Historic Moments

Franklin Field is the oldest two-tiered football stadium in the country and the NCAA's oldest, still operating, football stadium. This U-shaped stadium is nearly a block long and seats 52,593 fans. The initial cost to build Franklin Field in 1895 was $100,00, equivalent to over $3 million in 2019. The stadium played host to the Army-Navy football games from 1899 to 1935. The Quakers shared the field with the Philadelphia Eagles from 1958-1970.

Historic Firsts
Penn Relays - 1895
Army-Navy football game - 1899
First stadium in the country to have a scoreboard
First ever football radio broadcast - 1922
First upper deck on a football stadium - 1925
First ever football television broadcast - 1940
First Canadian Football League Game between two Canadian teams held in the United States - 1958
First use of instant replay - 1963
First NFL stadium to use artificial turf - 1969
First NCAA Outdoor Men's Track & Field Championships held on the East Coast - 1961
First ESPN College GameDay broadcast at a FCS school - 2002
First Rugby league match between the US and Australia - 2004
First Ivy League Women's Lacrosse Tournament - 2010

Philadelphia Eagles & Franklin Field
Franklin Field was home to the Philadelphia Eagles from 1958 - 1970. In this time Franklin Field hosted the first Monday Night Football broadcast for the Philadelphia Eagles in November 1970. The Eagles also won the 1960 NFL Championship game at Franklin Field beating the Green Bay Packers 17-13.

Historic Moments
First Penn football game - 1895 | Result: Penn 40, Swarthmore 0
First Penn football National Championship - 1895 | Result: Penn 46, Cornell 2
First Penn football Ivy League Championship - 1959 | Result: Penn 28, Cornell 13
Philadelphia Atoms NASL Opener - 1976
Host NCAA Field Hockey Final Four - 1983, 1988, 1998
Host NCAA Men's Lacrosse Championship - 1973, 1992
Host NCAA Women's Lacrosse Championship - 1983, 1985, 2007
Host Ivy League Women's Lacrosse Tournament - 2010, 2011, 2013, 2016
Penn Women's Lacrosse Ivy League Championship - 2008
Philadelphia Spinners Ultimate Frisbee debut - 2012

Print Friendly Version