Meijer Field

Meijer Field is an open-air stadium in Grand Rapids, Michigan and is the home of the Grand Rapids Dragons of the United Furry Football League. Opened in 2014 for the inaugural UFFL season, Meijer Field has quickly built up a reputation for its unique features and loud, rowdy fans that come to cheer on the Dragons. The official capacity of Meijer Field is listed at 71,350, with the largest crowd being over 73,000 for the Continental Conference Playoff game against the Baltimore Ponies in January 2016.

Origins and History

When the Grand Rapids Foxes franchises was purchased and rebranded in 2011, it was decided that a new stadium was necessary to increase awareness of the team. The Lincoln Sports Complex was one of the better stadiums in the FAFF, but the capacity of 25,000 was deemed too small, and the ownership group wanted to build a modern stadium in the heart of downtown Grand Rapids. The need for the new stadium was such a priority that Bill "Papa Croc" Chilton, founder and CEO of Ovision Industries, a leading manufacturer of reptilian care and medical equipment, footed the majority of the bill for the facility. The rest was funded through a slight increase in taxes and funding from Meijer Bros. Corporation, who in turn earned the naming rights to the new stadium.

Construction of the stadium started in January 2010 with the intentions of moving the Foxes in, but the project was put in jeopardy when the FAFF folded. Nevertheless, Crocosaur Sports and Entertainment pressed on in the hopes that a new league would form so that their stadium would house a team, and when the Dragons were announced as one of the twelve inaugural UFFL franchises, their visions soon became reality and would become the new home of football in West Michigan.

Meijer Field was completed in the spring of 2014, but a malfunction within the fuel lines of the dragon statues in the south end zone had engineers scrambling. It would take six weeks to figure out the problem and do a full overhaul in both end zones as the Dragons management requested their home opener to be pushed back as far as possible. The league cooperated, and it was in Week 3 of the 2014 season that Meijer Field hosted its first game, as the California Dons were the first team to come in and face the Dragons. The game would end in a 35-30 defeat for the home team, but the facility drew rave reviews from players, fans and officials alike.

Design and Features

Meijer Field was built along the banks of the Grand River in downtown Grand Rapids. The inspiration of the design was CenturyLink Field in Seattle, with a split roof that covers the upper and club levels along each sideline, along with the upper half of the lower levels. The entire playing surface is open, with LED video screens on the upper levels in each level. There are two Ovision Solarheat convection heating units on each sideline for reptilian and amphibian players to use in cold weather, each with benches large enough to seat five players beneath each unit. The field surface itself is pure Kentucky bluegrass, which has ranked among the best UFFL surfaces, and easily the best cold-weather surface in the league.