RCA Dome
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The RCA Dome is a domed stadium located in Indianapolis, Indiana. It was completed in 1983 at a cost of $82 million as part of the Indiana Convention Center, with the costs split evenly between private and public money. Finished a year before the Colts actually moved to the city, leaving their former home in Baltimore in the middle of the night. The stadium was named the Hoosier Dome until RCA paid $10 million for the naming rights for 10 years, with two five-year options to RCA at a cost of $13.5 million if invoked. The stadium seats 60,272 for football.
Football is not the only game played within its confines. Basketball, which is considered a religion in the state, holds court (no pun intended) at the facility. The first game played there was an exhibition game in 1984 between an NBA All-Star team led by home state hero Larry Bird and the United States Olympic Men's Basketball team, coached by Bob Knight, who was at the time the coach of Indiana University. The dome also served as the site of the NBA All-Star Game in February of 1985. Since then it has hosted many basketball contests, including countless NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship games, including several Final Fours, the next one scheduled for April 1 and 3 in 2006. The NCAA, whose headquarters are in Indianapolis, has committed to holding the Final Four in Indianapolis once every four years. The RCA Dome hosted its first Women's Final Four on April 3 and 5 in 2005. In addition, it has hosted the Indiana High School Athletic Association's annual boys and girls championships, and served as one of two sites for the FIBA Men's World Basketball Championship Tournament in 2002, sharing the honors with Conseco Fieldhouse, the home of the Indiana Pacers.
The roof is made up of teflon-coated fiberglass and weighs 257 tons. The roof is 193 feet high - though the height can actually vary up to 5 feet as the materials expand and contract with the weather.
The stadium is scheduled to be replaced by a new retractable-roof stadium in time for the 2008 NFL season. At that time, the RCA Dome will be demolished to make room for an expansion to the Indiana Convention Center.
External Link
RCA Dome website (http://www.iccrd.com/dome/)