Ageing Stanford stadium with bizarre ties to $3.76 trillion company was San Francisco’s first Super Bowl venue
Super Bowl LX will land in Santa Clara on February 8.
Levi’s Stadium has the honor of hosting the biggest game of the NFL season, which will be played between the New England Patriots and Seattle Seahawks.
Both teams will roll into town with dreams of lifting the Lombardi Trophy, and of writing another historic chapter for an area that is steeped in football history.
Levi’s Stadium is home to the five-time Super Bowl champion San Francisco 49ers.
The franchise won all of those world titles between 1981 and 1994, while playing at the iconic Candlestick Park.
But while the Niners haven’t been able to raise a Super Bowl banner in the 12 years since Levi’s Stadium opened, the Lombardi Trophy was hoisted there a decade ago by a different team.
Super Bowl 50 was hosted in Santa Clara back in February 2016, and saw the Denver Broncos victorious against the Carolina Panthers.
More than 71,000 fans piled in to watch as the Broncos — and retiring quarterback Peyton Manning — ride the defense to a hard-fought 24-10 win over Carolina.
But long before Levi’s Stadium was even built, Super Bowl XIX was hosted just 13 miles up the road at Stanford Stadium.
Ageing stadium hosted San Francisco’s first Super Bowl
On January 20, 1985, Don Shula’s Miami Dolphins met the Niners, led by iconic QB Joe Montana, in a showdown for the Lombardi Trophy.
It was the first Super Bowl to be held in the San Francisco Bay Area, and Stamford Stadium was just the fourth collegiate facility to host, following Tulane Stadium, Rice Stadium and the Rose Bowl.
It beat out tough competition from nine other cities to get the big game: New Orleans (Superdome), Miami (Orange Bowl), Houston (Rice Stadium), Seattle (Kingdome), Detroit (Silverdome), Pasadena (Rose Bowl), Tampa (Tampa Stadium), Anaheim (Anaheim Stadium) and Jacksonville (Gator Bowl).
Quite incredibly, the building was picked despite having no flood lights at the time, no dressing rooms, and a substandard press box.
Stadium officials promised much-needed renovations to the facility, which was already 64 years old at the time, and the league agreed to provide temporary lighting for Super Bowl XIX.
It was picked over two other Bay Area stadiums because of the 80,000-plus capacity it boasted.
Candlestick Park held around 60,000, and Oakland Coliseum had room for 53,000 NFL fans at the time.
How much did Stanford Stadium renovations cost ahead of Super Bowl XIX?
As promised by officials, Stanford Stadium was given a face-lift in time for the Super Bowl.
Renovations for the January 1985 game cost $2.3 million (more than $6m adjusted for inflation today), and covered significant improvements to the facility.
The NFL footed $700,000 of the bill, which helped pay for a completely remodelled main entrance, a new ticket office, and renovated women’s restrooms.
Two duplicate locker rooms, complete with 50 lockers for each team, were built at a cost of $400,000 and meant the two teams would not have to make the long walk to Stanford Stadium from the Encina Gymnasium, which passed through tailgate parties.
Super Bowl XIX also marked the return of ‘Row 80’ — the last row of the stadium that had been unused for years because the back support railing was unsafe.
Fixed for the big game, it opened up an additional 1,100 seats.
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There was no VIP section, and no luxury suites, but the Apple Computer company, based in Silicon Valley, did donate 86,000 souvenir seat cushions.
Apple, which has grown into a globally recognized brand in the decades since, is now worth $3.76 trillion.
Who won Super Bowl XIX?
With Stanford Stadium set for the big game, all it needed was for the hometown team to turn up. And boy did they do that.
Hyped as the battle between two great quarterbacks — Miami’s Dan Marino and San Francisco’s Montana — it was the Niners that came out on top.
Montana threw for a Super Bowl-record 331 yards and three touchdowns, and was named MVP in a dominating 38-16 win.
He also set the mark for most rushing yards gained by a quarterback, with five rushes for 59 yards and one rushing score.
San Francisco’s 537 total yards were the most in Super Bowl history, breaking the previous record of 429 yards from the Oakland Raiders in Super Bowl XI.
Even though Marino was on the losing side, he still managed to rack up 318 yards and a TD, but did throw two picks.
It was San Francisco’s day, and the Niners lifted the Lombardi just 31 miles down the road from Candlestick Park.
The game also kick-started the NFC’s run of dominance, and from 1984 to 1996, the conference won 13 consecutive Super Bowls.
Stanford Stadium, though, never hosted again.
What does Stanford Stadium look like now?
Four decades on from Super Bowl XIX, the building is still home to the Stanford’s Cardinal football program, and has been since 1921.
The stadium has undergone a number of other significant renovations, including one before the 1994 World Cup. It was then demolished and reconstructed in 2005-06, to remove the athletics track between the field and stands.
Construction began moments after the last home game of the 2005 season, a 38–31 loss to Notre Dame, and bulldozers began tearing out the natural field turf in a ceremony held while attendees were still in the stadium.
Work was completed by September 2006, and changed the facility from a bowl to a rectangular shape.
More than 50,000 seats replaced the benches, and while it first opened 105 years ago, Stanford Stadium is expected to stand for some time yet.
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