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Mile High Stadium (known as Bears Stadium until 1968) was a baseball, soccer and football stadium that stood in Denver, Colorado from 1948-2001. more...

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It hosted the Denver Broncos of the NFL from 1960-2000, the Colorado Rockies of the NL from 1993-1994, the Colorado Rapids of MLS from 1996-2001, the Denver Gold of the USFL from 1983-1985, and the Denver Bears and Denver Zephyrs of minor league baseball's Western League, American Association and Pacific Coast League from its completion in 1948 until 1992.

Mile High Stadium was originally built as Bears Stadium for minor league baseball by Bob Howsam in 1948 at the site of a former landfill. The stadium initially consisted of a single 17,000-seat grandstand stretching along the north side from the left field foul pole to the right field foul pole on the west side.

In the late 1950s there was an attempt to form the Continental League led by the famous Dodger General Manager, Branch Rickey. Bob Howsam joined ranks with Rickey, pleading for a major league team in Denver. Advised that to get a major league franchise Denver would need a much larger ballpark, Bear Stadium would begin the first of its many expansions. Over eight thousand seats were added to the south stands, bringing stadium capacity to 23,100. The new east stands increased seating to 34,657. The final bill, including cost overruns, came to just under $500,000.

Major League Baseball’s answer to the Continental League was to expand the league, which would eventually lead to the folding of the Continental League. Although Denver was not awarded a franchise, MLB promised teams in the future for Denver and other cities. Howsam was now trapped with a large stadium and debt he could not afford. Frantically searching a solution he turned to football. After meeting Lamar Hunt, Bud Adams, and George Halas, Howsam helped form the American Football League (AFL) and Denver was awarded the Broncos. A large bleacher section was added along the south side and temporary east stands were built in 1960, raising the capacity to 34,000.

Howsam's ownership in the AFL was short-lived as overwhelming debt forced Howsam to sell all his sports interests in 1961. His dream of major league baseball in Denver would be placed on hold for another 30 years. The stadium was sold to the city in 1968, which renamed it Mile High Stadium and built the upper deck along the west side, raising capacity to 50,000.

Denver had to settle for the minor league Bears and the AFL Broncos who resembled the early New York Mets version of football. Looking comical in their yellow & black vertical striped socks, mustard yellow and brown uniforms, the fans in the stands would sing, "Send in the Clowns" when the Broncos would take the field. It took a few years to gain a following. In 1961 they drew fewer fans in a year than the Broncos now draw in a single game. In the middle of the 1960s uniforms changed, there were some wins, attendance turned around and people caught Bronco Fever.

Read more at Wikipedia.org