Acrisure Stadium

• 1. The Stadium Pittsburgh Built

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  Acrisure Stadium drew 73,117 fans on the 17th of June 2023, setting the record for the highest-ticketed event in Pittsburgh history. That night belonged to Taylor Swift. But for most Steelers fans who filled that same venue on autumn Sundays, the building still carried a different name in their minds. How does a stadium become so tied to a city's identity that even a new name on the marquee fails to stick? How did a ketchup deal define a building for twenty years, only to vanish from the signage overnight? And why did the players themselves keep defending a surface that critics called one of the worst in professional football? Hunt Construction Group and Mascaro Construction Company directed 1,400 workers across two years of building, completing the job without a single accident or lawsuit.

• 2. Plan B and Public Money

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  A 1997 ballot measure called the Regional Renaissance Initiative proposed a sales tax increase to pay for three public projects. Voters said no. The three projects were Heinz Field, PNC Park, and an expansion of the David L. Lawrence Convention Center. The alternative plan that followed was labeled Plan B. Its opponents called it Scam B. The total funding package came to $809 million, with $233 million earmarked specifically for the new football stadium. One member of the Allegheny Regional Asset District board called the use of tax dollars 'corporate welfare.' The Steelers' financial commitment drew its own criticism, even after it was raised from $50 million to $76.5 million. Despite the opposition, the District board approved Plan B on the 9th of July 1998. Shortly after, the Steelers agreed formally with Pittsburgh city officials to remain in the city until at least 2031.

  The H. J. Heinz Company purchased the stadium's naming rights in June 2001. Heinz would pay the Steelers $57 million through the end of 2021. The figure 57 was a deliberate nod to Heinz 57. Heinz acquired Kraft Foods Group in 2015 to form Kraft Heinz Company. The stadium's name was retained through that corporate change, and the total construction cost reached $281 million.

• 3. Steel, Glass, and Vision

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  HOK Sport project manager Melinda Lehman said the Rooney family wanted the building to honor Pittsburgh's past while facing forward. The answer the design team settled on was steel. Twelve thousand tons went into the construction, used both structurally and as a visible exterior feature. The stone incorporated into the design is artificial, chosen to reduce costs without altering the visual effect. Glass served a different purpose. Lehman described it as a modern element that connects the building to downtown Pittsburgh and opens sightlines to the surrounding landscape. Ground was broken at a ceremony on the 18th of June 1999, co-hosted by the Steelers and the University of Pittsburgh.

  Aramark, the culinary provider at Three Rivers Stadium, continued in the same role at the new building. The stadium opened with more than 400 eateries inside. Each team received its own locker room, sized to reflect the number of players each roster allows. Visitor facilities were modeled on the home locker rooms' design. A bronze statue of Steelers founder Art Rooney was relocated 100 feet from its previous position outside Three Rivers Stadium. A statue of a Pitt Panther over a paved depiction of the Cathedral of Learning was installed outside Gate A. When the building opened in 2001, its 27 by 96 foot Sony JumboTron was the largest scoreboard in the NFL. The natural-grass surface installed at that same opening would prove the building's most argued-over feature.

• 4. The Grass Wars

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  Kentucky Bluegrass was laid on the field in June 2001, cut to half the standard height used at most NFL stadiums. The field is heated from below with antifreeze and hot water, kept at around 62 degrees Fahrenheit to support year-round growth. The original surface was re-laid multiple times before the synthetic-enhanced Desso GrassMaster was installed in 2003. Players continued to slip. A 2006 survey cited by the head of the NFL Players' Association ranked Heinz Field as the second-worst playing surface in the league.

  The surface reached its lowest point on the 23rd of November 2007. Heinz Field hosted four WPIAL championship football games that Friday. The next day brought a nationally televised Steelers game against the Miami Dolphins. The Steelers laid a fresh layer of sod over the GrassMaster surface to prepare the field. Then one and a half inches of rain fell. The tarp could not be removed until 70 minutes before kickoff. Dolphins punter Brandon Fields sent a punt into the turf that never bounced. Scott Brown of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review called the playing conditions a 'veritable mud pit.' Steelers receiver Hines Ward described them as 'horrendous.' Pittsburgh won 3-0, on a field goal by kicker Jeff Reed with 17 seconds remaining. It was the NFL's first 3-0 final since 1993.

  After the game, Ward and other Pittsburgh players lobbied to keep the natural surface. Ward was quoted saying, 'I think everybody wants to keep the grass.' The Steelers announced in February 2008 that they would retain the GrassMaster. That same season, quarterback Ben Roethlisberger received a concussion from a hit on the field. He later said the soft surface may have cushioned the blow. A poll of 1,565 NFL players after the 2008 season rated the surface as the worst of the 18 natural fields in the league.

• 5. Record Nights

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  Pittsburgh native Jackie Evancho sang the national anthem before the 2011 Winter Classic, held at Heinz Field on the 1st of January. Franco Harris, Jerome Bettis, and Mario Lemieux dropped the ceremonial puck. The Washington Capitals defeated the Pittsburgh Penguins 3-1. The game was the highest-rated NHL contest since 1996 and the highest-rated regular season game since 1975. It was also the first NHL Classic played at night, and the first to use CableCam technology. The 2017 NHL Stadium Series returned the Penguins to the same outdoor venue on the 25th of February. Pittsburgh defeated the Philadelphia Flyers 4-2 before 67,318 fans.

  The women's soccer match on the 16th of August 2015 drew 44,028 fans to watch the United States defeat Costa Rica 8-0. It was the team's first match since winning the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup. That attendance set a new record for a standalone women's friendly in the United States. On the 27th of July 2014, Manchester City defeated A.C. Milan 5-1 at Heinz Field as part of the International Champions Cup.

  Three seconds into the Steelers' home opener on the 8th of September 2013, officials recorded the quickest score in NFL history. Darius Reynaud of the Tennessee Titans fielded the opening kickoff and stepped briefly back into the south end zone. Because the ball had not reached the end zone when Reynaud caught it, officials ruled the play a safety rather than a touchback. The Steelers still lost the game 16-9. On the 1st of September 2022-70,622 fans watched Pitt defeat West Virginia 38-31 in the first Backyard Brawl since 2011. That crowd set a new record for the largest sporting event in Pittsburgh history.

  NSYNC performed at Heinz Field on the 18th of August 2001, the building's first concert. They were also the last act to have played Three Rivers Stadium. Beyonce's Formation World Tour stop in May 2016 made her the first Black artist to headline at the venue. The Dark Knight Rises cast the stadium as the fictional Gotham Rogues' home field. On the 6th of August 2011, an estimated 15,000 unpaid extras filled the seats during filming. In January 2021, Kraft Heinz announced it would renew the naming rights for just one final year.

• 6. The Name on the Wall

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  Heinz confirmed on the 10th of July 2022 that it would not renew its naming deal with the Steelers, ending a 21-year business arrangement. The team sought a local Pittsburgh company to step in as a replacement but found no takers. The naming rights deal with Michigan-based insurance company Acrisure was initially reported on the 11th of July 2022. Steelers minority owner Thomas Tull held an ownership stake in Acrisure. The renaming drew what was described as overwhelmingly fierce opposition from Steelers fans.

  Kraft Heinz did not leave the Steelers' orbit entirely after giving up the stadium name. The company renegotiated to become the naming sponsor of Gate C, the gate closest to the Allegheny Light Rail station. The Heinz Field name itself moved to suburban Pennsylvania. Through a $1.3 million endowment to the Aliquippa School District, Kraft Heinz applied its trademark to the new football stadium at Aliquippa Junior/Senior High School.

  Whatever name sits above the entrance, the Great Hall on the east side of the building holds 40,000 square feet of Steelers history. Inside are the actual lockers of Hall of Fame players Franco Harris, Joe Greene, and Bill Dudley.