1995, the Raiders left Los Angeles and returned to [[Oakland, California|Oakland]], leaving the Coliseum without a professional football tenant for the first time since the close of World War II.

In the mid-1990s, the Coliseum was planned to be the home of the Los Angeles Blaze, a charter franchise of the [[United Baseball League (proposed)|United League]] (UL) which was planned to be a third league of [[Major League Baseball]]. In 2000, the [[Los Angeles Dragons (American football)|Los Angeles Dragons]] of the [[Spring Football League]] used the Coliseum as their home stadium. The [[Legends Football League]] began as a halftime spectacular known as the [[Lingerie Bowl]]. The first three years (2004, 2005, 2006) were played at the Coliseum. From 2009 to 2011, a couple of [[Los Angeles Temptation]] games were played in the Coliseum. Beginning in 2015, the Temptation resumed playing at the Coliseum after three seasons at [[Citizens Business Bank Arena]] in Ontario.

The [[1991 CONCACAF Gold Cup]] soccer tournament was also held at the Coliseum. The [[United States men's national soccer team|United States national team]] beat [[Honduras national football team|Honduras]] in the final. The Coliseum also staged the final match of the Gold Cup in [[1996 CONCACAF Gold Cup|1996]], [[1998 CONCACAF Gold Cup|1998]] and [[2000 CONCACAF Gold Cup|2000]]. In October 2000, the United States played its last match at the stadium in a friendly versus Mexico. Since then, the team has preferred the [[Rose Bowl Stadium]] and [[Dignity Health Sports Park]] as home stadiums in Greater Los Angeles. The stadium hosted the [[K-1 Dynamite!! USA]] [[mixed martial arts]] event. The promoters claimed that 54,000 people attended the event, which would have set a new attendance record for a mixed martial arts event in the United States; however, other officials estimated the crowd between 20,000 and 30,000.<ref>{{cite news|first=Steve|last=Springer|url=https://www.latimes.com/sports/college/usc/la-sp-mma3jun03,1,2027204.story|title=Morton doesn't last one round|newspaper=Los Angeles Times|date=June 3, 2007}}</ref>

In May 1959, the Dodgers had hosted an exhibition game against the reigning [[World Series]] champion [[New York Yankees]] at the Coliseum, a game which drew over 93,000 people. The Yankees won that game 6–2. As part of their West Coast 50th anniversary celebration in 2008, the Dodgers again hosted an exhibition game against the reigning World Series champions, the [[Boston Red Sox]].<ref name=LAT111407>{{cite news|first=Dylan|last=Hernandez|url=https://www.latimes.com/sports/la-spw-dodgers15nov15,1,3897689.story|archive-url=https://archive.today/20081208131725/http://www.latimes.com/sports/la-spw-dodgers15nov15,1,3897689.story|url-status=dead|archive-date=December 8, 2008|title=Dodgers to play host to Red Sox in March|newspaper=Los Angeles Times|date=November 14, 2007}}</ref> On March 29, 2008, the middle game of a three-game set in Los Angeles was also won by the visitors by the relatively low score of 7–4, given the layout of the field; Red Sox catcher [[Jason Varitek]] had joked that he expected scores in the 80s.

As previously mentioned in the 1950s–1960s section, during 1958–1961, the distance from home plate to the left field foul pole was {{convert|251|ft|m|1}} with a {{convert|42|ft|m|0|adj=on}} screen running across the close part of left field. Due to the intervening addition of another section of seating rimming the field, the 2008 grounds crew had much less space to work with, and the result was a left field foul line only {{convert|abbr=on|201|ft|m| long|1|adj=mid}}, with a {{convert|60|ft|m|0|adj=on}} screen, which one Boston writer dubbed the "Screen Monster".<ref>[http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20080329&content_id=2466093&vkey=news_mlb&fext=.jsp&c_id=mlb "Coliseum configuration confounding"], March 29, 2008, MLB.com. Retrieved on November 10, 2012.</ref> Even at that distance, {{convert|201|ft}} is also {{convert|abbr=on|49|ft|m|1}} short of the minimum legal home-run distance. This being an exhibition game, balls hit over the {{convert|abbr=on|60|ft|m|0}} temporary screen were still counted as home runs. There were only a couple of home runs over the screen, as pitchers adjusted (and [[Manny Ramirez]] did not play).<ref>[https://www.usatoday.com/sports/scores108/108089/MLB803093.htm MLB803093], USAToday.com.</ref>
A diagram (<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20081013194101/http://www.latimes.com/sports/baseball/mlb/dodgers/la-sp-coliseum29mar29-fl,1,6601069.flash], LAtimes.com</ref>) illustrated the differences in the dimensions between 1959 and 2008:
:2008 – LF {{convert|abbr=on|201|ft|m|1}} – LCF {{convert|abbr=on|280|ft|m|1}} – CF {{convert|abbr=on|380|ft|m|1}} – RCF {{convert|abbr=on|352|ft|m|1}} – RF {{convert|abbr=on|300|ft|m|1}}
:1959 – LF {{convert|abbr=on|251|ft|m|1}} – LCF {{convert|abbr=on|320|ft|m|1}} – CF {{convert|abbr=on|417|ft|m|1}} – RCF {{convert|abbr=on|375|ft|m|1}} – RF {{convert|abbr=on|300|ft|m|1}}
A sellout crowd of 115,300 was announced,<ref>[https://www.latimes.com/sports/baseball/mlb/dodgers/la-sp-coliseum28.feb28,1,6195168.story 6195168.story], LAtimes.com.</ref> which set a [[Guinness World Record]] for attendance at a baseball game, breaking the record set at a [[1956 Summer Olympics]] baseball demonstration game between teams from the US and Australia at the [[Melbourne Cricket Ground]].

The Coliseum formerly hosted the major U.S. [[electronic dance music]] festival, the [[Electric Daisy Carnival]]. It last hosted the event in 2010; following the drug-related death of an underage attendee at EDC that year, the festival's organizer [[Insomniac Events]] was blacklisted from hosting future events at the venue, and it subsequently moved to [[Las Vegas Motor Speedway]] in 2011.<ref name="laweekly-edcdeath">{{cite web|title='EDC' Raver Teen Sasha Rodriguez Died From Ecstasy Use|url=http://www.laweekly.com/news/edc-raver-teen-sasha-rodriguez-died-from-ecstasy-use-2386344|website=LA Weekly|date=August 31, 2010 |access-date=January 4, 2017}}</ref><ref name=lat-fataltoll>{{cite news |title=A fatal toll on concertgoers as raves boost cities' income| url= https://www.latimes.com/local/la-me-coliseum-rave-deaths-20130203-story.html#page=1| work =Los Angeles Times |date = February 3, 2013}}</ref><ref name=trib-edcladeath>{{cite news| title= Man dies at Electric Daisy Carnival in Las Vegas|url= https://www.chicagotribune.com/2014/06/22/man-dies-at-electric-daisy-carnival-in-las-vegas/ |date =June 22, 2014 | work=Chicago Tribune}}</ref><ref name=nyt-caution>{{cite news| title=A Bit of Caution Beneath the Thump | author = Jon Pareles | url= https://www.nytimes.com/2014/09/01/arts/music/electric-zoo-returns-under-watchful-eyes.html | work =New York Times|date = September 1, 2014}}</ref><ref name=wsj-clampdown>{{cite news|title=Electric Zoo to Clamp Down on Drugs This Year|url =https://www.wsj.com/articles/electric-zoo-to-clamp-down-on-drugs-this-year-1409278227| work=Wall Street Journal| date=August 28, 2014}}</ref> In 2003, select events of the [[X Games]] IX action sports event were held at the Coliseum. In 2010, the [[X Games XVI]] were held at the venue.<ref name="ESPN Coliseum of Dirt" />

In 2006, the Coliseum Commission focused on signing a long-term lease with USC, who offered to purchase the facility from the state but was turned down. After some at-time contentious negotiations, with the university threatening to move to the Rose Bowl in late 2007, the two sides signed a 25-year lease in May 2008, giving the Coliseum Commission 8% of USC's ticket sales, approximately $1.5 million a year, but committing the agency to a list of renovations.<ref name="WSJ062408">{{cite news|first=Matthew|last=Futterman|url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB121427510765899201?mod=residential_real_estate|title=Landmark's Name Is up for Sale|newspaper=Wall Street Journal|date=June 24, 2008|access-date=June 25, 2008}}</ref> In 2006, Mexican band [[RBD]] held a concert during their U.S. tour before 70,000 people, with tickets sold out in less than 30 minutes. It was the highest attended event by a Mexican act since [[Los Bukis]]' 1993 and 1996 concerts.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.lacoliseumlive.com/joomla/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=60&Itemid=68 |title=The Coliseum History |access-date=June 13, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131019134742/http://www.lacoliseumlive.com/joomla/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=60&Itemid=68 |archive-date=October 19, 2013 |url-status=dead |df=mdy-all }}</ref>

On June 23, 2008, the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Commission announced that they were putting the [[naming rights]] of the Coliseum on the market, predicting a deal valued at $6 million to $8 million a year.<ref name=WSJ062408 /> The funds would go towards financing over $100 million in renovations over the next decade, including a new video board, bathrooms, concession areas, and locker rooms.<ref name=WSJ062408 /> Additional seating was included in the renovation plans which increased the Coliseum's [[seating capacity]] to 93,607 in September 2008.<ref name="media-newswire.com">{{cite web|url=http://media-newswire.com/release_1072461.html|title=Media-Newswire.com – Press Release Distribution – PR Agency|first=Media-Newswire.com – Press Release|last=Distribution|website=media-newswire.com}}</ref><ref name="www.dailytrojan.com">[http://media.www.dailytrojan.com/media/storage/paper679/news/2008/09/09/News/Coliseum.To.Open.With.Renovations-3421214.shtml www.dailytrojan.com] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080915030708/http://media.www.dailytrojan.com/media/storage/paper679/news/2008/09/09/News/Coliseum.To.Open.With.Renovations-3421214.shtml |date=September 15, 2008 }}</ref>
[[File:2008-0913-USCOSU-Pan01.JPG|center|800px|thumb|Panorama of Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum before renovations, the first game under the 2008 seating configuration: a capacity 93,607 crowd attends Ohio State at USC]]

On June 17, 2009, the Coliseum was the terminus for the [[Los Angeles Lakers]]' 2009 [[National Basketball Association|NBA]] championship victory parade. A crowd of over 90,000 attended the festivities, in addition to the throngs of supporters who lined the {{convert|2|mi|adj=on}} parade route. The Coliseum peristyle was redesigned in purple and gold regalia to commemorate the team, and the Lakers' court was transported from [[Staples Center]] to the Coliseum field to act as the stage. Past parades had ended at Staples Center, but due to the newly constructed [[L.A. Live]] complex, space was limited around the arena.<ref>{{cite news| url=https://www.latimes.com/sports/la-sp-lakers-security18-2009jun18,0,7785141.story | work=Los Angeles Times | first=Andrew | last=Blankstein | title=Lakers parade goes off mostly without a hitch | date=June 18, 2009}}</ref>

====2010s–present====

[[File:Rammstein Engel.jpg|thumb|alt=View of the crowd lighting up the stadium with their cell phones during Rammstein's September 23rd 2022 performance at LA Coliseum. |View of the crowd during [[Rammstein]]'s performance at LA Coliseum, September 2022]]

On July 30, 2011, the LA Rising festival with [[Rage Against the Machine]], [[Muse (band)|Muse]], [[Rise Against]], [[Lauryn Hill]], [[Immortal Technique]], and [[El Gran Silencio]] was hosted at the Coliseum. [[Roger Waters]] continued his [[The Wall Live (2010–2013)|The Wall Live]] at the stadium on 19 May 2012 to a sold-out crowd. On April 27, 2013, the stadium hosted a round of the [[Stadium Super Trucks]] off-road race.

On September 13, 2014, the Coliseum hosted the fifth-place game, third-place game and final of the [[2014 Copa Centroamericana]] in front of 41,969 spectators. In August 2015, the Coliseum hosted the opening and closing ceremonies for the [[2015 Special Olympics World Summer Games]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.specialolympics.org/Press/2015/LA2015_Special_Olympics_World_Games_Closing_Ceremony.aspx |title=Carly Rae Jepsen, O.A.R. and Andra Day to Headline the LA2015 Special Olympics World Games Closing Ceremony on August 2 |website=specialolympics.org |access-date=January 24, 2016}}</ref> On June 16, 2018, [[Shannon Briggs]] hosted the first press conference for a [[KSI vs Logan Paul|celebrity boxing event]] with [[KSI]], Deji, [[Jake Paul]], and [[Logan Paul]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Logan Paul and KSI Nearly Come to Blows at Superfight News Conference |url=https://www.tmz.com/2018/06/16/logan-paul-ksi-super-fight-news-conference-live-stream/ |access-date=2022-12-25 |website=TMZ |date=June 16, 2018 |language=en}}</ref>

On September 14, 2021, the [[NASCAR Cup Series]] announced that the annual [[Busch Clash]] would take place at the Coliseum, at a purpose-made quarter-mile track.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Bianchi|first=Jordan|title=NASCAR's 2022 schedule shakes up playoff tracks, adds Gateway in June: Sources|work=The New York Times |url=https://theathletic.com/news/nascars-2022-schedule-shakes-up-playoff-tracks-adds-gateway-in-june-sources/Y5IvbNlRKkCJ|access-date=2021-09-14|language=en}}</ref> On December 9, 2021, [[Kanye West]] performed a benefit concert for the long-imprisoned [[Larry Hoover]] with special guest [[Drake (musician)|Drake]] at the Coliseum. On September 23 and 24, 2022 German band [[Rammstein]] performed two shows as part of the North American leg of their [[Rammstein Stadium Tour]]

On December 10, 2022, [[Deadmau5]] and [[Kaskade]] performed as their collaborative project [[Kx5]] to a crowd of 50,000. Making it the largest ever one-day EDM headlining event in North America at the time.

====Return of the Los Angeles Rams 2016–19====
[[File:LA Memorial Coliseum aerial view, August 2017.jpg|left|thumb|Aerial view of the Coliseum with the Los Angeles Rams field; BMO Stadium is being built in the background, August 2017]]

On January 12, 2016, the NFL gave permission for the [[History of the St. Louis Rams|St. Louis Rams]] to relocate back to Los Angeles. The Rams resumed play at the Coliseum while awaiting completion of SoFi Stadium in Inglewood.<ref>{{cite web|last=Hanzus|first=Dan|title=Rams to relocate to L.A.; Chargers first option to join|url=https://www.nfl.com/news/rams-to-relocate-to-l-a-chargers-first-option-to-join-0ap3000000621645|website=NFL.com|publisher=National Football League|date=January 12, 2016|access-date=January 13, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Rams to Return to Los Angeles|url=http://www.stlouisrams.com/news-and-events/article-1/Rams-to-Return-to-Los-Angeles/802b4e16-671e-4864-97b6-943115cdc4cf|publisher=St. Louis Rams|date=January 12, 2016|access-date=January 13, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160113032719/http://www.stlouisrams.com/news-and-events/article-1/Rams-to-Return-to-Los-Angeles/802b4e16-671e-4864-97b6-943115cdc4cf|archive-date=January 13, 2016|url-status=dead|df=mdy-all}}</ref>

On August 13, 2016, the Coliseum hosted its first NFL game at the stadium since 1994, as the Rams hosted the [[2016 Dallas Cowboys season|Dallas Cowboys]] at a preseason game in front of 89,140 people. On September 18, 2016, the Coliseum hosted the first Rams regular season home game since 1979, against the [[2016 Seattle Seahawks season|Seattle Seahawks]] following an impromptu pregame concert from the [[Red Hot Chili Peppers]]. The Rams would boast a 9–3 victory over Seattle in front of a crowd of 91,046 in attendance.

[[File:RamsvSeahawks2019.jpg|right|thumb|The Rams manage to get a home victory against the Seattle Seahawks during the 2019 season, their final season at the Coliseum before the opening of Sofi Stadium]]

On January 6, 2018, the Coliseum hosted its first Rams playoff game since the 1978 NFC Championship game, a 26–13 wild card round loss to the defending NFC champion [[2017 Atlanta Falcons season|Atlanta Falcons]]. On November 19, 2018, the Coliseum hosted its first ''[[Monday Night Football]]'' game since 1985, with the Rams taking on the [[2018 Kansas City Chiefs season|Kansas City Chiefs]]. That game, which was originally scheduled to be played at [[Estadio Azteca]] in Mexico City that night, was moved to the Coliseum due to poor field conditions at the former. The Rams won the game, [[2018 Kansas City Chiefs–Los Angeles Rams game|54–51]] in the highest-scoring game in ''Monday Night Football'' history.

On January 12, 2019, the Coliseum hosted its most recent NFL playoff game, where the Rams defeated the [[2018 Dallas Cowboys season|Dallas Cowboys]] 30–22 in an NFC Divisional Playoff. The most recent [[NBC Sunday Night Football|Sunday Night Football]] game played at the Coliseum was on December 8, 2019, in which the Rams defeated the rival [[2019 Seattle Seahawks season|Seattle Seahawks]] 28–12 in front of a crowd of over 77,000 people.

On December 29, 2019, the Rams played their final game at the Coliseum, beating the [[2019 Arizona Cardinals season|Arizona Cardinals]] 31–24 before moving to SoFi Stadium in time for the [[2020 NFL season]]. The Rams finished with a record of 16–14 playing their home games at the Coliseum in their second stint as tenants from 2016 through 2019. On February 16, 2022, three days after winning [[Super Bowl LVI]], the Rams hosted their victory celebration before thousands of fans in front of the Coliseum's peristyle end.

====2028 Summer Olympics====
{{Further|2028 Summer Olympics}}
Los Angeles will host the Summer Olympics in 2028.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://la28.org|title=LA 2028|website=www.la28.org}}</ref> During the [[131st IOC Session]], the International Olympic Committee officially awarded the 2028 Summer Olympics to Los Angeles on July 31, 2017.<ref name=":0">{{Cite news|url=https://www.latimes.com/sports/sportsnow/la-sp-2028-olympics-deal-20170731-story.html|title=Details emerge in deal to bring 2028 Summer Olympics to Los Angeles|last=Wharton|first=David|date=July 31, 2017|newspaper=[[Los Angeles Times]]|access-date=July 31, 2017|language=en-US|issn=0458-3035}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.olympic.org/news/ioc-makes-historic-decision-by-simultaneously-awarding-olympic-games-2024-to-paris-and-2028-to-los-angeles|title=IOC MAKES HISTORIC DECISION BY SIMULTANEOUSLY AWARDING OLYMPIC GAMES 2024 TO PARIS AND 2028 TO LOS ANGELES|date=September 13, 2017|publisher=Olympic.org}}</ref> The Coliseum will be the first stadium to host events for three different Olympic games.<ref name="USC News 2018-03-29"/>

====NASCAR====
{{Further|Busch Light Clash at The Coliseum}}
On February 6, 2022, NASCAR hosted a pre-season NASCAR Cup Series exhibition event. The temporary {{convert|.25|mi|m|0|adj=on|abbr=off|sp=us}} track marked the series' first race of any kind on a quarter-mile since 1971 and was won by [[Joey Logano]]. [[Martin Truex Jr.]] won the 2023 running of the event, followed by [[Denny Hamlin]] in 2024. The event was moved to [[Bowman Gray Stadium]] in [[Winston-Salem, North Carolina]] in 2025.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nascar.com/news-media/2024/08/17/cup-series-2025-season-opening-clash-exhibition-bowman-gray-stadium/|title=Season-opening Clash exhibition heads to Bowman Gray Stadium in 2025|first=Zack|last=Albert|date=August 17, 2024|access-date=August 17, 2024}}</ref>

==Seating and attendance==
[[File:LA Memorial Coliseum aerial.jpg|thumb|right|240px|An aerial view of the Coliseum, November 2008]]

===Seating capacity (college football)===
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! scope="row" style="{{CollegePrimaryStyle|USC Trojans|color=white}}"| Years
! scope="row" style="{{CollegePrimaryStyle|USC Trojans|color=white}}"| Capacity
|-
! scope="row" style="{{CollegeSecondaryStyle|USC Trojans }} | 1930
| 75,144
|- 
! scope="row" style="{{CollegeSecondaryStyle|USC Trojans }} | 1934
| 101,574 
|-
! scope="row" style="{{CollegeSecondaryStyle|USC Trojans}} | 1939 
| 105,000 
|-
! scope="row" style="{{CollegeSecondaryStyle|USC Trojans  }}| 1946
| 103,000 
|-5667644500433 (ghostertyoufert9088765564334532)Trojan}"|1276-7788
! scope="row" style="{{CollegeSecondaryStyle|USC Trojans  }}| 1947–1964
| 101,671 
|-
! scope="row" style="{{CollegeSecondaryStyle|USC Trojan }}| 1965–1966
| 97,500
|- 
! scope="row" style="{{CollegeSecondaryStyle|USC Trojans  }}| 1967–1975
| 94,500
|-
! scope="row" style="{{CollegeSecondaryStyle|USC Trojans   }}| 1976–1982
| 92,604 
|-
! scope="row" style="{{CollegeSecondaryStyle|USC Trojans  }}| 1983–1995
| 92,516 
|-
! scope="row" style="{{CollegeSecondaryStyle|USC Trojans }} | 1996–2007
| 92,000 
|-
! scope="row" style="{{CollegeSecondaryStyle|USC Trojans  }}| 2008–2017
| 93,607 
|-
! scope="row" style="{{CollegeSecondaryStyle|USC Trojans  }}| 2018
| 78,500 
|-
! scope="row" style="{{CollegeSecondaryStyle|USC Trojans  }}| 2019–present
| 77,500 
|}
:<small>Source:Ballparks.com<ref name=autogenerated1>{{cite web|url=http://www.ballparks.com/baseball/national/laxcol.htm|title=Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum|website=www.ballparks.com}}</ref></small>

===Attendance records===

==== 1963 Billy Graham Crusade ====
The largest gathering in the Coliseum's history was a [[Billy Graham]] crusade on September 8, 1963, with 134,254<ref>{{Cite web|title = Coliseum History {{!}} LA Coliseum|url = http://www.lacoliseum.com/index.php/coliseum-history/|website = www.lacoliseum.com|access-date = December 25, 2015}}</ref> in attendance, noted by the Coliseum's website as an all-time record. With the renovations of 1964, the capacity of the Coliseum was reduced to about 93,000 for future events.

====Sporting events====
{{more citations needed|section|date=August 2019}}
;College football
Records differ between the 2006 USC football [[media guide]] and 2006 UCLA football media guide. (This may be due to only keeping records for "home" games until the 1950s.) The USC Media guide lists the top five record crowds as:
* 1. 104,953 — vs. Notre Dame 1947 (USC home game; Highest attendance for a football game in the Coliseum)
* 2. 103,303 — vs. UCLA 1939 (USC home game)
* 3. 103,000 — vs. USC 1945 (UCLA home game)
* 4. 102,548 — vs. USC 1954 (UCLA home game)
* 5. 102,050 — vs. UCLA 1947 (USC home game)

The UCLA Media guide does not list the 1939 game against USC, and only lists attendance for the second game in 1945 for Coliseum attendance records. These are the top three listed UCLA record Coliseum crowds:
* 1. 102,548 — vs. USC 1954 (UCLA home game)
* 2. 102,050 — vs. USC 1947 (UCLA home game)
* 3. 100,333 — vs. USC 1945 (USC home game; 1945's second of two meetings)
The largest crowd to attend a USC football game against an opponent other than UCLA or Notre Dame was 96,130 for a November 10, 1951, contest
with [[Stanford Cardinal football|Stanford University]]. The largest attendance for a UCLA contest against a school other than USC was 92,962 for the November 1, 1946, game with [[Saint Mary's Gaels|Saint Mary's College of California]].

;National Football League
The Los Angeles Rams played the San Francisco 49ers before an NFL record attendance of 102,368 on November 10, 1957. This was a record paid attendance that stood until September 2009 at [[Cowboys Stadium]], though the overall NFL regular season record was broken in a 2005 regular season game between the Arizona Cardinals and [[San Francisco 49ers]] at [[Azteca Stadium]] in Mexico City.<ref>{{cite news|first=Tom|last=Weir|url=https://www.usatoday.com/sports/football/games/2005-10-03-cardinals-niners_x.htm|title=Cardinals deep-six 49ers in historic tilt in Mexico|date=October 3, 2005|newspaper=USA Today|quote=Total attendance for record regular season game in Mexico City Azteca Stadium is 103,467 breaking the record of 102,368 who saw the Rams play the 49ers on Nov. 10, 1957, at the Los Angeles Coliseum}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|first=Tom|last=Weir|url=https://www.usatoday.com/sports/football/nfl/2005-09-29-nfl-mexico-cover_x.htm|title=Mexico gets ready for football, not futbol|date=September 25, 2005|newspaper=USA Today|quote=A 1994 Houston-Dallas exhibition drew a still-standing NFL record 112,376 to Estadio Azteca}}</ref> Both records were broken on September 20, 2009, at the first regular season game at [[Cowboys Stadium]] in [[Arlington, Texas]], between the Dallas Cowboys and [[New York Giants]].

In 1958 the Rams averaged 83,680 for their six home games, including 100,470 for the [[Chicago Bears]] and 100,202 for the [[Baltimore Colts]]. In their 13 seasons in Los Angeles the Raiders on several occasions drew near-capacity crowds to the Coliseum. The largest were 91,505 for an October 25, 1992, game with the Dallas Cowboys, 91,494 for a September 29, 1991, contest with the San Francisco 49ers, and 90,380 on January 1, 1984, for a playoff game with the [[Pittsburgh Steelers]].

The Coliseum hosted the first AFL–NFL World Championship Game, later called the Super Bowl. The January 15, 1967, game, pitting the [[Green Bay Packers]] against the [[Kansas City Chiefs]], attracted 61,946 fans—a lower-than anticipated crowd (by comparison, a regular-season game between the Packers and Rams a month earlier drew 72,418). For Super Bowl VII in 1973, which matched the [[Miami Dolphins]] against the [[Washington Redskins]], the attendance was a near-capacity 90,182, a record that would stand until [[Super Bowl XI]] at the [[Rose Bowl (stadium)|Rose Bowl]]. The 1975 NFC Championship Game between the Los Angeles Rams and Dallas Cowboys had an attendance of 88,919, the highest for an NFC Championship Game. The 1983 AFC Championship Game between the Raiders and Seattle Seahawks then attracted 91,445, still the largest crowd for a conference championship game since the conference-title format began with the 1970 season.

The Rams' first NFL game at the Coliseum since 1979, after spending fifteen years at Anaheim Stadium and then twenty-one seasons in St. Louis, a pre-season contest against the Cowboys on August 13, 2016, drew a crowd of 89,140. The team's first regular-season home game, on September 18 against the Seattle Seahawks, attracted 91,046—the largest attendance for a Rams game at the Coliseum since 1974.

;Major League Baseball
Contemporary baseball guides listed the theoretical baseball seating capacity as 92,500. Thousands of east-end seats were very far from home plate, and were not sold unless needed. The largest regular season attendance was 78,672, the Dodgers' home debut in the Coliseum, against the [[San Francisco Giants]] on April 18, 1958. The May 7, 1959, exhibition game between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the [[1958 World Series]] Champion New York Yankees, in honor of disabled former Dodgers catcher [[Roy Campanella]], drew 93,103, which was a Major League Baseball record prior to 2008.

All three Dodgers home games in the 1959 World Series with the [[Chicago White Sox]] exceeded 90,000 attendance. Game 5 drew 92,706 fans, a major league record for a non-exhibition game. The attendance for the exhibition game on March 29, 2008, between the Boston Red Sox and the Los Angeles Dodgers, was 115,300,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://losangeles.dodgers.mlb.com/news/boxscore.jsp?gid=2008_03_29_bosmlb_lanmlb_1&c_id=mlb|title=Boxscore: Boston vs. LA Dodgers - March 29, 2008|website=Major League Baseball|access-date=March 30, 2008|archive-date=March 25, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200325234021/http://losangeles.dodgers.mlb.com/news/boxscore.jsp?gid=2008_03_29_bosmlb_lanmlb_1&c_id=mlb|url-status=dead}}</ref> setting a new [[Guinness World Record]] for attendance at a baseball game. The previous record of an estimated 114,000 was in the [[1956 Summer Olympics]] at [[Melbourne Cricket Ground]] for an exhibition game between teams from branches of American Military Forces and Australia.

;Soccer

The first official soccer match at the Coliseum was an international fixture between the United States and Mexico that took place on March 7, 1965, as part of [[1966 FIFA World Cup qualification (CONCACAF)|regional World Cup qualification]]. The teams drew 2–2 in front of 22,570 spectators.<ref>{{cite news |date=March 8, 1965 |title=U.S. Fortunate to Gain Mexican Soccer Standoff |page=1 |work=Los Angeles Times |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/34494352/us_fortunate_to_gain_mexican_soccer/ |via=[[Newspapers.com]] |access-date=August 2, 2019}} {{free access}}</ref>

Although the stadium represents the second most active venue in the history of the US national team (after [[Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium|Robert F. Kennedy]]), the USMNT has only played 22 matches in the Coliseum, the most recent in 2000. Of these, 11 were in official competition (three from [[FIFA World Cup qualification|World Cup qualifiers]], seven from the [[CONCACAF Gold Cup]] and one from the [[North American Nations Cup]]) and 11 friendlies, all category "A". The team won their first absolute title by finishing as champion of the [[1991 CONCACAF Gold Cup]], defeating their counterpart from Honduras on penalties.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.rsssf.org/tablesu/usa-intres.html|title=USA - International Results|website=RSSSF|author=Dave Litterer}}</ref>

However, the most active national team at the Memorial Coliseum is Mexico, which has played 86 matches in the building: 14 in official competition (3 in the World Cup qualifying round, 9 in the [[CONCACAF Gold Cup|Gold Cup]] and two from the [[North American Nations Cup]]), including the Gold Cup finals from [[1996 CONCACAF Gold Cup|1996]] and [[1998 CONCACAF Gold Cup|1998]], in which they won 2–0 against [[Brasil national football team|Brasil]] and 1–0 against United States respectively; and 72 friendlies (50 of Category "A" – against other senior teams – 6 of the so-called "B" selection and 16 against both Mexican and foreign clubs). LA Memorial Coliseum is the second most used venue by the Mexican national team, after only the team's official headquarters at [[Estadio Azteca]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.rsssf.org/tablesm/mex-intres.html|title=Mexico - International Results|website=[[RSSSF]]}}</ref> The stadium hosted the [[Los Angeles Wolves]] during the inaugural season of the United Soccer Association in 1967, which culminated in the [[USA Final 1967|final championship]] at the Coliseum. The [[Los Angeles Toros]] of the [[National Professional Soccer League (1967)|National Professional Soccer League]] also played at the Coliseum in 1967, but were moved to San Diego the following season before folding.<ref>{{cite news |last=Digiovanna |first=Mike |date=January 22, 1986 |title=Gaining A Foothold |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1986-01-22-sp-31581-story.html |work=Los Angeles Times |access-date=August 2, 2019}}</ref> The Los Angeles Aztecs of the North American Soccer League played at the Coliseum in 1977 and 1981 between stints at the Rose Bowl.<ref>{{cite news |last=Baker |first=Chris |date=January 31, 1981 |title=Aztecs Are Going Back to Coliseum |page=8 |work=Los Angeles Times |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/34494426/aztecs_are_going_back_to_coliseum/ |via=Newspapers.com |access-date=August 2, 2019}} {{free access}}</ref>

==Sculpture and commemorations==
A pair of life-sized [[bronze]] nude statues of male and female athletes atop a {{Convert|20000|lb|kg|abbr=off|sp=us|adj=on}} post-and-lintel frame formed the ''Olympic Gateway'' created by [[Robert Graham (sculptor)|Robert Graham]] for the 1984 games. The statues, modeled on American [[water polo]] player [[Terry Schroeder]] and American-Guyanese long jumper [[Jennifer Innis]],<ref name="Crowsnest">{{cite news |last=Crowe |first=Jerry |title=Schroeder learns to grin and bare the naked truth |series=Crowe's nest column |work=Los Angeles Times |date=December 11, 2006 |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2006-dec-11-sp-crowe11-story.html |access-date=February 6, 2014}}</ref> were noted for their anatomical accuracy. A decorative facade bearing the Olympic rings was erected in front of the peristyle for the 1984 games, and the structure remained in place through that year's football season. The stadium rim and tunnels were repainted in alternating pastel colors that were part of architect [[Jon Jerde]]'s graphic design for the games; these colors remained until 1987.

===Court of Honor plaques===
"Commemorating outstanding persons or events, athletic or otherwise, that have had a definite impact upon the history, glory, and growth of the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum"<ref>[https://www.lacoliseum.com/memorial-court-of-honor/ "Memorial Court of Honor, List of Honoree Plaques"] on the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum website</ref>
{{div col|colwidth=27em}}
* [[1959 World Series|1959 Dodgers World Series]], 1961
* 1963 [[Billy Graham]] Crusade,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.lacoliseumlive.com/joomla/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=60&Itemid=68|title=''The Coliseum History''|access-date=June 13, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131019134742/http://www.lacoliseumlive.com/joomla/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=60&Itemid=68|archive-date=October 19, 2013|url-status=dead|df=mdy-all}}</ref> 1965<!--Since this memorializes an event instead of Graham personally, should be alphabetized as the event.-->
* [[Armistice with Germany (Compiègne)|50th Anniversary of Armistice]], 1969
* [[John C. Argue]], 2004
* [[Henri de Baillet-Latour|Count Baillet-Latour]], 1964
* [[Elgin Baylor]], 2009
* [[Joan Benoit]], 2017
* [[Tom Bradley (American politician)|Thomas Bradley]], 2019
* [[William A. Bowen|Judge William A. Bowen]], 1955
* Coliseum Commission – 1984 Olympics, 1984 
* Coliseum Commission (1933–1944), 1970
* Coliseum Commission (1945–1970), 1970
* Coliseum Commission (1971–1998), 1998
* Coliseum Commission Restoration (1923), 2013
* Coliseum Track and Field Records, 2002
* Community Development Association, 1932
* [[Pierre de Coubertin]], 1958
* [[Jeff Cravath|Newell "Jeff" Cravath]], 1960
* [[Dean Cromwell|Dean Bartlett Cromwell]], 1963
* [[Anita DeFrantz]], 2017
* [[Babe Zaharias|Mildred "Babe" Didrickson]], 1961
* Earthquake Restoration, 1999
* [[John Ferraro]], 2000
* [[John Jewett Garland]], 1972
* [[William May Garland]], 1949
* [[Kenneth Hahn|Kenneth F. Hahn]], 1993
* [[Gus Henderson|Elmer "Gus" Henderson]], 1971
* [[Paul Helms|Paul Hoy Helms]], 1958
* [[Elroy Hirsch|Elroy "Crazy Legs" Hirsch]], 2005
* [[Rafer Johnson]], 2009
* [[Thomas LaBonge]], 2022
* [[Munich Massacre|Israeli Olympic Athletes]], 1984
* [[Pope John Paul II]], 1987<!--Alphabetizing by regnal name-->
* [[Howard Jones (American football coach)|Howard Harding Jones]], 1955
* President [[John F. Kennedy]], 1964
* [[Frank Leahy|Francis "Frank" Leahy]], 1974
* [[Nelson Mandela]], 2014
* [[James Francis McIntyre|James Francis Cardinal McIntyre]] and Mary's Hour, 1966
* [[John McKay (football coach)|John McKay]], 2001
* [[Mercy Bowl]], 1961
* [[J.D. Morgan]], 1984
* [[Jess Mortensen|Jesse P. Mortensen]], 1963
* [[Jim Murray (sportswriter)|Jim Murray]], 1999
* William Henry "Bill" Nicholas, 1990
* [[Walter O'Malley|Walter F. O'Malley]], 2008
* [[Jesse Owens|James Cleveland "Jesse" Owens]], 1984
* [[Charlie Paddock|Charles W. Paddock]], 1955
* [[Los Angeles Rams|Rams]] Reunion, 2007
* [[Dan Reeves (NFL owner)|Daniel Farrell Reeves]], 1972
* [[Jackie Robinson]], 2005
* [[Knute Rockne]], 1955
* [[Pete Rozelle]], 1998
* [[Henry Russell Sanders|Henry Russell "Red" Sanders]], 1959
* [[Helms Athletic Foundation|W.R. "Bill" Schroeder]],<ref name="GNPSchroeder">{{cite news |last=Benedict |first=Chuck |date=Jan 14, 2000 |title=I guess I missed it. Surely, there must have been an all-century list of sports' most influential personalities. |url=https://www.latimes.com/socal/glendale-news-press/news/tn-gnp-xpm-2000-01-14-export51359-story.html |work=Glendale New-Press |access-date=March 30, 2023}}</ref> 1990
* [[Vin Scully]], 2008
* [[Andy Smith (American football)|Andrew Latham "Andy" Smith]], 1956
* [[William H. Spaulding|William Henry "Bill" Spaulding]], 1971
* [[Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band]], 2016
* [[Amos Alonzo Stagg]], 1965
* [[Brice Taylor|Brice Union Taylor]], 1975
* USC All-Americans (1880–2005), 2007
* [[Peter V. Ueberroth]], 2022
* [[Pop Warner|Glenn Scobey "Pop" Warner]], 1956
* [[Kenny Washington (American football)|Kenneth Stanley Washington]], 1972
* [[Jerry West]], 2009
* [[John Wooden|John R. Wooden]], 2008
* [[Rosalind Wyman]], 2021
{{Div col end}}

===Coliseum Cauldron===
{{unreferenced section|date=November 2020}}
The Coliseum Cauldron  was built for the 1932 Summer Olympics and was also reused during the 1984 Summer Olympics.
The cauldron is a main sight on stadium and is still present in the Stadium. It is lit during special events (such as the period when an edition of the Olympic Games are being held in another city or in mourning for some personality related to the city). As the stadium was the main venue on the [[2015 Special Olympics World Summer Games]] the cauldron was relit by [[Rafer Johnson]] during the opening ceremonies and extinguished during the closing ceremony.

In addition, the torch has been lit on the following historic occasions:
* To honor the memory of Israeli athletes killed during the terrorist attack during the [[1972 Summer Olympics]] in [[Munich]]
* For several days following the [[Space Shuttle Challenger disaster]] in 1986
* For over a week following the [[September 11 attacks]] in 2001
* The pyre was lit for a week without interruption during the official period of mourning after the death of the former American president [[Ronald Reagan]]. Reagan was the president of the United States when the city of Los Angeles hosted the 1984 Summer Olympics and also declared that edition of the Games open, and was also [[governor of California]] from 1967 to 1975. 
* In April 2005 after the death of [[Pope John Paul II]], who had celebrated Mass at the Coliseum during his visit to Los Angeles in 1987
* At the Los Angeles Dodgers' 50th anniversary game on March 29, 2008, during the ThinkCure! charity ceremony (while [[Neil Diamond]]'s "[[Heartlight (song)|Heartlight]]" was played and the majority of the attendees turned on their complimentary souvenir keychain flashlights)
* For the returning Los Angeles Rams' first home game on September 18, 2016, against the [[Seattle Seahawks]]
* On the evening of September 13, 2017, when Los Angeles was awaiting a few hours before the confirmation as the host city of the 2028 Summer Olympics
* For the Coliseum Gladiator MMA Championship Finals on Sat., September 23, 2017
* For the Los Angeles Rams' first playoff game in Los Angeles in 38 years on January 6, 2018, against the [[Atlanta Falcons]]
* To honor the victims of the [[2018 California wildfires]] & the [[Thousand Oaks shooting]]
* For the Los Angeles Rams' final regular season game against the [[San Francisco 49ers]] on December 30, 2018
* For the Los Angeles Rams' playoff game against the Dallas Cowboys on January 12, 2019
* For the Rams' final game in the Coliseum vs. the [[Arizona Cardinals]] on December 29, 2019
* To honor [[Kobe Bryant]] after his death on January 26, 2020
* To honor [[Rafer Johnson]] (who lit the cauldron when LA hosted the games in 1984) after his death on December 2, 2020
* To honor former L.A. Councilman [[Tom LaBonge]], known to many as "Mr. Los Angeles" after his death on January 14, 2021<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2021-01-08/tom-labonge-la-city-councilman-dies|title=Former L.A. Councilman Tom LaBonge, known to many as 'Mr. Los Angeles,' dies at 67|date=January 8, 2021|website=Los Angeles Times}}</ref>
* To honor Dodgers Legend [[Tommy Lasorda]] after his death on January 14, 2021
* For the [[Kanye West]] and [[Drake (musician)|Drake]] [[Larry Hoover|Larry Hoover Benefit Concert]] on December 9, 2021
* For the 2022 NASCAR Busch Light Clash at the Coliseum on February 6, 2022. The Cauldron was ceremoniously lit by 4 time NASCAR Champion [[Jeff Gordon]]
* After the death of Mexican singer [[Vicente Fernandez]] on February 17, 2022.  The artist had performed at the LA Memorial Sports Arena various times
* For the 2023 NASCAR Busch Light Clash at the Coliseum, the Cauldron was lit by 2022 [[Heisman Trophy]] winner [[Caleb Williams]]
* Since May 1, 2023 the Cauldron has been ceremoniously lit the first of each month to commemorate the centennial of the venue's lasting legacy and influence on Los Angeles and the world
* On November 1, 2024 during the [[Los Angeles Dodgers]] Victory parade to commemorate the Dodgers eighth World Series Championship<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2024-10-31/dodgers-championship-landmarks-celebrate-blue | title=Paint the town blue: L.A. Bathes landmarks in light toasting Dodgers victory | website=[[Los Angeles Times]] | date=October 31, 2024 }}</ref>

==In popular culture==
{{more citations needed section|date=December 2020}}

===Film===
* 1923: Scenes from the Roman Age in Buster Keaton's ''[[Three Ages]]'' were filmed in the Coliseum, the first ever use of the Coliseum as a movie location.
* 1927: Scenes in ''[[College (1927 film)|College]]'' a 1927 comedy-drama silent film directed by James W. Horne and Buster Keaton, and starring Keaton, Anne Cornwall, and Harold Goodwin are filmed on the field of the Coliseum.
* 1944: Scenes in ''[[The Falcon in Hollywood]]'' starring Tom Conway
* 1972: The Coliseum was used in the filming of ''[[Hickey & Boggs]]''. There is a gunfight that happens in the stadium.
* 1976: The Coliseum was the key location in the movie ''[[Two-Minute Warning]]''. 
* 1978: The Coliseum was used in the filming of [[Warren Beatty]]'s film ''[[Heaven Can Wait (1978 film)|Heaven Can Wait]]'', about a fictional [[Super Bowl XII]] game between the [[Pittsburgh Steelers]] and the Los Angeles Rams.
* 1994: The outside of the Coliseum was used as a scene in ''[[D2: The Mighty Ducks]].''
* 1996: The Coliseum was used in the filming of ''[[Escape from L.A.]]'' starring [[Kurt Russell]], including a basketball death match. 
* 1996: For ''[[Jerry Maguire]]'', scenes of the movie were filmed in June 1996 at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, including the first scene introducing top NFL recruit Frank Cushman, played by Jerry O'Connell, in what was supposed to be a stadium in Odessa, Texas.
* 1997: The Coliseum was used in the filming of ''[[Money Talks (1997 film)|Money Talks]]'' starring [[Chris Tucker]] and [[Charlie Sheen]].
* 2000: The Coliseum field tunnel appears in a scene of Cameron Crowe's ''[[Almost Famous]]'' after the band boards the bus chased by the promoter played by [[Marc Maron]] and crashes through the gate to abruptly exit the venue.
* 2003: Scenes in the movie ''[[Old School (2003 film)|Old School]]'' when Dean Pritchard meets with Student Body President Megan in an attempt to blackmail the fraternity
* 2013: The stadium appears in one of the final scenes of ''[[World War Z (film)|World War Z]]'' when the military bombs the stadium full of zombies.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ep5Dp8kqVUw | title=Cruise missile strike on football stadium (World War Z film) | website=[[YouTube]] | date=October 19, 2013 }}</ref>
* 2022: The Coliseum is the backdrop for multiple scenes in the sports comedy movie ''[[80 for Brady]]''.

===Television and streaming===
*1972: The Coliseum was a key location in "[[The Most Crucial Game]]", the third episode of the second season of ''[[Columbo]]''. 
*1976: The Coliseum was used in filming of ''Emergency! (1970's TV Series)'' episode titled "The Game".
*1978: The Coliseum was used in the filming of ''[[The Incredible Hulk (1978 TV series)|The Incredible Hulk]]'' episode titled "Killer Instinct".
*1978: The Coliseum was used in the filming of the ''[[Charlie's Angels]]'' episode titled "Pom Pom Angels". 
*2003: The Coliseum was used in the filming of the last episode of the [[24 (season 2)|second season]] of the television series ''[[24 (TV series)|24]]''.<ref>Steve Richardson, [http://www.californiafilmindustry.com/Online_Magazine/24_Reasons_to_Shoot_LA.html 24 Reasons to Shoot in LA] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070927041551/http://www.californiafilmindustry.com/Online_Magazine/24_Reasons_to_Shoot_LA.html |date=September 27, 2007 }}, ''California Film Industry Magazine'', ''Accessed June 19, 2007.''</ref>
*2008: The Coliseum was used as the starting point of the premiere episode of ''[[The Amazing Race 13]]''.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ign.com/articles/2008/08/19/the-amazing-race-13-meet-the-cast|title=The Amazing Race 13: Meet the Cast|work=[[IGN]]|date=August 19, 2008|access-date=January 6, 2020}}</ref>
*2009: The Coliseum was featured in ''[[Life After People]]''. 150 years after people, an earthquake brings down the Coliseum.
*2016: The Coliseum was used as the finishing point for the second episode of the Chinese reality show ''[[Race the World]]''.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://blog.sina.com.cn/s/blog_d0d9edf20102w00g.html|title=《非凡搭档》洛杉矶制片手记|language=zh|trans-title="Race the World" Los Angeles Production Notes|last=Bingqiao|first=Zhou|website=[[Sina Corp|Sina]]|date=April 21, 2016|access-date=February 15, 2020|archive-url=https://archive.today/20200215205436/http://blog.sina.com.cn/s/blog_d0d9edf20102w00g.html|archive-date=February 15, 2020|url-status=live}}</ref>
*2019: [[Top Chef: All-Stars L.A.|Season 17]] of Bravo's ''[[Top Chef]]'' filmed an episode at the Coliseum at the 1923 Club on the roof of the new Scholarship Club Tower.<ref>{{cite web | last=Rosenfeld | first=Laura | title=Here's Your First Look at the History-Making Top Chef Season 17 All Stars L.A. | website=Bravo | date=2020-02-11 | url=https://www.bravotv.com/the-daily-dish/top-chef-season-17-all-stars-trailer | access-date=2025-04-12}}</ref>
* ''Visiting... with [[Huell Howser]]'' Episode 411, which includes an interview of [[Robert Graham (sculptor)|Robert Graham]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://blogs.chapman.edu/huell-howser-archives/2016/12/07/la-coliseum-visiting-411/|title=L.A. Coliseum – Visiting (411) – Huell Howser Archives at Chapman University|date=December 7, 2016 }}</ref>
*2020: [[Alicia Keys]] filmed her beautiful rendition of "Lift Every Voice and Sing", which premiered for the NFL in September 2020.
*2021: The Coliseum was used in the filming of the last episode of the fifth season of the [[Netflix]] series ''[[Lucifer (TV series)|Lucifer]]''.
*2024: In the handoff from Paris to Los Angeles, the Coliseum is featured in the 2024 Olympics Closing Ceremony video witnessing [[Tom Cruise]] carry the Olympic flag from the Stade de France in Paris, before skydiving to the Hollywood Sign in Los Angeles and handing the flag off to a series of athletes, with Olympic mountain biker [[Kate Courtney (cyclist)|Kate Courtney]] pedaling the flag to the Coliseum, handing off to famed sprinter [[Michael Johnson (sprinter)|Michael Johnson]] who ran it to skateboarder [[Jagger Eaton]] on the beach.<ref name="m495">{{cite web | last=Wharton | first=David | title=LA28 touts 'authentically Los Angeles' Olympics as it takes handoff from Paris | website=Los Angeles Times | date=2024-08-11 | url=https://www.latimes.com/sports/olympics/story/2024-08-11/la28-15-minutes-of-fame | access-date=2024-11-09}}</ref>

===Video games===
*1996: [[Microsoft Flight Simulator]] for [[Windows 95]] included a challenge to fly through the needle of the Coliseum and land on the field<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.giantbomb.com/microsoft-flight-simulator-for-windows-95/3030-15770/ | title=Microsoft Flight Simulator for Windows 95 (Game) }}</ref>
*2004/2013: The Maze Bank Arena featured in ''[[Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas]]'' and ''[[Grand Theft Auto V]]'' has an outer wall and arch similar to the Coliseum, but has a roof.<ref>{{cite web|last=Bell|first=David Christopher|url=https://filmschoolrejects.com/sightseeing-san-andreas-8-real-world-movie-locations-you-can-find-in-gta-5-ef475d5970e/|title=Sightseeing San Andreas: 8 Real World Movie Locations You Can Find In GTA 5|publisher=[[Film School Rejects]]|date=September 25, 2013|access-date=May 17, 2019}}</ref>
*2005: The Coliseum is featured as one of the playable Supercross tracks in [[MX vs. ATV Unleashed]] .
*2008: The Coliseum was featured in ''[[Midnight Club: Los Angeles]],'' albeit with a different name.
*2011: The Coliseum featured as a rallycross track in [[Colin McRae: Dirt 2]] and ''[[Dirt 3]]''.
*2014: The Coliseum is one of the main settlements of Los Angeles in ''[[Wasteland 2]].''
*2019: The Coliseum is featured as one of the playable Supercross tracks in ''Monster Energy Supercross 2: The Official Video Game'' as a DLC.

==See also==
{{Portal bar|Los Angeles|College Football|Olympics|Sport of athletics|Baseball|American football|Soccer}}
* [[BMO Stadium]]
* [[List of NCAA Division I FBS football stadiums]]
* [[History of the National Football League in Los Angeles]]
* [[Lists of stadiums]]

'''People'''
* [[A.J. Barnes]], active in fight against giving USC preferential rights in the Coliseum, 1932
* [[Lloyd G. Davies]], Los Angeles City Council member, 1943–51, urged that the city take over full management of the Coliseum
* [[Harold A. Henry]], Los Angeles City Council president and later a member of the Coliseum Commission
* [[Rosalind Wiener Wyman]], first representative of the Los Angeles City Council on the Coliseum Commission, 1958
* [[Ransom M. Callicott]], Los Angeles City Council, commission member, 1962

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

==External links==
{{Commons category}}
* {{Official website}}
* [http://lamcc.lacounty.gov/ Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Commission] – operated by Los Angeles County
* [http://www.lasports.org/lafacilities/display.php?s=Stadium&id=8 Los Angeles Sports Council] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190502093206/http://www.lasports.org/lafacilities/display.php?s=Stadium&id=8 |date=May 2, 2019 }}
* [https://usctrojans.com/facilities/?id=2 USC Trojans.com] – L.A. Memorial Coliseum
* [https://www.loc.gov/resource/g4364lm.g4364lm_g00656195405/?sp=41 Sanborn map showing the Coliseum, 1954]
* [http://digital2.library.ucla.edu/viewItem.do?ark=21198/zz002dh5wn Image of a white woman waving from a palanquin carried by Black men at a shrine pageant at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, 1935.] [[Los Angeles Times]] Photographic Archive (Collection 1429). UCLA Library Special Collections, [[Charles E. Young Research Library]], [[University of California, Los Angeles]].

{{s-start-collapsible|header={{s-sta|et}}}}
{{succession box|
  title = [[Summer Olympic Games|Summer Olympics]]<br />Opening and closing ceremonies venue ([[Olympic Stadium]])|
  before = [[Olympic Stadium (Amsterdam)|Olympisch Stadion]]<br />[[Amsterdam]]|
  after = [[Olympiastadion (Berlin)|Olympiastadion]]<br />[[Berlin]]|
  years = [[1932 Summer Olympics|1932]]
}}
{{succession box
  | before = Olympisch Stadion<br />Amsterdam|
  | title = Summer Olympics<br />[[Athletics at the Summer Olympics|Athletics competitions]]<br />Main venue
  | years = [[Athletics at the 1932 Summer Olympics|1932]]
  | after = Olympiastadion<br />Berlin
}}
{{succession box
  | before = [[Luzhniki Stadium|Central Lenin Stadium]]<br />[[Moscow]]
  | title  = Summer Olympics<br />Opening and closing ceremonies venue (Olympic Stadium)
  | years  = [[1984 Summer Olympics|1984]]
  | after  = [[Seoul Olympic Stadium]]<br />[[Seoul]]
}}
{{succession box
  | before = Central Lenin Stadium<br />Moscow
  | title  = Summer Olympics<br />Athletics competitions<br />Main venue
  | years  = [[Athletics at the 1984 Summer Olympics|1984]]
  | after  = Seoul Olympic Stadium<br />Seoul
}}
{{succession box
  | before = [[River Seine]] (opening ceremony)<br />[[Jardins du Trocadéro]] (closing ceremony)<br />[[Paris]]
  | title  = Summer Olympics<br />Cultural opening and formal closing ceremonies venue<br />(Olympic Stadium)
  | years  = [[2028 Summer Olympics|2028]]
  | after  = [[The Gabba|Brisbane Cricket Ground]]<br />[[Brisbane]]
}}
{{succession box
 |title=[[CONCACAF Gold Cup]]<br />[[List of CONCACAF Gold Cup finals|Final venue]]
 |before=''first stadium''
 |after=[[Estadio Azteca]]<br />[[Mexico City]]
 |years=[[1991 CONCACAF Gold Cup#Final|1991]]
}}
{{succession box
 |title=CONCACAF Gold Cup<br />Final venue
 |before=Estadio Azteca<br />Mexico City
 |after=[[Rose Bowl (stadium)|Rose Bowl]]<br />[[Pasadena, California|Pasadena]]
 |years=[[1996 CONCACAF Gold Cup#Final|1996]], [[1998 CONCACAF Gold Cup#Final|1998]], [[2000 CONCACAF Gold Cup#Final|2000]]
}}
{{succession box
 | title = Host of [[NFC Championship Game]]
 | years = 1976<br />1979
 | before = [[Metropolitan Stadium]]<br />[[Texas Stadium]]
 | after = Metropolitan Stadium<br />[[Tampa Stadium]]
}}
{{succession box
 | title = Host of [[AFC Championship Game]]
 | years = 1984
 | before = [[Miami Orange Bowl]]
 | after = Miami Orange Bowl
}}
{{succession box|
 | title = Host of the [[Super Bowl]]
 | years = [[Super Bowl I|I]] 1967<br />[[Super Bowl VII|VII]] 1973
 | before = none<br />[[Tulane Stadium]]
 | after = Miami Orange Bowl<br />[[Rice Stadium (Rice University)|Rice Stadium]]
}}
{{succession box|
 |title = Host of the [[Major League Baseball All-Star Game|MLB All-Star Game]]
 |years = [[1959 Major League Baseball All-Star Game (second game)|1959 2nd game]]
 |before = [[Forbes Field]]
 |after = [[Municipal Stadium (Kansas City)|Municipal Stadium]]
}}
{{succession box|
 |title = Host of the [[Pro Bowl|NFL Pro Bowl]]
 |years = 1950–1972<br />1979
 |before = none<br />Tampa Stadium
 |after = Texas Stadium<br />[[Aloha Stadium]]
}}
{{succession box
 | title = Home of the [[USC Trojans football|USC Trojans]]
 | years = 1923–'''present'''
 | before = [[Bovard Field]]
 | after = ''current stadium''
}}
{{succession box
 | title = Home of the [[UCLA Bruins football|UCLA Bruins]]
 | years = 1928–1981
 | before = Moore Field (Vermont Avenue Campus)
 | after = [[Rose Bowl (stadium)|Rose Bowl]]<br />[[Pasadena, California|Pasadena]]
}}
{{succession box
 | title = Home of the [[Los Angeles Rams]]
 | years = 1946–1979<br />2016–2019
 | before = [[League Park]]<br />[[The Dome at America's Center|Edward Jones Dome]]
 | after = [[Anaheim Stadium]]<br />[[SoFi Stadium]]
}}
{{succession box
 | title = Home of the [[Los Angeles Dodgers]]
 | years = 1958–1961
 | before = [[Ebbets Field]]
 | after = [[Dodger Stadium]]
}}
{{succession box
 | title = Home of the [[Los Angeles Chargers]]
 | years = 1960
 | before = ''first stadium''
 | after = [[Balboa Stadium]]
}}
{{succession box
 | title = Home of the [[Los Angeles Raiders]]
 | years = 1982–1994
 | before = [[Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum]]
 | after = Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum
}}
{{S-end}}
{{Navboxes|list1=
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{{Los Angeles Chargers}}
{{Los Angeles Wolves}}
{{LA Giltinis}}
{{Las Vegas Raiders}}
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{{XFL}}
{{Big Ten Conference football venue navbox}}
{{Super Bowl stadiums}}
{{1932 Summer Olympic venues}}
{{1984 Summer Olympic venues}}
{{2028 Summer Olympic venues}}
{{Olympic venues athletics}}
{{Olympic venues equestrian}}
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{{Olympic venues gymnastics}}
{{Summer Olympic stadia}}
{{AMA Supercross venues}}
{{Democratic National Convention venues}}
{{South Los Angeles}}
{{National Register of Historic Places}}
{{Temporary and converted baseball parks}}
{{NASCAR Cup Series racetracks}}
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{{Defunct NFL stadiums}}
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}}
{{Authority control}}

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