A modern stadium (plural stadiums or stadia) is a place, or venue, for outdoor sports, concerts or other events, consisting of a field or stage partly or completely surrounded by a structure designed to allow spectators to stand or sit and view the event.
In the United States, where baseball and American football are the two most popular outdoor spectator sports, a number of football/baseball multi-use stadiums were built beginning in the 1960s, and some of them were successful. However, since the requirements for baseball and football are significantly different, the trend beginning in the 1990s has been toward the construction of single-purpose stadums. In several cases a football stadium has been constructed adjacent to a baseball park.
The spectator areas of a stadium are often referred to as terraces, especially in the United Kingdom. Originally set out for standing room only, they are now usually equipped with seating. Either way, the term originates from the step-like rows which resemble agricultural terraces.
In recent decades, the owners of sports stadiums in the United States found it worthwhile to subsidize costs by accepting corporate sponsorships. This trend, which began in the 1970s but accelerated greatly in the 1990s, has led to most stadium names being changed to that of the sponsor. The sponsorship phenomenon has since spread worldwide.
