Rubber Bowl

The Rubber Bowl is a stadium located in Akron, Ohio, primarily used for American football. From its opening in 1940 until 2008, it served as the home field of the Akron Zips football team of the University of Akron prior to the opening of InfoCision Stadium – Summa Field. Throughout its history, it has also hosted concerts, professional football, high school football, and other events. It is named after the predominance of the tire industry in Akron. The stadium has a seating capacity of 35,202 and is located in southeastern Akron next to Akron Fulton International Airport and Derby Downs, about 6mi southeast of downtown.Since 2008, the stadium has been mostly vacant, hosting some high school football games. In 2013, the Rubber Bowl was acquired by Canton, Ohio-based Team1 Marketing Group Inc. with plans to renovate and update the structure as the home for a professional football team. Renovation work began later in 2013, but initial plans for a professional team in the revived United States Football League (USFL) have fallen through.HistoryThe movement to build a stadium in Akron began in 1939 when Akron Beacon Journal sports editor James Schlemmer and Akron Municipal Airport director Bain Fulton began a campaign asking patrons to donate $1 each. Later that year, the Works Progress Administration authorized construction of a horseshoe-shaped stadium in southern Akron adjacent to Derby Downs, the home of the Soap Box Derby that had been built in 1936. Construction lasted approximately one year and the first event hosted was a state music and drill competition in June 1940. Dedication ceremonies were held in August 1940 before a crowd estimated between 36,000 and 40,000 the day before the running of the seventh Soap Box Derby.