The Pontiac Silverdome was a stadium in Pontiac, Michigan, United States. It opened in 1975 and covered 199 acres (51 hectares) of land. When it opened, it had a roof made of fiberglass fabric that stayed up using air pressure, which was the first time this building method was used in a large sports facility. It could seat more than 82,600 people and was the largest National Football League (NFL) stadium until 2000.

The stadium was mainly used by the Detroit Lions of the NFL from 1975 to 2001. It also hosted the Detroit Pistons of the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1978 to 1988. Additionally, it was the home venue for the Detroit Express of the North American Soccer League and the Michigan Panthers of the United States Football League. It also held two college bowl games: the Cherry Bowl and the Motor City Bowl. In 2012, it was the home of the Detroit Mechanix of the American Ultimate Disc League and hosted the league’s championship game that year.

The stadium was often used for concerts and hosted many events, both athletic and non-athletic. These included the 1979 NBA All-Star Game, Super Bowl XVI, WrestleMania III, early games of the 1994 FIFA World Cup, and regional games in the NCAA Division I men’s basketball tournament.

Former uses

The Silverdome was home to several sports teams and events. It hosted the Detroit Lions of the NFL from 1975 to 2001, the Detroit Pistons of the NBA from 1978 to 1988, the Detroit Express of the NASL for both outdoor and indoor soccer from 1978 to 1980, the Michigan Panthers of the USFL from 1983 to 1984, college football’s Cherry Bowl from 1984 to 1985, the Motor City Bowl from 1997 to 2001, the MHSAA football state finals from 1976 to 2004, and four first-round matches during the 1994 FIFA World Cup.

For the World Cup matches, a special grass that could grow inside the dome was created by a team from Michigan State University. This grass was placed on wooden pallets above the usual artificial turf. It was the first time World Cup games were held indoors. The Silverdome also hosted the 1979 NBA All-Star Game, Super Bowl XVI on January 24, 1982, and the 1988 and 1991 NCAA Division I men’s basketball tournament Midwest Regionals, as well as the NCAA Men’s Division I Indoor Track and Field Championships in 1982 and 1983.

On March 29, 1987, the World Wrestling Federation’s WrestleMania III set a record for attendance of 93,173 people, the largest crowd for a live indoor sporting event in North America. This record remained until February 14, 2010, when the 2010 NBA All-Star Game at Cowboys Stadium had 108,713 attendees. The Silverdome also held an AMA Supercross Championship, a motorcycling event, from 1976 to 2005.

In 2012, the Silverdome became the home stadium for the Detroit Mechanix, a professional Ultimate Frisbee team in the American Ultimate Disc League. That year, the Silverdome hosted the AUDL championship game, where the Philadelphia Spinners defeated the Indianapolis AlleyCats 29–22 on August 11.

After the roof collapsed and the stadium was abandoned, Red Bull released a video in 2015 showing BMX rider Tyler Fernengel performing tricks inside the Silverdome. Notable tricks included a barspin to double peg to 180° spin on a handrail and a "truckdriver" (handlebars spinning 360° while the bike frame spins 360°) from luxury boxes onto a ramp leading to the field. In the same year, a drag racing event at the former parking lot marked the start of the Woodward Dream Cruise.

History

C. Don Davidson, a native of Pontiac and a top high school athlete, dreamed of creating a major sports complex. After graduating from Pontiac Central High School in 1947, he served in the U.S. Marine Corps. He later attended North Carolina State University on a football scholarship. Davidson earned a master's degree in urban planning and architecture. He worked as an architect and was recognized for designing government and city projects in the southern United States, including Florida's Jacksonville International Airport. In 1965, he returned to Pontiac and was surprised by the city's decline and lack of a future plan. He became determined to help Pontiac succeed. He was hired as a professor of architecture and urban planning at the University of Detroit in 1965–66, under the guidance of Bruno Leon.

As part of a detailed study on urban renewal, Davidson met with city and state officials, including William Clay Ford, owner of the Detroit Lions, to discuss a new stadium. He made finding a suitable site for the stadium a class project. He also started a weekly newspaper called The Pontiac Times to promote his vision. After disagreements with Detroit officials, Pontiac was chosen over other sites, such as the Michigan Fairgrounds and the Detroit Riverfront, to build the stadium. Davidson had already planned a stadium as part of his vision for the city. He was hired as the chief project designer by the architectural firm O'Dell, Hewlett and Luckenbach. Early plans included a stadium for both football and baseball, but the idea was later abandoned due to high costs. Davidson was happy to see part of his vision realized in the construction of the 80,000-seat sports complex. Completed in 1975 as the Pontiac Metropolitan Stadium at a cost of $55.7 million, the Silverdome could seat 80,311 people. It had 102 luxury suites and 7,384 club seats. The stadium sometimes used the arrowhead emblem from General Motors in its logo.

The stadium's roof was made of Teflon-coated fiberglass panels and was supported by air pressure inside the building. The roof appeared white to the eye, but the stadium was named "Silverdome" in 1977 because the Sun caused a silver-like reflection from the roof. The stadium was also called "PonMet" at first, but city officials disliked that nickname. In 1985, heavy snow damaged the roof, causing it to deflate. The Detroit Pistons played the rest of the 1984–85 season at the Joe Louis Arena because of the damage. The incident led the Pistons to move three years later to The Palace of Auburn Hills, a new arena.

The roof collapsed on March 4, 1985, when heavy snow fell on the southwest corner of the dome. The snow caused the roof fabric to touch a steel lighting catwalk, creating a hole. This led to a loss of air pressure, and the dome slowly deflated. No one was hurt. The snow then slid into the stadium, damaging more roof panels and seats. Repairs began immediately, but high winds delayed the work. Crews from Owens-Corning Fiberglas, the original roof installer, fixed the roof using Teflon-coated fiberglass. Improvements were made to prevent future damage. The repair cost was nearly $8 million.

The roof was fully repaired and re-inflated on May 28, 1985. A partial inflation was done first because of a thunderstorm. The original-style material was used for repairs. The dome remained inflated until January 2, 2013, nearly 28 years later.

The largest crowd at the Silverdome was on September 18, 1987, for a Mass with Pope John Paul II, with 93,682 people in attendance. This was close to the record set earlier for WrestleMania III in 1987, with 93,173 people. Another record was set in 1977 when Led Zeppelin performed for 76,229 fans, a world record for an indoor concert. The Detroit Pistons also set several NBA attendance records at the Silverdome.

The Silverdome hosted events such as the 1994 FIFA World Cup. In 1993, an exhibition game between Germany and England was held there. The lack of air conditioning caused extreme heat and humidity, which helped the German team. The game had 62,126 fans. In 1994, the United States tied Switzerland 1–1 in the first World Cup game played indoors.

The Silverdome was also used for marching band events, including state championships and regional competitions. It hosted the Bands of America Regional Championships from 2003 to 2005 and the Grand National Championships in 1987 and 1988. After repairs, it continued hosting Bands of America events in 2010, 2011, and 2012.

The Detroit Lions moved to Ford Field after the 2001 season. The last game at the Silverdome was on January 6, 2002, and many fans and players did not feel nostalgic about the stadium. Some players criticized the artificial turf as the worst part of playing there.

The upper concourse of the Silverdome was used for inline skating. Skaters could use a 25-foot wide track that measured 0.4 miles on the inner edge and 0.5 miles on the outer edge.

When the World Hockey Association (WHA) tried to return, the Silverdome was no longer available for use.

Significant events

• August 23, 1975 – The Detroit Lions played their first game at the Silverdome. This was a preseason game against the Kansas City Chiefs.
• October 6, 1975 – The Lions’ first regular season game was a 36–10 loss to the Dallas Cowboys. The game was broadcast on ABC Monday Night Football.
• October 12, 1975 – The Lions won their first regular season game at the Silverdome. They defeated the Chicago Bears 27–7.
• November 27, 1975 – The Lions lost their first Thanksgiving Day game at the Silverdome. They played against the Los Angeles Rams and lost 20–0.
• January 24, 1982 – Super Bowl XVI was held.
• January 5, 1992 – The Lions played their first home playoff game at the Silverdome. They defeated the Dallas Cowboys 38–6. This victory remained the Lions’ most recent playoff win until January 14, 2024, when they beat the Los Angeles Rams 24–23 at Ford Field.
• November 23, 2000 – Tom Brady made his NFL debut in a 34–9 Lions victory at the Silverdome. Brady completed 1 of 3 passes for 6 yards.
• January 6, 2002 – The final Lions game at the Silverdome was a 15–10 victory over the Dallas Cowboys.

• October 13, 1978 – The Detroit Pistons played their first home game at the Silverdome.
• February 4, 1979 – The NBA All-Star Game was held at the Silverdome.
• January 29, 1988 – The Detroit Pistons set a single-game attendance record at the Silverdome (61,983 vs. the Boston Celtics).
• 1988 – The NCAA Division I men’s basketball tournament Midwest Regional – Sweet Sixteen Games and Finals were held at the Silverdome.
• June 12, 14, and 16, 1988 – NBA Finals Games 3 through 5 were held at the Silverdome.
• 1991 – The NCAA Division I men’s basketball tournament Midwest Regional – Sweet Sixteen Games and Finals were held at the Silverdome.

• March 29, 1987 – WrestleMania III was held at the Silverdome. The event had a reported attendance of 93,173.
• January 29, 2011 – An HBO Championship Boxing Match, called "The Superfight," was held at the Silverdome.

• February 22, 1983 – The United States Hot Rod Association held its first monster truck car crush inside the Silverdome. The event was created by Bob Chandler and Bigfoot II.
• February 27, 1983 – The American Speed Association (ASA) held an asphalt stock car race inside the Silverdome. The ASA started their National Tour season there, and the race was won by Butch Miller.
• September 18, 1987 – Pope John Paul II celebrated Mass at the Silverdome. The event had a record attendance of 93,682.
• October 27, 2004 – A rally for the George W. Bush 2004 re-election campaign was held at the Silverdome.
• April 17, 2010 – "Domination In The Dome," a monster truck event, marked the Silverdome’s grand re-opening.

After Ford Field opened in 2002, the Silverdome no longer had a permanent tenant. The city of Pontiac could not find a good use for the stadium, and it remained empty for eight years. The city ran out of money and had to sell the stadium because of high maintenance costs. In 2009, the city sold the stadium at auction for $550,000 (less than 1% of the cost to build it) to Andreas Apostolopoulos. The property had fallen into disrepair due to the city’s financial problems and lack of investment. After the new owners spent millions of dollars to restore the facility, the Silverdome reopened in 2010. It hosted events such as soccer matches, concerts, HBO championship boxing, and monster truck shows.

In 2013, heavy snow caused part of the old roof to tear. The roof had had problems since the 1980s due to weather damage. The Silverdome’s unique design, as one of the last air-supported football stadiums, made it difficult to find a company that could repair the roof. Combined with the city’s financial struggles, the decision was made to close the facility permanently in 2013. The stadium’s contents were auctioned in 2014, and for a few years, the parking lot held tens of thousands of recalled Volkswagen vehicles.

In 2017, the Silverdome owner decided to tear down the closed facility. The upper part of the stadium was imploded on December 4, 2017, after a failed attempt the previous day. The rest of the stadium was removed in sections by late March 2018. In September 2019, it was announced that Amazon would develop the site.