Things to do / Travel Guide
Address:3501 South Broad St.
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Our Sports Superfan Says:
While Philadelphia fans may have enjoyed the reputation and home-field advantage of rough-and-tumble Veterans Stadium, by the turn of the millennium it was clear that it needed to be replaced. Enter Lincoln Financial Field, a state-of-the-art facility opened in 2003. Hosting, among others, the Philadelphia Eagles of the National Football League, the stadium has carved out a significant place on the Philadelphia sports landscape.
The stadium opened in August of 2003, hosting a soccer match between European powers FC Barcelona and Manchester United, followed by several 2003 Women's World Cup matches, before the Eagles moved in in October. Lincoln Financial Field also hosts the Temple University football team, several incarnations of the Army-Navy football game, and the 2005 and 2006 NCAA Division I men's lacrosse championship.
Eagles fans will always remember one game in particular from the Linc's first season (and no, it's not the opening night shutout loss to Tampa Bay). This game came in the Divisional Playoffs against Green Bay. Down by three in the final minutes, the Eagles somehow converted a fourth-and-26 pass to Freddie Mitchell, tying the game before winning it in overtime. The next week, the Eagles lost in the NFC Championship game for the third year in a row, the second in a row at home. But the next year, Philly finally got over the hump, beating the Atlanta Falcons in front of a cold and delirious home crowd to advance to Super Bowl XXXIX.
The 67,000-seat stadium also hosts concerts over the summer. Tours of The Linc are available on select days of the year (see the stadium's Web site for an exact schedule). Private group tours are available, with an advance reservation, every day but Sundays.
Lincoln Financial Field is located in the South Philadelphia sports complex, which houses all of the city's professional sports venues – the Spectrum, Wachovia Center, and Citizens Bank Park. It is accessible via the Broad Street (Orange) Line on SEPTA's subway system, as well as via several city buses.