Building the track will take 3-4 months

The USC Trojans may need to find a place to play its home football games when Olympic track and field comes to the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in 2028, as the stadium will undergo the installation of a track after the original was removed decades ago.

Coliseum General Manager Joe Furin said hosting the Olympics will be a huge milestone for a facility that’s seen plenty of them in its 100-year history, which includes the 1932 summer games of the tenth Olympiad.

The Coliseum will host USC football in 2027, but that will be the last event before the facility is turned over to the Olympics, Furin said.

“The Olympics’ crew will come in and work with the Coliseum’s team to start building the track, which is anticipated to take 3-4 months,” he said. “There may be some sort of pre-competition event held at the Coliseum before the actual Olympic Games to break in the track and stuff, though the details are not finalized yet.”

The Coliseum will also the Paralympics after the main event.

“After the Olympics and Paralympics, all of the track and field equipment and infrastructure will need to be removed,” Furin said. “There is still uncertainty around whether USC football will be able to host any games at the Coliseum in 2028 during the Olympic preparation and event timeline.”

The process will likely take the entirety of 2028.

The Coliseum celebrated its centennial in 2023. The building was constructed in 1921 and completed in 2023. It hosted the first USC football game in October 1923.

“The centennial celebration was extended beyond a year, bridging past achievements to future milestones, such as the 2028 Olympics,” Furin said.

“The Coliseum is fortunate to still be in business, the century old, with an incredible legacy,” Furin said. “The university made a nearly 100-year commitment to keep managing it, so it’s going to be around for another century, and we hope to keep that legacy of great events going.”

Managing a 100-year-old building, however, comes with its own set of challenges.

Furin acknowledged the lack of storage, infrastructure issues, and the challenges in adopting new technologies like Wi-Fi and internet capabilities, but he takes pride in the Coliseum’s resilience, unlike other historic venues that have fallen victim to the wrecking ball.

“Los Angeles is fortunate to have a building like the Coliseum,” he said. “And me, personally, I’m humbled to be a steward at this moment in time of this building, to see it from one generation going on to the next.”

The seven-story Scholarship Club Tower, with its luxury suites and club seats, complements the Coliseum’s timeless grandeur.

The concourse outside the stadium walls serves as circular food court. The stadium and its concessions and catering partner Legends recently launched a “Battle of the Burgers” promotion featuring burgers based on each visiting Big 10 school, as USC is a freshman member of the mega conference of 18 teams across the country.

The Coliseum hosts a variety of concerts and large-scale events beyond just USC football games, Teresa Guy, vice president of booking, who remarked that the Coliseum has a “huge and very healthy private event business,” hosting around 300 events a year.

The stadium’s peristyle area can be configured in various capacities, but “anytime the Coliseum transforms from a football stadium into a full concert venue, it is a marvel to see,” she said.

There are multiple shows in the books, including plans for “big rock concerts and big hip hop shows and big EDM concerts.”

The Torch, a smaller venue within the Coliseum has grown to host around 25 events per year. Sophie Tucker is booked to play the space.

Originally published in Venues Now by by James Zoltak

The Pac-12 Network recently highlighted the Coliseum’s centennial anthem in their game day broadcast. Watch the interview with songwriters Ella Collier and Sam Venig and Marina Fote of the Coliseum below and pre-save “WE CAME TO BRING THE FIRE.”

The Trojans’ inaugural Big Ten matchup will be in the Big House – a stage worthy of such a debut. USC travels to Michigan on Sept. 21 for this iconic game to kick off a new era of Trojan football. The Trojans are 6-4 against the Wolverines, last facing them in a 32-18 victory in the 2007 Rose Bowl. The Trojans then return home to the Coliseum to host Wisconsin on Sept. 28. USC holds a 6-1 record against the Badgers, last falling to them 21-23 in the 2015 Holiday Bowl.

Another road game awaits the following week as USC visits Minnesota on Oct. 5. The Trojans are 6-1-1 against the Gophers, last playing them in 2011, where they earned a 19-17 victory in the Coliseum.  Back at home on Oct. 12, USC challenges a familiar opponent, the Penn State Nittany Lions. USC is 6-4 versus Penn State, last defeating them 52-49 in 2017 in arguably one of the most iconic Rose Bowl games of all-time. The Trojans then travel back east for a first-time match up versus Maryland on Oct. 19. Wrapping up October, USC welcomes Rutgers, another new opponent, to the Coliseum on Oct. 26.

USC travels to Washington on Nov. 2 for a familiar match up. USC currently holds a 51-30-4 series record over Washington, not including Troy’s 2005 victory which was vacated due to NCAA penalty (original record: 52-30-4). On Nov. 16, the Trojans host Nebraska in the Coliseum. USC is 3-0-1 versus the Cornhuskers, last facing them in 2014, in a 45-42 victory in the Holiday Bowl. Finally, USC travels to the Rose Bowl to challenge crosstown rival UCLA to wrap up Big Ten Conference play on Nov. 23. USC leads its series with UCLA 50-33-7, not including Troy’s 2004 and 2005 victories that were vacated due to NCAA penalty (original record: 52-33-7).

The 2024 season will conclude with the annual Big Ten Football Championship Game, which will feature the top two teams in the overall conference standings at the end of the regular season, with the winner earning the Big Ten Championship. Tiebreaking procedures will be announced at a later date.

Trojan fans interested in purchasing tickets for USC’s debut in the Big Ten Conference in the 2024 season can visit usctrojans.com/2024deposit for more information.

Busch Light Clash at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum returning in 2024

NASCAR Mexico Series race added to power-packed lineup on Sunday, Feb. 4

LOS ANGELES (Sept. 17, 2023) – NASCAR isn’t just returning to the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in 2024. It’s adding more racing to a power-packed lineup.

NASCAR announced today that a NASCAR Mexico Series race on Sunday, Feb. 4, will precede its season-opening exhibition featuring the stars of the NASCAR Cup Series, the third-annual Busch Light Clash at the Coliseum. That means fans can enjoy two great races in one day inside “The Greatest Stadium in the World.”

“This is a tremendous win for our fans and our sport,” said Ben Kennedy, NASCAR’s Senior Vice President, Racing Development and Strategy. “Not only will the fans see the stars of the NASCAR Cup Series in action, they will also bear witness to the talent and skill that is found within the NASCAR Mexico Series. I can’t think of a better way to begin our 2024 season.”

NASCAR has opened its season with the Busch Light Clash at the Coliseum for the past two years. Joey Logano won the inaugural event in 2022, while Martin Truex Jr. hoisted aloft the 2023 trophy beneath the Olympic cauldron in February. Now a NASCAR Mexico Series driver will also have an opportunity to celebrate a triumph inside an international stadium that’s hosted two Super Bowls, two Olympics, a World Series and countless other major events over the past 100 years.

“This is an incredible honor for the NASCAR Mexico Series and its drivers,” said Jimmy Morales, President and General Manager of the NASCAR Mexico Series. “The competition in our series is always intense, but I know our drivers will want nothing more than to become the first Mexican driver to win inside the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. This is going to be a race we will not soon forget.”

The roots of the NASCAR Mexico Series were planted in 2004, and three years later, it became NASCAR’s first internationally sanctioned series. It competes on tracks throughout nine major cities in Mexico, providing racing fans with some of the most intense stock car racing on the planet. Current NASCAR Cup Series star and 2016 NASCAR Xfinity Series Champion Daniel Suárez began his stock car racing career in the NASCAR Mexico Series in 2008, and other NASCAR Mexico Series alumni like Max Gutierrez and Andres Perez de Lara are working their way up the NASCAR touring ladder.

The list of NASCAR Mexico Series drivers competing at the Coliseum on Feb. 4 will be announced at a later date, along with the full day’s schedule of racing and entertainment. NASCAR on FOX will once again broadcast the Busch Light Clash to set the stage for the 2024 NASCAR Cup Series season. The NASCAR Mexico Series race will be broadcast on Fox Sports 3 in Mexico, and available pan regionally on Claro Sports and the D Motors channel on DirecTV.

A single ticket purchased is good for both races, and tickets begin at $65, with kids 12-and-under at $10. Fans who want to take their race-day experience to the next level can upgrade to the NASCAR Pre-Race Party, which includes brunch, cocktails, musical entertainment, surprise guests and more! It also includes track walk access, signing the start / finish line and exclusive on-track photo opportunities. Fans are encouraged to get their tickets now while supplies last by visiting www.nascarclash.com.

College students can experience the Busch Light Clash from the Torch Party Porch for just $40. This standing-room-only general admission section, located on the Coliseum’s peristyle steps, provides college students with up-close access to all the musical entertainment, driver introductions and racing action. College students can take advantage of this exclusive offer by visiting www.nascarclash.com/student.

NASCAR Clash Experiences will serve as the Official Travel and Experience Package Provider for the 2024 Busch Light Clash at The Coliseum, offering attendees specialized access to unique experiences such as driver interactions, VIP garage area tours, exclusive hospitality options, and much more to enrich the overall spectator experience. Experience Packages now available at nascarclashexperiences.com.

Since 1923, LA’s Roman-inspired stadium has hosted key moments in U.S. history, including Olympic Games, plus visits from international luminaries and U.S. presidents.

Ahead of the 1932 Olympics, LA officials planted tens of thousands of Mexican fan palm trees around the city of Angels — to help beautify the burgeoning metropolis and solidify its place on the world map. Those trees may be dying soon.

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About eight men and women move across the field at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, then through the building’s 42 luxury suites, the 499-capacity 1923 Club, named for the year the venue opened, all while hearing about the 100-year-old stadium’s capabilities, amenities, history and possibilities.

But this June visit is no $20 public tour. It’s a contingent from a Lucha Libre wrestling outfit, sizing up the place for a prospective booking. If all goes to plan, acrobatic masked Luchadores will be soaring through the Coliseum’s rarefied autumn air.

The event would have to be slotted between USC Trojans football games and the other concerts and special events that regularly take place at the Coliseum.

As it celebrates its 100th anniversary, the Coliseum remains a major part of Los Angeles’ cultural and economic life, according to some venues industry veterans closely associated with the landmark.

Read more at VenuesNow.com.