University of Charleston Stadium at Laidley Field

File:Ucpressbox.jpg

Press box at Laidley Field (University of Charleston Stadium)

The University of Charleston Stadium at Laidley Field, is an 18,500-capacity stadium located in downtown Charleston, West Virginia, near the state Capitol complex. It features a FieldTurf playing field for football and facilities for track and field competitions.

The stadium was finished in 1979, as a complete rebuild of a previous facility. It is owned by Kanawha County Schools. In 2003, because the school board lacked funds to maintain the stadium, it entered into a joint venture with the private University of Charleston. UC invested over $1.5 million to replace the turf, add locker rooms and a skybox, and make other improvements in exchange for access and naming rights.

The stadium is home to the University of Charleston Golden Eagles. Capital High School football and multiple middle school and community teams also play at UC Stadium. It hosts the state high school track and field championships. The field has also played host to multiple high school playoff games as well as being host to the State Championships before their move to Wheeling in the 90's. George Washington High School used to also play at the stadium before they moved permanently to their own on campus field. It also hosts the Gazette-Mail Kanawha County Majorette and Band Festival at the end of September of each year.

Record attendance for this stadium was set at a local high school contest, Charleston High School vs. Stonewall Jackson High School in the latter part of the 1980s, later to be locally called "The Game" of the century. Record attendance was set at over 21,000. Later, when Capital High and Riverside High met when both were undefeated and ranked 1 and 2 in the state, there again were over 20,000 in attendance.