Lincoln Financial Field



Lincoln Financial Field is the home stadium of the National Football League's Philadelphia Eagles. It has a seating capacity of 68,532 (69,144 with Standing Room Only tickets). It is located in South Philadelphia on Pattison Avenue between 11th and 10th Streets, also aside I-95 as part of the South Philadelphia Sports Complex.

The stadium opened on August 3, 2003 after two years of construction that began on May 7, 2001 and replaced Veterans Stadium as the Eagles' home stadium. While its total capacity barely changed, the new stadium contained double the amount of luxury and wheelchair-accessible seats, along with the newer, more modern services. The field's construction included several light emitting diode (LED) video displays from Daktronics, as well as more than 624 ft of ribbon board technology. Like the Vet, Lincoln Financial Field had a jail inside the stadium, that contained four cells. However, this jail was done away within two years as the level of unruly behavior had dropped considerably from the worst days of the Vet. The Linc also plays host to several soccer games each year, and in the past (2005, 2006) it has played host to the NCAA lacrosse national championship; it will do so again in 2013.

Naming rights were sold in June 2002 to Lincoln Financial Group for a sum of $139.6 million over 21 years. Additional construction funding was raised from the sale of Stadium Builder's Licenses to Eagles season ticket holders.

The Army–Navy football game is also played at the stadium. Temple University's Division I FBS college football team also plays their home games at Lincoln Financial Field, paying the Eagles $1 million a year to do so. The Philadelphia Union of Major League Soccer also play exhibition games here against high-profile international clubs when their stadium PPL Park does not provide adequate seating.

Notable events

 * August 3, 2003: Lincoln Financial Field hosted its first ticketed event, a soccer match between Manchester United and FC Barcelona.
 * August 22, 2003: The Philadelphia Eagles hosted the New England Patriots in the first pre-season football game at Lincoln Financial Field.
 * September 6, 2003: Lincoln Financial Field hosted its first regular-season college football game, a college matchup of local Philadelphia rivals: Villanova and Temple. Villanova prevailed 23–20 in double overtime.
 * September 8, 2003: The Eagles and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers competed on Monday Night Football in the first regular-season NFL game at Lincoln Financial Field. The game was referenced as the “Inaugural Game” at Lincoln Financial Field. The Buccaneers defeated the Eagles 17–0 in their new home, the same as they did in the Eagles' final game in Veterans Stadium, 27–10.
 * January 23, 2005: In the team's fourth consecutive NFC Championship Game appearance, the Philadelphia Eagles defeated the Atlanta Falcons 27–10. The win sent the Eagles to Super Bowl XXXIX in Jacksonville, Florida.
 * September 23, 2007: Wearing 1933 throwback uniforms celebrating the team's 75th anniversary, the Eagles set multiple team records in a 56–21 victory over the Detroit Lions; the second most points in team history. It was the first time the Eagles ever had a 300-yard passer (Donovan McNabb), a 200-yard receiver (Kevin Curtis), and a 100-yard rusher (Brian Westbrook) in the same game.
 * April 10, 2010: The Philadelphia Union win their inaugural home opener, a 3-2 victory over D.C. United. A second match was played against FC Dallas on May 15; those games served as home games before the opening of PPL Park June 27 against Seattle Sounders FC.
 * May 29, 2010: The United States National Soccer Team won their match 2-1 against Turkey in the last game of the 2010 World Cup Send Off Series. A crowd of 55,407 people attended, setting a new attendance record for U.S Soccer at Lincoln Financial Field.
 * July 21, 2010: The Union hosted the European Giants Manchester United on their USA Tour.
 * On September 12, 2010, the Eagles honored the 50th Anniversary of their last NFL Championship as they wore replicas of the 1960 uniforms in a 27-20 loss to the Green Bay Packers, the team they beat to win the NFL Championship Game on December 26 of that year.

Eagles playoff games

 * NFC Divisional Playoff: January 11, 2004 (Philadelphia Eagles 20, Green Bay Packers 17). This game is also known as "The Miracle of 4th and 26". Donovan McNabb connected on a 28-yard pass to receiver Freddie Mitchell on 4th and 26 late in the 4th quarter with the Eagles out of timeouts. This led to the game-tying field goal that sent the game into overtime. In the overtime period, Brett Favre tossed an interception to Brian Dawkins, which set up David Akers game-deciding 37-yard field goal that sent the Eagles to their third straight NFC Championship Game.
 * NFC Championship: January 18, 2004: (Carolina Panthers 14, Philadelphia Eagles 3). Eagles lose their third straight NFC Championship Game.
 * NFC Divisional Playoff: January 16, 2005: (Philadelphia Eagles 27, Minnesota Vikings 14). Eagles advance to their fourth-consecutive NFC Championship Game.
 * NFC Championship: January 23, 2005: (Philadelphia Eagles 27, Atlanta Falcons 10). Eagles advance to the Super Bowl for the first time since 1980.
 * NFC Wild Card Game: January 7, 2007: (Philadelphia Eagles 23, New York Giants 20). David Akers wins the game with a field goal as time expires.
 * NFC Wild Card Game: January 9, 2011: (Green Bay Packers 21, Philadelphia Eagles 16). Michael Vick throws a game-ending interception in the final drive.

Controversies

 * For the inaugural season at Lincoln Financial Field (2003), the Eagles imposed a ban on hoagies and cheesesteaks being brought into the stadium, citing security concerns related to the events of September 11. The ban only lasted one week after much mockery by fans and radio personalities.
 * During the 2006 season, fans reported swaying on one of the pedestrian bridges that connects the upper levels. Articles were written in local newspapers and broadcast on the local news. Outside parties tested the bridges' stability and found no problem.
 * Prior to the first Eagles game of the 2007 season, a ruling was made concerning a Philadelphia and national tradition: tailgating. While the Eagles did not ban the act entirely, they did ban the use of tables and tents as well as the purchasing of more than one parking spot per vehicle. Prices were also doubled to forty dollars for RVs and buses, and twenty dollars for cars. Fans have been reported to be upset.

Suites
There are 172 Luxury Suites at Lincoln Financial Field. They range in capacity from 12 to 40 people and cost $75,000 to $300,000 per year or $20,000 for a single game rental. The suites are located in six separate areas throughout the stadium.

Club lounges
There are 2 exclusive 40000 sqft club lounges in the stadium. The lounge on the west side is the "Chrysler Premiere Lounge" and the one on the east side is the "SCA Club Lounge". Suite holders and club seat holders have access to these 2 lounges.

College football
The Linc is the home field for Temple University football. On August 13, 2003, the Philadelphia Eagles and Temple University announced a 15-year agreement for Temple to play their home football games at Lincoln Financial Field. Temple played its first game at the Linc on September 6, 2003 against Villanova, the teams' first meeting since 1980. Villanova won in dramatic fashion in the second overtime to defeat Temple 23-20.

Lincoln Financial Field is the primary home to the Army–Navy Game. The game has been played the most often in Philadelphia. It was played at Veterans Stadium for the final time in 2001, and prior to the Vet, at John F. Kennedy Stadium and Franklin Field. The Linc has hosted the game five times, first in 2003 and most recently in 2009. It was announced on June 9, 2009 that the game would be played in Philadelphia at the Linc in 2010, 2012, 2013, 2015 and 2017.

Soccer
The stadium opened on August 3, 2003 with a preseason friendly match between European soccer giants Manchester United and FC Barcelona. 68,396 people watched Manchester United win 3-1.

Some matches in the FIFA Women's World Cup were played there in 2003. In 2004, after winning the gold-medal in soccer at the 2004 Summer Olympics, the U.S. women's team conducted a “Fan Celebration Tour", playing ten matches across the United States from September to December 2004. The matches were the final national team appearances for Mia Hamm, Joy Fawcett, and Julie Foudy, all of whom retired after the tour. The team played at the Linc on November 6, 2004 where they lost 3 to 1 to Denmark in front of 14,812 spectators.

On July 18, 2009, Lincoln Financial Field hosted a doubleheader quarterfinal for the 2009 CONCACAF Gold Cup. The first game was between Canada and Honduras, and the second between USA and Panama. This was the first full international appearance for the United States national soccer team in Philadelphia since a 1968 friendly against Israel at Temple Stadium.

In April 2009, Lincoln Financial Field was listed by U.S. Soccer's World Cup bid committee as one of 58 stadiums to be potential sites for World Cup matches in either 2018 or 2022. In June 2009, it was announced that Lincoln Financial Field made the cut as one of 45 out of 70 stadium game sites under continued consideration. Lincoln Financial Field made the cut again when the stadium list was reduced from 45 to 32 on August 20, 2009. It will be one of the 18 stadiums included in the United States 2018/2022 World Cup bid.

The Philadelphia Union played their home opener against D.C. United at the Linc on April 10, 2010 due to construction delays at their new stadium, PPL Park. The Union defeated D.C United, 3-2. The Union plans to limit ticket sales to the lower bowl and club sections, totaling about 37,500 seats. The Union also played FC Dallas to a 1-1 tie in the second home game in franchise history at the Linc.

Lincoln Financial Field also hosted the US National team's final match on home soil before the 2010 World Cup. The US defeated Turkey 2-1 on May 29, 2010. Manchester United met the Philadelphia Union during their pre-season tour on July 21, 2010. Manchester United won 1-0.

Other uses
Bruce Springsteen performed three sold-out concerts there in 2003.

The NCAA Men's Lacrosse Championship in 2005 and 2006 were held at the stadium.

The Philadelphia Phillies celebrated their 2008 World Series championship with a parade down Broad Street, appearance before a sold-out crowd at the Linc, and then a ceremony at Citizens Bank Park. The Citizens Bank Park ceremony was simulcast to the crowd at the Linc. Tickets to the event at Lincoln Financial Field were made available at no-cost to the public and were gone within 45-minutes when they were made available at 3pm on October 30, 2008.

The Feld Entertainment-promoted Advance Auto Parts Monster Jam will perform at the stadium on Saturday June 4, 2011 for the second time. Previous events took place during the winter at the Spectrum and last year for the first time at the stadium on June 12, 2010.

U2 will perform at the stadium on July 14, 2011 on their U2 360° Tour. The show was originally to be held on July 12, 2010, but had to be postponed following Bono's emergency back surgery.

Taylor Swift will perform at the stadium as part of her Speak Now World Tour on August 6, 2011.