Gillette Stadium
Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts, United States From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Gillette Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium located in Foxborough, Massachusetts, United States, which is 22 miles (35 km)[7][8] southwest of downtown Boston, Massachusetts and 18 miles (29 km) northeast of Providence, Rhode Island. It serves as the home stadium and administrative offices for both the New England Patriots of the National Football League (NFL) and the New England Revolution of Major League Soccer (MLS). It opened in 2002, replacing the adjacent Foxboro Stadium.[9][10] It also served as the home venue for the University of Massachusetts (UMass) Minutemen football team in 2012 and 2013, while on-campus Warren McGuirk Alumni Stadium underwent renovations; it continued to serve as a part-time home venue for higher attendance UMass games through 2018. Gillette Stadium's seating capacity is 64,628, including 5,876 club seats and 82 luxury suites.
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.jpg) Gillette Stadium in 2007 | |
  Gillette Stadium Location in Massachusetts  Gillette Stadium Location in the United States | |
| Former names | CMGI Field (May 11–August 4, 2002) |
|---|---|
| Address | 1 Patriot Place |
| Location | Foxborough, Massachusetts, United States |
| Coordinates | 42.091°N 71.264°W |
| Public transit |  Franklin/Foxboro Providence/Stoughton Line at Foxboro (regular service for Franklin/Foxboro Line, game days only for Providence Line) |
| Owner | Kraft Group |
| Operator | Kraft Group |
| Executive suites | 82 |
| Capacity | American football: 64,628 (2023–present) [1] 65,878 (2015–2023) 68,756 (2002–2014) Soccer: 20,000 (expandable)[2] |
| Record attendance | 71,723 (concert; Ed Sheeran, July 1, 2023) |
| Field size | American football: 120 yd × 53 1/3 yd[3] Soccer: 116 yd × 75 yd |
| Surface | FieldTurf (2006–present) Grass (2002–2006) |
| Construction | |
| Broke ground | March 24, 2000 |
| Opened | May 11, 2002 |
| Renovated | 2023 |
| Construction cost | $325 million ($551 million in 2023[4]) |
| Architect | HOK Sport (now Populous) |
| Project manager | Barton Malow[5] |
| Structural engineer | Bliss and Nyitray, Inc. |
| Services engineer | Vanderweil Engineers[6] |
| General contractor | Skanska[5] |
| Tenants | |
| New England Patriots (NFL) (2002–present) New England Revolution (MLS) (2002–present) Massachusetts Minutemen (NCAA) (2012–2016, 2018) Boston Cannons (MLL/PLL) (2015, 2024–future) New England Revolution II (MLS Next Pro) (2020–present) | |
| Website | |
| gillettestadium.com | |
The town of Foxborough approved plans for the stadium's construction on December 6, 1999, and work on the stadium began on March 24, 2000.[11] The first official event at the stadium was an MLS soccer game on May 11, 2002, where the New England Revolution defeated Dallas Burn, 2–0.[9][12] Jeremiah Freed was the opening band at the WBCN River Rave on June 9, making them the first band to play at the stadium.[13] Grand opening ceremonies were held on September 9, when the Patriots unveiled their Super Bowl XXXVI championship banner before a Monday Night Football game against the Pittsburgh Steelers.[14] The stadium was originally known as CMGI Field before the naming rights were bought by Gillette after the "dot-com" bust.[15] Although Gillette was acquired by Procter & Gamble in 2005, the stadium retains the Gillette name. In September 2010, Gillette and the Patriots announced that their partnership, which includes naming rights to the stadium, would extend through the 2031 season.[16] Additionally, uBid (a wholly owned subsidiary of CMGI until 2003) continued to sponsor one of the main entrance gates to the stadium.[17]
Gillette Stadium is served by special MBTA Commuter Rail service from Boston and Providence during events, plus regular weekday service via the Franklin/Foxboro Line, at Foxboro station. The Patriots have sold out every home game since moving to the stadium—preseason, regular season, and playoffs. This streak dates back to the 1994 season at Foxboro Stadium;[18] by September 2016, it had reached 231 games.[18] The stadium is owned and operated by Kraft Sports Group, a subsidiary of the Kraft Group, the company through which businessman Robert Kraft owns the Patriots and Revolution.[19]
The stadium is set to host several matches during the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Due to FIFA rules regarding stadium sponsorships, Gillette will be known as Boston Stadium for the tournament, in reference to the Greater Boston area the stadium sits on.[20][21][22]
Foxboro Stadium
From 1971 to 2001, the Patriots played all of their home games at Foxboro Stadium. The stadium was privately funded on an extremely small budget and featured few amenities. Its aluminum benches would freeze over during cold-weather games and it had an unorganized dirt parking lot.[23]
Foxboro Stadium did not bring in the profits needed to keep an NFL team in New England; at just over 60,000 seats, it was one of the NFL's smallest stadiums.[24][25]
In 1984, team executive Chuck Sullivan funded the Victory Tour of The Jacksons, in an attempt to earn more profit for the team. Tickets sales failed, however, and the team's debt increased even further – to a final total of US$126 million.[26] After two unsuccessful owners bought the team and stadium, it was clear that a new stadium had to be built for the team to stay in New England. This is when other cities in the New England area, including Boston (which was previously home to the Patriots), Hartford, and Providence became interested in building new stadiums to lure the Patriots away from Foxborough.[27]
Location discussions
The first major stadium proposal from another city came in September 1993. Lowell Weicker, the Governor of Connecticut, proposed to the Connecticut General Assembly that a new stadium should be built in Hartford to attract the Patriots to move there, stating that a stadium had "potentially great benefit" if it were built. The bill passed in the State Assembly on September 27, 1993.[28]
Back in Massachusetts, there was a proposal to build a "Megaplex" in Boston, which would be the site of the stadium, as well as a new Fenway Park (the home park of the Boston Red Sox) and a convention center. The proposed sites for this hybrid convention center-stadium were along Summer Street in South Boston or at the so-called Crosstown site along Melnea Cass Boulevard in Roxbury, adjacent to Boston's South End. The administration of Massachusetts Governor William Weld pushed for construction of a full "Megaplex" at the crosstown site, with then-new Boston Mayor Thomas Menino favoring construction of a new, stand-alone convention center in South Boston. Ultimately, the residents of neither of these neighborhoods wanted a stadium, and as a result, Menino backed out, fearing that it would affect his chance at re-election.[29] The Fenway Park plan was cancelled after many "Save Fenway Park!" groups popped up to save the historic ballpark.
Kraft then began a plan to build a new stadium in South Boston. In that plan, Kraft was to pay for the stadium himself, hoping to win the support of Weld and Menino. He began to sketch designs, but the project was leaked to the press in December 1996. The residents of South Boston objected to a stadium being built in that location, causing Menino and Weld to become angry at Kraft. Kraft abandoned all plans for a Boston Stadium after the affair.[30] In January 1997, Kraft began talks with Providence mayor Vincent Cianci to relocate the team to Providence and build a new stadium there. The proposed 68,000-seat domed stadium would have cost $250 million, and would have been paid through income taxes, public bonds, surcharges on tickets, and private funds. Residents of the neighborhood of the proposed project were extremely opposed to the project because the surrounding area would have needed massive infrastructure improvements. The proposal fell through after a few weeks.[31]
During a news conference in September 1998, the team revealed plans to build a new stadium in Foxborough, keeping the team in Massachusetts. It was to be funded by the state as well as Kraft himself. This plan brought more competition from Connecticut, as a $1 billion plan to renovate an area of Hartford, including building a stadium.[32] Kraft then signed an agreement to move the team to Hartford on November 18, 1998. The proposed stadium included 68,000 seats, 60 luxury boxes, and had a projected cost of $375 million.[33] As before in Boston and Providence, construction of the stadium was challenged by the residents. Problems with the site were discovered, and an agreement could not be reached regarding the details of the stadium. The entire plan eventually fell through, enraging then Connecticut governor John G. Rowland, who lobbied hard for the stadium and spent weeks deliberating with Robert Kraft.[34] Rowland announced at a press conference that he was officially "a New York Jets fan, now and probably forever".[35] In 1999, the team officially announced that it would remain in Foxborough, which led to Gillette Stadium's construction.[36] After the Hartford proposal fell through, Robert Kraft paid for 100% of the construction costs, a rare instance of an NFL owner privately financing the construction of a stadium.
Design
On April 18, 2000, the team revealed plans for the new stadium in Foxborough.[37] It was announced as a 68,000-seat stadium at a cost of $325 million, with the entire cost privately funded. Boston is thus the only city in professional sports in which all facilities are privately owned and operated.[citation needed] The Kraft Group (owner of the NFL team the Patriots and the MLS team the Revolution) owns Gillette Stadium, the Red Sox own Fenway Park, and TD Garden is owned by Delaware North (the owner of the Bruins) (the Celtics rent the TD Garden from Delaware North).
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Concurrently announced was a new road to access the stadium from U.S. Route 1, and an additional 3,000 parking spaces to accommodate the increased number of fans.[37]
The stadium was designed by HOK Sport (now Populous). Kraft wanted it modeled on M&T Bank Stadium which had opened in Baltimore in 1998. Kraft insisted on it having a "front door" with a Disneyland-like entrance. Populous went through 200 designs before coming up with one that Kraft liked.[38] The entrance includes a lighthouse (which was originally designed to shoot a light 2 miles (3.2 km) high) and a bridge modeled on Boston's Longfellow Bridge.[39] The lighthouse and bridge are now featured on the stadium's logo.
For the first eight years of its existence, the stadium used a video display, with a smaller LED scoreboard just beneath it, at each end of the field. The south side also had a large LED scoreboard in addition to the smaller one. In 2010, the stadium installed two new HD Daktronics video displays to replace the entire previous setup at both ends.[citation needed] At the time of their construction, the larger screen, at 41.5 feet tall and 164 feet wide (12.6 m x 50.0 m), was the second-largest video monitor in any NFL stadium; only AT&T Stadium had a larger one.[40]
Gillette Stadium ranks first among all NFL venues in stadium food safety with 0% critical violations.[41] The Gillette Stadium food service, instead of being outsourced like most NFL teams, is run in-house and is led by the Patriots executive director of foods and beverage David Wheeler.[42]
From January 18, 2021, to June 14, 2021, Gillette Stadium was used as a mass distribution site for the COVID-19 vaccine, with a total of 610,283 shots being administered.[43][44]
Marking the 20th anniversary of the September 11 attacks, a memorial garden was installed outside Gillette Stadium. It has a semicircle of six flowering trees, a commemorative plaque, a mural, and tribute stones with the names of the victims.[45]
2023 renovation project
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On December 10, 2021, a $225 million renovation project was announced. Construction began in January 2022 and was completed in September 2023. The renovations included a new 22,000-square-foot outdoor video board installed at the north end, the largest video board of its kind in the United States.[citation needed] A new lighthouse, which reaches 218 feet at the top, provides 360-degree views of the stadium, Patriot Place, Foxborough, and beyond.[citation needed][promotion?] 75,000 square feet of hospitality and function spaces were constructed to connect the East and West Putnam Clubs, the Dell Technology Suite Levels, and the upper concourse. The construction of these new spaces connected all levels 360 degrees. A new plaza and fan entrance were also built on the stadium's north end.[46]
NFL
The venue has hosted the NFL's nationally–televised primetime season-opening games in 2002, 2004, 2005, 2015, 2017, and 2019 (when the Patriots unveiled their championship banners from Super Bowls XXXVI, XXXVIII, XXXIX, XLIX, LI, and LIII.) The first ever NFL game at the stadium was held on September 9, 2002, against the Pittsburgh Steelers, a 30–14 Patriots victory. The stadium's first playoff game was held the next year following the 2003 regular season. Playing in the Divisional Round against the Tennessee Titans, the Patriots hosted the coldest game (4 °F (2 °C), −12 °F (−7 °C) wind chill) in New England Patriots history. The Patriots won 17–14. The stadium also played host to the 2003 AFC Championship Game, in which the Patriots defeated the Indianapolis Colts 24–14.[47]
The Patriots won the first seven playoff games held at the stadium between the 2003 and 2007 seasons, including the 2007 AFC Championship Game, where they beat the San Diego Chargers to improve to 18–0 and advance to Super Bowl XLII. On January 10, 2010, the Baltimore Ravens beat the Patriots 33–14, giving the Patriots their first home loss in the playoffs in Gillette Stadium. The Patriots suffered their second consecutive home playoff loss on January 16, 2011, in a 28–21 New York Jets victory. During the 2011–12 NFL playoffs, the Patriots defeated the Denver Broncos, 45–10, and the stadium hosted its third AFC Championship, where they won against the Baltimore Ravens, 23–20. However, the New York Giants ruined the Patriots' season by beating them in the Super Bowl for the second time. The following year, they again hosted the AFC Championship game, where they lost 28–13 to the Baltimore Ravens in the final game for long-term Patriots radio announcer Gil Santos. During the Divisional Round of the 2014–15 NFL playoffs, the Patriots avenged their 2012 defeat by the Baltimore Ravens by beating them 35–31. The following week, they defeated the Indianapolis Colts 45–7 in the 2014 AFC Championship. The stadium hosted its sixth AFC Championship game during the 2016 playoffs, as the Patriots defeated the Pittsburgh Steelers 36–17. The seventh AFC Championship hosted at Gillette Stadium came the next year, when the Patriots knocked off the Jacksonville Jaguars by a score of 24–20. In the 2018 season, Gillette Stadium hosted a Divisional Round game, as the Patriots knocked off the Los Angeles Chargers by a score of 41–28 on the way to winning Super Bowl LIII. In Tom Brady's final game as a Patriot, they were upset by the Tennessee Titans in the First Round of the 2019 playoffs with a loss of 20–13. Entering the 2023 season, the Patriots had an all-time playoff record of 19–4 at the stadium.
College football
As part of the UMass football program's move to Division I FBS, the Minutemen played all of their home games at Gillette Stadium for the 2012 and 2013 seasons. The stadium is 95 miles away from the UMass campus in Amherst—the longest trip of any FBS member. The Minutemen's on-campus stadium, Warren McGuirk Alumni Stadium, was not suitable for FBS football in its previous configuration. Its small size (17,000 seats) would have made it prohibitively difficult to meet FBS average attendance requirements, and its press box and replay facilities were well below Mid-American Conference standards. Additionally, several nonconference teams would not even consider playing games in Amherst. McGuirk Stadium was renovated to FBS standards for the 2014 season, but the Minutemen's current deal with the Kraft Group calls for the Minutemen to play four of their home games in Foxborough from 2014 to 2016 in exchange for keeping part of the revenue from ticket sales.[48][49] Moving forward, Gillette will continue to host UMass football with those games of anticipated larger attendance.
| Date | Away Team | Result | Home Team | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| October 23, 2010 |  New Hampshire | 39–13 |  UMass Amherst | 32,848 |
| October 22, 2011 | New Hampshire | 27–21 | UMass Amherst | 24,022 |
| September 8, 2012 |  Indiana | 45–6 | UMass Amherst | 16,304 |
| September 29, 2012 |  Ohio | 37–34 | UMass Amherst | 8,321 |
| October 20, 2012 | Bowling Green | 24–0 | UMass Amherst | 10,846 |
| November 17, 2012 |  Buffalo | 29–19 | UMass Amherst | 12,649 |
| November 23, 2012 |  Central Michigan | 42–21 | UMass Amherst | 6,385 |
| September 7, 2013 |  Maine | 24–14 | UMass Amherst | 15,624 |
| September 21, 2013 |  Vanderbilt | 24–7 | UMass Amherst | 16,419 |
| October 12, 2013 | Miami (OH) | 10–17 | UMass Amherst | 21,707 |
| October 26, 2013 | Western Michigan | 31–30 | UMass Amherst | 20,571 |
| November 2, 2013 |  Northern Illinois | 63–19 | UMass Amherst | 10,061 |
| November 16, 2013 | Akron | 14–13 | UMass Amherst | 10,599 |
| August 30, 2014 | Boston College | 30–7 | UMass Amherst | 30,479 |
| September 6, 2014 |  Colorado | 41–38 | UMass Amherst | 10,227 |
| October 18, 2014 | Eastern Michigan | 14–36 | UMass Amherst | 12,030 |
| September 19, 2015 |  Temple | 25–23 | UMass Amherst | 10,141 |
| October 24, 2015 | Toledo | 51–35 | UMass Amherst | 12,793 |
| November 7, 2015 | Akron | 17–13 | UMass Amherst | 6,228 |
| September 10, 2016 | Boston College | 26–7 | UMass Amherst | 25,112 |
| September 24, 2016 |  Mississippi State | 47–35 | UMass Amherst | 13,074 |
| October 15, 2016 |  Louisiana Tech | 56–28 | UMass Amherst | 13,311 |
| November 10, 2018 |  BYU | 35–16 | UMass Amherst | 14,082 |
Ice hockey
Gillette Stadium also hosted the eighth edition of the NHL Winter Classic, between the Boston Bruins and Montreal Canadiens, on January 1, 2016.[50]
| Date | Away Team | Result | Home Team | Event | Spectators |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| December 31, 2015 |  Les Canadiennes de Montreal | 1–1 |  Boston Pride | 2016 Outdoor Women's Classic | - |
| January 1, 2016 | Montreal Canadiens | 5–1 | Boston Bruins | 2016 NHL Winter Classic | 67,246 |
Notable soccer games
Memorable Major League Soccer playoff victories include wins over the Chicago Fire in the 2005 and 2007 Eastern Conference Final, sending the Revs to the MLS Cup. Additionally, the venue hosted MLS Cup 2002, four games of the 2003 FIFA Women's World Cup, and some Copa America Centenario matches in 2016.
The crowd of 61,316 drawn to the 2002 MLS Cup Final was the largest stand-alone MLS post-season crowd on record until the 2018 MLS Cup in Atlanta at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.[51] The stadium's soccer attendance record would once again be broken on April 27, 2024 during a regular season match between the Revolution and Inter Miami CF, who had signed Lionel Messi the year prior; 65,612 would watch the Revolution fall 1–4.[52]
MLS Cup
| Date | Winning Team | Result | Losing Team | Tournament | Spectators |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| October 20, 2002 | Los Angeles Galaxy | 1–0 | New England Revolution | MLS Cup 2002 | 61,316 |
International soccer matches
2003 FIFA Women's World Cup
| Date | Winning Team | Result | Losing Team | Tournament | Spectators |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 27, 2003 |  Norway | 7–1 |  South Korea | Group B | 14,356 |
| Canada | 3–1 |  Japan | Group C | ||
| October 1, 2003 | United States | 1–0 | Norway | Quarterfinals | 25,103 |
 Sweden | 2–1 |  Brazil |
2026 FIFA World Cup
Gillette Stadium will host seven matches during the 2026 FIFA World Cup: five group stage, one Round of 32, and one quarterfinal.[53] It is one of eleven US venues selected to host matches during the tournament. During the event, the stadium will be temporarily renamed to "Boston Stadium" in accordance with FIFA's policy on corporate sponsored names.[54]
| Date | Time (UTC−4) | Team #1 | Res. | Team #2 | Round | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| June 13, 2026 | --:-- | TBD | – | TBD | Group C | |
| June 16, 2026 | --:-- | TBD | – | TBD | Group I | |
| June 19, 2026 | --:-- | TBD | – | TBD | Group C | |
| June 23, 2026 | --:-- | TBD | – | TBD | Group L | |
| June 26, 2026 | --:-- | TBD | – | TBD | Group I | |
| June 29, 2026 | --:-- | Winner Group E | – | 3rd Group A/B/C/D/F | Round of 32 | |
| July 4, 2026 | --:-- | Winner Match 89 | – | Winner Match 90 | Quarter-finals |
Lacrosse
Gillette Stadium hosted the NCAA Men's Lacrosse Championships in 2008, 2009, 2012, 2017, and 2018 and was the home of the Boston Cannons for the 2015 season.
Collegiate
| Dates | Tournaments | Result | Spectators | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DI | DII | DIII | |||
| May 10–26, 2008 | Division I Men's, Division II & Division III | Syracuse | NYIT |  Salisbury | 97,194 |
| May 9–25, 2009 | Division I Men's, Division II & Division III | Syracuse | C.W. Post | Cortland State | 78,529 |
| May 9–25, 2012 | Division I Men's, Division II & Division III | Loyola (MD) | Dowling | Salisbury | 62,590 |
| May 12–28, 2017 | Division I Women's | Maryland | - | - | 11,668 |
| May 13–29, 2017 | Division I Men's, Division II & Division III | Maryland |  Limestone | Salisbury | 59,501 |
| May 12–28, 2018 | Division I Men's, Division II & Division III |  Yale | Merrimack | Wesleyan | 60,071 |
Major League Lacrosse
| Date | Away | Result | Home | Spectators |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| April 12, 2015 | Denver Outlaws | 13–16 | Boston Cannons | 4,285 |
| April 26, 2015 |  Charlotte Hounds | 12–11 (OT) | Boston Cannons | 3,612 |
| May 3, 2015 | New York Lizards | 15–13 | Boston Cannons | 4,713 |
| May 17, 2015 | Rochester Rattlers | 16–17 (OT) | Boston Cannons | 5,654 |
| May 30, 2015 |  Florida Launch | 9–13 | Boston Cannons | 10,142 |
| June 28, 2015 | Chesapeake Bayhawks | 11–14 | Boston Cannons | 7,211 |
| July 11, 2015 | Ohio Machine | 19–12 | Boston Cannons | 6,813 |
Source:[55]
Premier Lacrosse League
On February 15, 2019, the Premier Lacrosse League announced that Boston would be the first city on the schedule for the 2019 season.[56] It was also announced that Gillette Stadium would be the venue to host the league on June 1 and 2. The PLL was planning on returning to Gillette for the 2020 season, but the COVID-19 pandemic put the season on pause and the league scrapped their 2020 schedule.
| Date | Away | Result | Home | Spectators |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| June 1, 2019 | Archers L.C. | 13–12 (OT) | Chrome L.C. | PLL announced 13,681 over three games (average of 4,560 for three games) |
| Whipsnakes L.C. | 15–14 (OT) | Chaos L.C. | ||
| June 2, 2019 | Atlas L.C. | 9–11 | Redwoods L.C. | |
| June 4, 2021 | Cannons | 11–12 | Redwoods | |
| June 5, 2021 | Whipsnakes | 13–7 | Chaos | |
| Archers | 18–6 | Atlas | ||
| June 6, 2021 | Waterdogs | 7–13 | Cannons | |
| Chrome | 11–14 | Redwoods | ||
| July 16, 2022 | PLL All-Star Game Team Farrell 13–33 Team Baptiste | |||
| September 3, 2022 Quarterfinals | Chaos | 11–3 | Chrome | |
| Redwoods | 8–13 | Archers | ||
| Waterdogs | 19–14 | Atlas | ||
| September 4, 2023 Quarterfinals | ||||
Women's Professional Lacrosse League
On June 2, 2019, Gillette will host a handful of games for the Women's Professional Lacrosse League to start their 2019 season.[57]
Concerts
| Date | Artist | Opening act(s) | Tour / Concert name | Attendance | Gross | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 5, 2002 | The Rolling Stones | The Pretenders | The Licks Tour | — | — | |
| July 6, 2003 | Metallica | Limp Bizkit Linkin Park Deftones Mudvayne | The Summer Sanitarium Tour | 42,898 / 48,600 | $3,217,350 | |
| July 22, 2003 | Bon Jovi | Sheryl Crow Goo Goo Dolls | Bounce Tour | — | — | |
| August 1, 2003 | Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band | — | The Rising Tour | 96,108 / 98,559 | $7,107,215 | |
| August 2, 2003 | ||||||
| July 24, 2004 | Toby Keith | Montgomery Gentry Jo Dee Messina Gretchen Wilson Scotty Emerick Don Campbell Band | The Big Throwdown Tour | 39,717 / 41,354 | $2,850,279 | |
| July 23, 2005 | Kenny Chesney | Keith Urban Gretchen Wilson Uncle Kracker Pat Green | The Somewhere in the Sun Tour | 50,860 / 50,860 | $3,263,448 | |
| September 3, 2005 | Green Day | Jimmy Eat World Against Me! | The American Idiot Tour | 26,781 / 43,615 | $1,006,421 | |
| July 16, 2006 | Kenny Chesney | Dierks Bentley Big & Rich Carrie Underwood Gretchen Wilson | The Road and The Radio Tour | 55,124 / 55,124 | $4,136,945 | |
| July 27, 2006 | Bon Jovi | Nickelback | The Have a Nice Day Tour | 45,874 / 45,874 | $3,384,804 | |
| September 20, 2006 | The Rolling Stones | Kanye West | A Bigger Bang Tour | 44,115 / 45,285 | $4,042,193 | |
| July 28, 2007 | Kenny Chesney | Brooks & Dunn Sugarland Sara Evans Pat Green | The Flip-Flop Summer Tour | 56,926 / 56,926 | $4,496,363 | |
| September 2, 2007 | Jimmy Buffett | — | Bama Breeze Tour | — | — | |
| September 8, 2007 | ||||||
| July 26, 2008 | Kenny Chesney | Keith Urban LeAnn Rimes Gary Allan Sammy Hagar | The Poets and Pirates Tour | 57,394 / 57,394 | $5,274,364 | |
| August 2, 2008 | Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band | — | Magic Tour | $4,760,337 | ||
| July 18, 2009 | Elton John Billy Joel | — | Face to Face 2009 | 52,007 / 52,007 | $6,209,342 | |
| July 28, 2009 | AC/DC | Anvil | The Black Ice World Tour | — | — | |
| August 15, 2009 | Kenny Chesney | Sugarland Montgomery Gentry Miranda Lambert Lady Antebellum | The Sun City Carnival Tour | 57,890 / 57,890 | $5,041,001 | |
| September 20, 2009 | U2 | Snow Patrol | The U2 360° Tour | 138,805 / 138,805 | $12,859,778 | |
| September 21, 2009 | ||||||
| June 5, 2010 | Taylor Swift | Kellie Pickler Gloriana Justin Bieber | Fearless Tour | 56,868 / 56,868 | $3,726,157 | Swift became the first woman to headline the stadium.[59] |
| June 12, 2010 | Eagles | Dixie Chicks Keith Urban | The Long Road Out of Eden Tour | 26,433 / 41,582 | $2,822,410 | |
| July 24, 2010 | Bon Jovi | Kid Rock | The Circle Tour | 51,138 / 51,138 | $4,418,585 | |
| August 21, 2010 | Brad Paisley | Jason Aldean Darius Rucker Sara Evans Easton Corbin | The H2O Tour | 51,107 / 51,107 | $3,476,779 | |
| June 25, 2011 | Taylor Swift | Needtobreathe Randy Montana James Wesley | Speak Now World Tour | 110,800 / 110,800 | $8,026,350 | |
| June 26, 2011 | ||||||
| August 26, 2011 | Kenny Chesney | Zac Brown Band Billy Currington Uncle Kracker | The Goin' Coastal Tour | 106,755 / 106,755 | $9,228,920 | |
| August 27, 2011 | ||||||
| August 18, 2012 | Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band | — | The Wrecking Ball World Tour | 49,621 / 50,000 | $4,548,896 | |
| August 24, 2012 | Kenny Chesney Tim McGraw | Grace Potter and the Nocturnals Jake Owen | The Brothers of the Sun Tour | 111,209 / 111,209 | $9,926,110 | This was the birth of No Shoes Nation.[60] |
| August 25, 2012 | ||||||
| July 20, 2013 | Bon Jovi | The J. Geils Band | The Because We Can Tour | 45,912 / 45,912 | $3,514,571 | |
| July 26, 2013 | Taylor Swift | Ed Sheeran Austin Mahone Joel Crouse | The Red Tour | 110,712 / 110,712 | $9,464,063 | At the first show, Carly Simon was a special guest.[61] |
| July 27, 2013 | ||||||
| August 23, 2013 | Kenny Chesney Eric Church | Eli Young Band Kacey Musgraves | The No Shoes Nation Tour | 109,207 / 109,207 | $9,465,256 | |
| August 24, 2013 | ||||||
| May 31, 2014 | George Strait | Tim McGraw Faith Hill Cassadee Pope | The Cowboy Rides Away Tour | 55,863 / 55,863 | $5,005,789 | |
| July 1, 2014 | Beyoncé Jay-Z | — | The On the Run Tour | 52,802 / 52,802 | $5,738,114 | Jay-Z became the first rapper to headline the stadium.[62] |
| August 7, 2014 | One Direction | 5 Seconds of Summer | The Where We Are Tour | 148,251 / 148,251 | $13,475,239 | First musical act to headline three consecutive shows at the stadium. |
| August 8, 2014 | ||||||
| August 9, 2014 | ||||||
| August 10, 2014 | Luke Bryan | Dierks Bentley Lee Brice Cole Swindell | The That's My Kind of Night Tour | 56,048 / 56,048 | $4,349,568 | |
| July 24, 2015 | Taylor Swift | Vance Joy Shawn Mendes Haim | The 1989 World Tour | 116,849 / 116,849 | $12,533,166 | Walk the Moon was a special guest.[63] |
| July 25, 2015 | MKTO was a special guest.[64] | |||||
| August 22, 2015 | AC/DC | Vintage Trouble | Rock or Bust World Tour | 48,000 / 50,000 | — | |
| August 28, 2015 | Kenny Chesney Jason Aldean | Brantley Gilbert Cole Swindell Old Dominion | The Big Revival Tour The Burn It Down Tour | 120,206 / 120,206 | $11,624,917 | |
| August 29, 2015 | ||||||
| September 12, 2015 | One Direction | Icona Pop | The On the Road Again Tour | 48,167 / 48,167 | $4,493,993 | Liam Payne and Niall Horan, respectively, made a cover of "22" by Taylor Swift because of the 22nd birthday of both. |
| September 25, 2015 | Ed Sheeran | Passenger Christina Perri | x Tour | 51,996 / 54,000 | $3,234,377 | |
| June 3, 2016 | Beyoncé | DJ Khaled | The Formation World Tour | 48,304 / 48,304 | $6,008,698 | |
| July 15, 2016 | Luke Bryan | Little Big Town Chris Stapleton Dustin Lynch | The Kill the Lights Tour | 76,450 / 87,871 | $7,511,536 | |
| July 16, 2016 | ||||||
| July 19, 2016 | Guns N' Roses | Lenny Kravitz | The Not In This Lifetime... Tour | 65,472 / 71,099 | $8,302,575 | |
| July 20, 2016 | ||||||
| July 30, 2016 | Coldplay | Alessia Cara Foxes | A Head Full of Dreams Tour | 54,952 / 54,952 | $6,530,260 | |
| August 26, 2016 | Kenny Chesney | Miranda Lambert Sam Hunt Old Dominion | The Spread the Love Tour | 121,399 / 121,399 | $11,455,368 | |
| August 27, 2016 | ||||||
| September 14, 2016 | Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band | — | The River Tour | 48,324 / 51,664 | $5,439,521 | |
| May 19, 2017 | Metallica | Volbeat Local H Mix Master Mike | The WorldWired Tour | 47,778 / 48,905 | $6,095,723 | |
| June 25, 2017 | U2 | The Lumineers | The Joshua Tree Tour 2017 | 55,231 / 55,231 | $6,881,340 | |
| August 4, 2017 | Coldplay | AlunaGeorge Izzy Bizu | A Head Full of Dreams Tour | 52,188 / 52,188 | $6,263,906 | |
| August 25, 2017 | Kenny Chesney | Thomas Rhett Old Dominion Midland | The No Shoes Nation Tour 2017 | 121,642 / 121,642 | $12,095,688 | |
| August 26, 2017 | ||||||
| July 26, 2018 | Taylor Swift | Camila Cabello Charli XCX | Taylor Swift's Reputation Stadium Tour | 174,764 / 174,764 | $21,779,846 | Hayley Kiyoko was a special guest on night one. Swift also became the first woman to headline three consecutive nights at the venue. |
| July 27, 2018 | ||||||
| July 28, 2018 | ||||||
| August 5, 2018 | Beyoncé Jay-Z | Chloe x Halle DJ Khaled | On the Run II Tour | 47,667 / 47,667 | $6,159,980 | |
| August 24, 2018 | Kenny Chesney | Dierks Bentley Brothers Osborne Brandon Lay | Trip Around the Sun Tour | 121,714/121,714 | $11,631,679[65] | |
| August 25, 2018 | ||||||
| September 14, 2018 | Ed Sheeran | Snow Patrol Anne-Marie | ÷ Tour | 110,238 / 110,238 | $9,382,550 | |
| September 15, 2018 | ||||||
| June 21, 2019 | Luke Bryan | Cole Swindell Brett Young Jon Langston | Sunset Repeat Tour | TBA | TBA | |
| June 22, 2019 | Dead & Company | Summer Tour 2019 | 40,509 / 43,779 | $3,281,808 | ||
| July 7, 2019 | The Rolling Stones | Gary Clark Jr. | No Filter Tour | 49,669 / 49,669 | $11,675,732 | This concert was originally scheduled to take place on June 8, 2019, but was postponed due to Mick Jagger recovering from a heart procedure.[66] |
| August 17, 2019 | George Strait | The George Strait 2019 Tour | ||||
| July 2, 2022 | Dead & Company | Summer Tour 2022 | There was a one hour delay due to thunderstorms. | |||
| July 21, 2022 | The Weeknd | Kaytranada Mike Dean |
After Hours til Dawn Stadium Tour | TBA | TBA | [67] |
| July 27, 2022 | Elton John | Farewell Yellow Brick Road | ||||
| July 28, 2022 | ||||||
| August 26, 2022 | Kenny Chesney | Dan + Shay Old Dominion Carly Pearce | Here and Now Tour | 122,021 / 122,021 | $12,968,004 | [68] |
| August 27, 2022 | ||||||
| September 9, 2022 | Rammstein | North American Stadium Tour | ||||
| May 19, 2023 | Taylor Swift | Phoebe Bridgers Gayle |
The Eras Tour[69] | — | — | [70][71] |
| May 20, 2023 | ||||||
| May 21, 2023 | Phoebe Bridgers Gracie Abrams | |||||
| June 30, 2023 | Ed Sheeran | +–=÷× Tour | ||||
| July 1, 2023 | The July 1 show set a single-show attendance record with 71,723 in attendance.[72] | |||||
| July 21, 2023 | Luke Combs | David Lee Murphy Gary Allan The Avett Brothers Flatland Cavalry Brent Cobb Lainey Wilson Riley Green |
Luke Combs World Tour | Night 1 - Murphy, Allan, Avett Brothers Night 2 - Flatland Cavalry, Cobb, Green, Wilson[73] | ||
| July 22, 2023 | ||||||
| August 1, 2023 | Beyoncé | Renaissance World Tour | 49,740 / 49,740 | $13,801,160 | [74][75] | |
| August 24, 2023 | Bruce Springsteen | Springsteen and E Street Band 2023 Tour | [76] | |||
| August 26, 2023 | ||||||
| September 23, 2023 | Billy Joel Stevie Nicks | [77] | ||||
| September 28, 2023 | Karol G | Agudelo Young Miko |
Mañana Será Bonito Tour | [78] | ||
| May 30, 2024 | The Rolling Stones | The Red Clay Strays | Hackney Diamonds Tour | [79] | ||
| August 2, 2024 | Metallica | Pantera Mammoth WVH |
M72 World Tour | [80] | ||
| August 4, 2024 | Five Finger Death Punch Ice Nine Kills | |||||
| August 21, 2024 | P!nk | The Script Sheryl Crow |
Summer Carnival | |||
| August 23, 2024 | Kenny Chesney Zac Brown Band | Megan Moroney Uncle Kracker | Sun Goes Down 2024 Tour | This will be Chesney's 22nd show at the stadium.[81] | ||
| August 24, 2024 | ||||||
| August 25, 2024 |
Other events
The AMA Supercross Championship has been racing at Gillette Stadium since 2016.[citation needed]
Monster Jam has been coming to the stadium since 2014.[citation needed]
On November 14, 2006, two days after a rainstorm contributed to the deterioration of the grass surface in a Patriots game against the Jets, team management decided to replace the natural grass surface with a synthetic surface, FieldTurf. Normally, NFL rules insist that such work could only be done during the off-season; however, the grass field was in such poor condition, the league agreed to waive the rule. The entire job was done during a two-week road trip, with three shifts working around the clock. The Patriots' first game on the surface was a victory over the previously 9–1 Chicago Bears on November 26. Brady and his teammates commended the much-improved surface. At the conclusion of the 2007 season, Patriots quarterback Tom Brady had a career record of 31–3 on artificial turf. The team lost a preseason matchup in August 2007 to the Tennessee Titans on the new FieldTurf but otherwise won its first eleven regular-season and playoff games on the surface covering the period of November 2006 until September 2008, when the Patriots lost to the Miami Dolphins.
In February 2010, the surface was pulled and upgraded to FieldTurf "Duraspine Pro", which was expected to meet FIFA standards that the previous turf did not, preventing the team from having to place sod on top of their turf to host international soccer matches.[82]
The surface was upgraded again in April 2014 to FieldTurf "Revolution" with "VersaTile" drainage system. The FieldTurf Revolution product is currently used at many venues across North America, including Lumen Field (home to the NFL's Seattle Seahawks and MLS's Seattle Sounders) and Providence Park, home of the MLS's Portland Timbers, where its installation was recently completed.[83]
Field logo
When the field is configured for American football, the Patriots have their "Flying Elvis" logo (or "Pat Patriot" if they are wearing throwback uniforms) painted on the field at dead center of the 50-yard line. Off to both sides along the 50-yard line, the Gillette Stadium logo is also painted on the field. This is a gray-and-blue stylized representation of the bridge and tower at the north entrance of the stadium.
In 2006, the Patriots and Kraft announced plans to build a "super regional lifestyle and entertainment center" in the area around Gillette Stadium named Patriot Place.[84][85] The cost of the project was $350 million, more than the cost to build Gillette Stadium itself; Kraft had purchased much of the surrounding land, about 700 acres (280 ha), when he bought Foxboro Stadium in the late 1980s.[86]
The first phase of the project opened in fall of 2007,[87] and featured the first Bass Pro Shops in New England, as well as Circuit City (now closed), Bed Bath & Beyond, Five Guys Burgers, Christmas Tree Shops, and Staples.[86] In December 2007, the Patriots and CBS announced plans to build a themed restaurant and nightclub, named "CBS Scene", at the site, which would also include studios for CBS-owned WBZ-TV.[88] The restaurant was part of the second phase of the project, which included an open mall, a health center, a Cinema de Lux movie theater, a four-star Renaissance hotel, and "The Hall at Patriot Place." Attached to Gillette Stadium, the Hall includes a two-level interactive museum honoring the Patriots accomplishments and Super Bowl championships, plus the Patriots Pro Shop.[89] The first restaurants and stores in phase two began opening in July 2008, and were followed by the openings of the Hall at Patriot Place and the CBS Scene in time for the beginning of the 2008 New England Patriots season. More locations, including the health center and hotel, opened in 2009, along with additional sites in phase one.
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