Busch Stadium

This article is about the current sports venue in St. Louis, Missouri, that opened in 2006. For the stadium in St. Louis that operated from 1966 to 2005, see Busch Memorial Stadium. For the ballpark known as "Busch Stadium" from 1953 to 1966, see Sportsman's Park.
Not to be confused with Bush Stadium.
Busch Stadium
Busch Stadium III
Baseball Heaven
Busch Stadium in 2022
Busch Stadium is located in Missouri
Busch Stadium
Busch Stadium
Location in Missouri
Busch Stadium is located in the United States
Busch Stadium
Busch Stadium
Location in the United States
Address700 Clark Ave
LocationSt. Louis, Missouri
Coordinates38°37′21″N 90°11′35″W / 38.62250°N 90.19306°W / 38.62250; -90.19306
Public transitLight rail interchange Red Blue
At Stadium
OwnerSt. Louis Cardinals
OperatorSt. Louis Cardinals[1]
Capacity44,383 (2020–present)[2]

44,494 (2018–2019)[3]
45,529 (2017)[4]
45,538 (2016)[5]
45,399 (2014–2015)[6]
43,975 (2006–2013)[7][8]

47,514 (with standing room)
Record attendanceSoccer: 48,263 Chelsea vs Manchester City (3–4)[9]
Baseball: 48,581 (August 6, 2022) Cardinals vs New York Yankees[10]
Hockey: 46,556 (January 2, 2017) St. Louis Blues vs Chicago Blackhawks: 2017 NHL Winter Classic
Concert: U2's U2 360° Tour 52,273 (largest non-sporting event)
Field sizeLeft field — 336 feet (102 m)
Left center field — 375 feet (114 m)
Center field — 400 feet (122 m)
Right center field — 375 feet (114 m)
Right field — 335 feet (102 m)
SurfaceBermuda Grass
Construction
Broke groundJanuary 17, 2004 (January 17, 2004)
OpenedApril 4, 2006 (April 4, 2006) (MiLB exhibition)
April 10, 2006 (April 10, 2006) (MLB)
Construction cost$365 million[11][12]
($552 million in 2023 dollars[13])
ArchitectHOK Sport
Kennedy Associates/Architects Inc.[14]
Project managerClayco Corp.[15]
Structural engineerBliss & Nyitray, Inc
Services engineerM-E Engineers, Inc.[16]
General contractorHunt/Kwame[17]
Tenants
St. Louis Cardinals (MLB) (2006–present)

Busch Stadium (also referred to informally as "New Busch Stadium" or "Busch Stadium III") is a baseball stadium located in St. Louis, Missouri. It is the home of Major League Baseball's St. Louis Cardinals. It has a seating capacity of 44,383,[2] with 3,706 club seats and 61 luxury suites. It replaced Busch Memorial Stadium (aka Busch Stadium II) and occupies a portion of that stadium's former footprint. A commercial area dubbed Ballpark Village was built adjacent to the stadium over the remainder of the former stadium's footprint.

The stadium opened on April 4, 2006 with an exhibition between the minor league Memphis Redbirds and Springfield Cardinals (both affiliates of the St. Louis Cardinals), which Springfield won 5–3 with right-hander Mike Parisi recording the first win. The first official major league game occurred on April 10, 2006, as the Cardinals defeated the Milwaukee Brewers 6–4 behind an Albert Pujols home run and winning pitcher Mark Mulder.

In 2004, then-Anheuser-Busch president August Busch IV announced that the brewing giant had purchased 20-year naming rights for the stadium. Team owner William DeWitt Jr. said: "From the day we began planning for the new ballpark, we wanted to keep the name 'Busch Stadium.' August Busch IV and Anheuser-Busch share our vision for continuing that tradition for our great fans and the entire St. Louis community."[18]

It is the third stadium in St. Louis to carry the name Busch Stadium. Sportsman's Park was renamed Busch Stadium in 1953; then-team owner August Busch Jr. had planned to name it Budweiser Stadium, but at the time league rules prohibited naming a venue after an alcoholic beverage.[19] Busch named the stadium after himself, and the Anheuser-Busch corporation later introduced "Busch Beer". The first Busch Stadium closed in 1966 and both the baseball Cardinals, and the National Football League (NFL)'s team of the same name (now the Arizona Cardinals) moved to a new multi-purpose stadium, named Busch Memorial Stadium (Busch Stadium II).[20]

  1. ^ Muret, Don (April 17, 2006). "Another round of Busch for St. Louis". SportsBusiness Journal. Street & Smith's. Archived from the original on November 29, 2014. Retrieved September 14, 2011.
  2. ^ a b Kronheim, David P. (May 23, 2020). "Major League Baseball 2019 Attendance Analysis" (PDF). Number Tamer. Retrieved July 4, 2023.
  3. ^ Bausch, Mark; Orf, Tom; Schott, Tom (March 19, 2018). 2018 St. Louis Cardinals Official Media Guide [Busch Stadium Facts and Figures]. Major League Baseball Advanced Media. p. 458.
  4. ^ Bausch, Mark; Orf, Tom; Schott, Tom (March 1, 2017). 2017 St. Louis Cardinals Official Media Guide. Major League Baseball Advanced Media. p. 432.
  5. ^ Kronheim, David P. (June 1, 2016). "Major League Baseball 2015 Attendance Analysis" (PDF). Number Tamer. Retrieved April 5, 2017.
  6. ^ Kronheim, David P. (June 8, 2014). "Major League Baseball 2013 Attendance Analysis" (PDF). Number Tamer. Archived (PDF) from the original on October 5, 2018. Retrieved April 5, 2017.
  7. ^ Kronheim, David P. "Major League Baseball 2012 Attendance Analysis" (PDF). Number Tamer. Retrieved July 4, 2023.
  8. ^ "Cardinals make 65,000 additional tickets available; tickets on sale Wednesday at all locations" (Press release). St. Louis Cardinals. April 28, 2006. Archived from the original on March 3, 2016.
  9. ^ "Busch Stadium as a soccer venue" (Photo). CBSSports.com. May 24, 2013. Archived from the original on September 17, 2020. Retrieved September 16, 2020.
  10. ^ Hummel, Rick (May 12, 2019). "The Bell tolls for Brebbia, Cardinals as Pirates rally late for 10-6 win". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Archived from the original on June 22, 2019. Retrieved June 22, 2019.
  11. ^ Busch Stadium Facts Archived November 29, 2014, at the Wayback Machine MLB.com
  12. ^ "Busch Stadium". Ballparks.com. Archived from the original on May 28, 2012. Retrieved February 26, 2009.
  13. ^ 1634–1699: McCusker, J. J. (1997). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States: Addenda et Corrigenda (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1700–1799: McCusker, J. J. (1992). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1800–present: Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. "Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–". Retrieved February 29, 2024.
  14. ^ "Busch Stadium". KAI Design & Build. Archived from the original on December 2, 2018. Retrieved June 4, 2012.
  15. ^ "Busch Stadium St. Louis, MO Baseball Stadium Design Build Construction Example". Clayco. Archived from the original on February 14, 2022. Retrieved February 12, 2022.
  16. ^ "Projects: Srofessional Sports Stadiums". M-E Engineers, Inc. 2006. Archived from the original on May 23, 2012. Retrieved March 9, 2011.
  17. ^ "St. Louis Cardinals Busch Stadium". Kwame Building Group. Archived from the original on March 12, 2011. Retrieved May 7, 2014.
  18. ^ "The Tradition Continues: St. Louis Cardinals to Play in Third "Busch Stadium"". www.anheuser-busch.com. August 5, 2004. Archived from the original on August 5, 2004. Retrieved September 24, 2019.
  19. ^ "Sportsman's Park (St. Louis) | Society for American Baseball Research". sabr.org. Archived from the original on February 16, 2020. Retrieved September 24, 2019.
  20. ^ "Anheuser-Busch Buys Cardinals Stadium Naming Rights". USA Today. Archived from the original on February 8, 2011. Retrieved August 25, 2017.