Top 100 Biggest Sports Venues in the World

These famous big sports venues hold the most people.

Who says size doesn’t matter? In 1950 at the FIFA World Cup in Brazil, just a tick under 200,000 people piled into Maracanã Stadium in Rio de Janeiro. They watched the home team fall to Uruguay in the decisive match of the tournament. That remains the largest attendance for a team sports game.

Since then, stadiums have made many renovations that prevent capacities from ever reaching those numbers. But that doesn’t mean sports venues — not stadiums — can’t surpass that total. Most of those venues are of the racing variety, either motor racing circuits or horse racing tracks.

Some of them were built in the 2000s. Others were constructed over 100 years ago. These are the largest sports venues in the world by capacity.

96. Beijing National Stadium (Tied)

Wikimedia Commons

Capacity: 80,000

Location: Beijing, China

Sports played: Soccer, motor racing, athletics

Tenants: 2008 Summer Olympics, China national football team

Bottom line: Nicknamed the Bird’s Nest for its appearance, this stadium was created specifically for the 2008 Summer Olympics. It gets used sparingly because there’s no Chinese team that calls Beijing National Stadium home.

But it will host the opening and closing ceremonies for the 2022 Winter Olympics, making it the only stadium to host both Summer and Winter Olympic opening ceremonies.

96. AT&T Stadium (Tied)

Wikimedia Commons

Capacity: 80,000

Location: Arlington, Texas

Sports played: Football

Tenants: Dallas Cowboys

Bottom line: Originally called Cowboys Stadium, the home of the Dallas Cowboys has been affectionately known as Jerry’s World since Jerry Jones treats it like his third son.

In 2013, it was renamed to AT&T Stadium courtesy of a naming rights deal in which Jones pockets between $17 million and $19 million annually.

In 2016, the stadium hosted WrestleMania 32 before 101,763 fans, which remains the attendance record for AT&T Stadium.

96. Hipódromo da Gávea (Tied)

Wikimedia Commons

Capacity: 80,000

Location: Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Sports played: Horse racing

Tenants: GP Brazil

Bottom line: Built in 1926, this hippodrome was popular in the 20th century but isn’t used as often today.

While it holds 80,000, there are only 3,000 seats and certainly not 3,000 good seats, according to those who’ve attended horse races there.

The declining popularity of this venue mitigates that as attendees are able to move around and locate better seats for the races.

96. Melbourne Grand Prix Circuit (Tied)

Getty Images

Capacity: 80,000

Location: Melbourne, Australia

Sports played: Motor racing

Tenants: Australian Grand Prix

Bottom line: For three months of the year, this track is used for events by Formula One and Supercars Championship.

But the other nine months of the year, this circuit is just a regular street that anyone can drive on.

Not just people pass on this road, either. Some notorious black swans frequently cross and cause traffic delays for drivers.

96. Stade des Martyrs (Tied)

Stade De Martyrs / Facebook

Capacity: 80,000

Location: Kinshasa, Republic of the Congo

Sports played: Soccer

Tenants: Congo DR National Team

Bottom line: Construction for the Congo’s national stadium began on Oct. 14, 1988, and ended five years later to the day.

While it’s stated capacity is 80,000, it can accommodate up to 125,000 people for select events.

In addition to being home to the Congo’s national team, it is also home to AS Vita Club, the second-winningest team in the Congo’s top soccer league.

95. Guangdong Olympic Stadium

FootyRoom / Facebook

Capacity: 80,012

Location: Guangzhou, China

Sports played: Soccer

Tenant: 2008 Summer Olympics

Bottom line: The design of this stadium played into the city of Guangzhou’s nickname of the Flower City.

The sunscreen roof of Guangdong Olympic Stadium resembles the petals of a flower with its odd and irregular shapes.

This venue was originally planned as the host of the opening and closing ceremonies for the 2008 Olympics until Beijing National Stadium was constructed and became China’s preeminent venue.

94. Stadio Giuseppe Meazza

Stadio Giuseppe Meazza / Facebook

Capacity: 80,065

Location: Milan, Italy

Sports played: Soccer

Tenants: A.C. Milan, Inter Milan

Bottom line: Better known as the San Siro, this venue is the largest stadium in Italy.

It is the home stadium for both AC Milan and Inter Milan, who have each won 18 Serie A championships, tied for second-most behind Juventus.

San Siro got its official name of Stadio Giuseppe Meazza in 1980 after former Milan and Inter player Giuseppe Meazza passed away.

93. Williams-Brice Stadium

Wikimedia Commons

Capacity: 80,250

Location: Columbia, South Carolina

Sports played: Football

Tenants: South Carolina Gamecocks

Bottom line: Williams-Brice Stadium has undergone many renovations since it opened in 1934. It used to seat 17,600 but now seats 80,250.

One of those renovations was adding an upper deck on the east sideline. Some fans have noticed that it sways when the crowd gets especially rowdy.

Former coach Joe Morrison infamously said, “If it ain’t swayin’, we ain’t playing,” and that phrase made its way onto several T-shirts and bumper stickers.

92. Memorial Stadium

Clemson University

Capacity: 80,301

Location: Clemson, South Carolina

Sports played: Football

Tenants: Clemson Tigers

Bottom line: With the rivalry between Clemson and South Carolina, you have to wonder if Clemson purposely added just a few more seats to their capacity in order to top their in-state rivals.

Memorial Stadium is the biggest venue in the ACC, and even the Carolina Panthers called it home for one season, perhaps as a way to remind non-Carolinians that they aren’t the “North” Carolina Panthers.

91. Camp Randall Stadium

University of Wisconsin

Capacity: 80,321

Location: Madison, Wisconsin

Sports played: Football

Tenants: Wisconsin Badgers

Bottom line: For the longest time, Camp Randall Stadium had its visiting locker room painted bright pink as a way to poke at the other team. But then the Wisconsin athletic department realized that this prodding could backfire and create an even more hostile visiting team so they then painted it a shade of blue.

That blue color is the same as used in a nearby prison and is appropriately called “prison blue.” It’s intended to have a calming effect, and it’s worked. Wisconsin is tough to beat at home.

90. Estadio Santiago Bernabéu

Wikimedia Commons

Capacity: 80,354

Location: Madrid, Spain

Sports played: Soccer

Tenants: Real Madrid C.F.

Bottom line: The Bernabéu is one of the most famous venues in the world and is the second-largest stadium in Spain.

In addition to hosting Read Madrid, it has also hosted a World Cup Final and four Champions League Finals.

It is not the Spanish national team’s official home stadium, but they do host most of the team’s major qualifying matches.

89. Estadio Monumental

Wikimedia Commons

Capacity: 80,593

Location: Lima, Peru

Sports played: Soccer

Tenants: Universitario de Deportes

Bottom line: Outside of being the home to the most successful soccer team in Peru, Estadio Monumental has also hosted some of the most famous musical artists in the world.

The stadium is the largest in South America, and artists such as Beyonce, Guns N’ Roses and Britney Spears have played concerts there.

88. Notre Dame Stadium

University of Notre Dame

Capacity: 80,795

Location: South Bend, Indiana

Sports played: Football

Tenants: Notre Dame Fighting Irish

Bottom line: Former Notre Dame coach Knute Rockne played a big role in the design of this stadium.

He wanted minimal space between the playing field and the stands. This allowed the Notre Dame fans to be right on top of the action and provide a better home-field advantage.

But Rockne only had a handful of games in the stadium. He was killed in a plane crash six months after the stadium opened.

87. Luzhniki Stadium

Wikimedia Commons

Capacity: 81,000

Location: Moscow, Russia

Sports played: Soccer, athletics

Tenants: Russia national team

Bottom line: Even though no club teams call Luzhniki Stadium home, the venue has hosted several notable sporting events since opening in 1956.

It hosted the opening and closing ceremonies of the 1980 Olympics and has also hosted the IAAF World Championships.

In 2018, it was the main stadium for the FIFA World Cup and hosted the final between France and Croatia.

86. Lambeau Field

lambeaufield / Twitter

Capacity: 81,435

Location: Green Bay, Wisconsin

Sports played: Football

Tenants: Green Bay Packers

Bottom line: Lambeau is the oldest continually operating NFL stadium. The first game was played in 1957.

Only Fenway Park and Wrigley Field have longer active home-field tenures than Lambeau in American pro sports.

Lambeau’s capacity of over 81,000 is nearly equal to the population of Green Bay, which has just over 100,000 people.

85. Stade de France

Wikimedia Commons

Capacity: 81,338

Location: Saint-Denis, France

Sports played: Soccer, Rugby

Tenants: France national team, France national rugby union team, Stade Français

Bottom line: Originally built for the 1998 FIFA World Cup, the French fans saw the home team win the tournament just months after the stadium opened.

It’s been the home of the French soccer team ever since, and in 2024, it will be the main stadium used for the Summer Olympics.

84. Kansas Speedway

Visit Overland Park

Capacity: 81,687

Location: Kansas City, Kansas

Sports played: Motor racing

Tenants: Digital Ally 400, Hollywood Casino 400

Bottom line: Located in Kansas City, Kansas, and not Kansas City, Missouri, officials chose to construct the race track on the Kansas side due to better funding.

While it primarily hosts NASCAR events, in 2016 it also hosted the American Royal, which is a rodeo, livestock show and barbecue competition all rolled into one event.

83. Twickenham Stadium

Wikimedia Commons

Capacity: 82,000

Location: London, England

Sports played: Rugby

Tenants: England national rugby union team

Bottom line: Twickenham is the largest stadium in the world dedicated to rugby, and it’s the second-largest stadium in the United Kingdom, trailing only Wembley.

Twickenham doesn’t host football — or what Americans call soccer — but it does host American football. The stadium hosted three of the NFL International Series games and was the first European stadium outside of Wembley to do so.

82. Maracanã Stadium

Wikimedia Commons

Capacity: 82,238

Location: Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Sports played: Soccer

Tenants: Flamengo, Fluminese, Brazil national football team

Bottom line: Maracanã Stadium holds the record for the largest attendance ever for a team sport event.

At the 1950 FIFA World Cup Final, 199,854 people piled in to watch Uruguay defeat the home team. The stadium was mostly grandstand at that time, so it was mostly standing room only.

Over the years, seats have been added to the stadium, which has led to a dramatic reduction in capacity.

80. Croke Park (Tied)

Noel Lawler Green Energy Solutions

Capacity: 82,300

Location: Dublin, Ireland

Sports played: Gaelic Football, Hurling, Camogie, Gaelic Handball

Tenants: Gaelic Athletic Association

Bottom line: Gaelic football is similar to rugby but not quite as physical, and Croke Park is the unofficial home of the sport.

But the stadium has also hosted numerous other sporting events, including a pair of college football games and an NFL preseason game in 1997.

Croke Park also hosted one of Muhammad Ali’s fights as he defeated Al Lewis via an 11th round TKO in 1972.

80. Doak S. Campbell Stadium (Tied)

Doak S. Campbell Stadium / Facebook

Capacity: 82,300

Location: Tallahassee, Florida

Sports played: Football

Tenants: Florida State Seminoles

Bottom line: Constructed with bricks, the home of FSU football is the largest continuous brick structure in the United States. When it opened in 1950, the stadium had a capacity of 15,000, and it’s been renovated or upgraded 15 times since then.

Longtime Seminoles coach Bobby Bowden had his name added to the field in 2004, and the official name of the stadium is Bobby Bowden Field at Doak S. Campbell Stadium.

79. MetLife Stadium

NRG

Capacity: 82,500

Location: East Rutherford, New Jersey

Sports played: Football, soccer

Tenants: New York Giants, New York Jets

Bottom line: With a construction cost of $1.6 billion, MetLife was the most expensive stadium ever built when it opened in 2010.

As the home of both the Giants and the Jets, the stadium has four locker rooms – one for each team and then two visitor locker rooms.

Unlike the old Giants Stadium in which the Jets were secondary tenants, MetLife Stadium is a joint venture between the two teams, and they are equal partners.

78. ANZ Stadium

Wikimedia Commons

Capacity: 83,500

Location: Sydney, Australia

Sports played: Soccer, rugby, cricket, Australian rules football

Tenants: New South Wales Blues, Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs, South Sydney Rabbitohs, New South Wales cricket team, Australia national football team

Bottom line: A multipurpose venue, ANZ Stadium is home to three rugby teams, one cricket team and one soccer team.

But its initial design was to host the 2000 Sydney Olympics, and the opening and closing ceremonies took place there.

In 2016, ANZ Stadium hosted its first college football game as the designated home team of Hawaii took on Cal, which needed a 17-hour flight to reach Sydney.

77. Santa Anita Park

Santa Anita Park

Capacity: 85,000

Location: Arcadia, California

Sports played: Horse racing

Tenants: Santa Anita Derby

Bottom line: Santa Anita Park is one of the most prestigious racetracks in America and has hosted the Breeders’ Cup 10 times.

But over the last few years, it’s gained more recognition for the number of horse deaths at the track.

Thirty-seven horses died there in 2019, and that led to the permanent banishment of Hall of Fame trainer Jerry Hollendorfer, who trained many of the horses that died there.

76. Sha Tin Racecourse

Wikimedia Commons

Capacity: 85,500

Location: Sha Tin, Hong Kong

Sports played: Horse racing

Tenants: Hong Kong Derby, Queen Elizabeth II Cup, Champions Mile, Hong Kong International Races

Bottom line: Sha Tin Racecourse is more than just a racetrack for horses. It also houses a full medical center.

Some of its features include an equine hospital, a racing laboratory and an equine-only swimming pool. T

hanks to the 20 stables inside it, the Sha Tin Racecourse can hold up to 1,260 horses for its 474 annual races.

74. Borg El Arab Stadium (Tied)

Wikimedia Commons

Capacity: 86,000

Location: Alexandria, Egypt

Sports played: Soccer

Tenants: Egypt national team

Bottom line: Built in 2009, Borg El Arab Stadium is one of the newest venues on this list and has many modern amenities. It has two training fields with a 2,000-seat capacity for each, as well as 32 restaurants around the concourse.

Attached to the stadium is a hotel that includes 200 beds, a cafeteria, swimming pool and gymnasium.

Also included on the lot is a helicopter landing pad that can hold four aircraft.

74. Portland International Raceway (Tied)

City of Portland

Capacity: 86,000

Location: Portland, Oregon

Sports played: Motor racing

Tenants: Grand Prix of Portland

Bottom line: This racetrack used to hold multiple NASCAR events, but now its most prominent event is the IndyCar Series’ Grand Prix of Portland.

But it’s lucky to be holding any events at all. In 1948, a railroad berm broke and water from the Columbia River flooded the area. The flood wiped out the entire city of Vanport, Oregon, and all that remained were paved streets.

Those streets became the foundation of the Portland International Raceway.

73. Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium

LiveCfb / Twitter

Capacity: 86,112

Location: Norman, Oklahoma

Sports played: Football

Tenants: Oklahoma Sooners

Bottom line: When this stadium opened in 1923, the seating consisted of just a 500-seat bleacher area on the east side of the field. Ninety-four years later, it posted its record attendance of 88,308 in a win over No. 6 TCU.

Of the 10 largest crowds ever in the stadium, Oklahoma has gone 9-1 in those games with the one loss being to No. 3 Ohio State in 2016.

72. Bukit Jalil National Stadium

Wikimedia Commons

Capacity: 87,411

Location: Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Sports played: Soccer

Tenants: Malaysia national team

Bottom line: Whenever the top teams in the English Premier League do tours of Asia, this venue is what they use when they pass through Malaysia.

Manchester United, Liverpool, Chelsea and Arsenal have all held games at Bukit Jalil, which is the largest stadium in Southeast Asia.

The Malaysia national team has used it for World Cup qualifying games, but it hasn’t provided much of a home-field advantage since Malaysia has yet to qualify for any of the 21 FIFA World Cups.

71. Jordan–Hare Stadium

Auburn University

Capacity: 87,451

Location: Auburn, Alabama

Sports played: Football

Tenants: Auburn Tigers

Bottom line: Many know that Jordan-Hare Stadium is home to Auburn’s football team, but they don’t know where the name came from.

Jordan refers to Shug Jordan, who is the winningest coach in program history and also spent 10 years as Auburn’s basketball coach. The Hare refers to Cliff Hare, who was a player on Auburn’s inaugural football team in 1892.

He later became a dean at Auburn, was president of the Southern Conference, and even served as interim mayor of the city of Auburn in 1919.

70. Estadio Azteca

Wikimedia Commons

Capacity: 87,523

Location: Mexico City, Mexico

Sports played: Soccer

Tenants: Club América, Cruz Azul, Mexico national team

Bottom line: Up until recent renovations, Estadio Azteca would routinely seat over 100,000 spectators for events.

In 1994, it hosted an NFL preseason game with 112,376 in attendance, which remains a record for any NFL game.

But the all-time attendance for the stadium is 119,853 for a friendly soccer match between Mexico and Brazil on July 7, 1968.

69. Gelora Bung Karno Stadium

Wikimedia Commons

Capacity: 88,306

Location: Jakarta, Indonesia

Sports played: Soccer

Tenants: Indonesia national team

Bottom line: Like many multipurpose venues, this stadium has hosted much more than just sporting events.

It’s hosted a mass led by Pope John Paul II. which attracted over 100,000 people in 1989. It has also been used for political rallies for presidential elections and was even used for admission exams for Ministry of Health civil servant applicants.

The biggest sporting event it hosted was a boxing match between Muhammad Ali and Rudi Lubbers in 1973.

68. Ben Hill Griffin Stadium

University of Florida

Capacity: 88,548

Location: Gainesville, Florida

Sports played: Football

Tenants: Florida Gators

Bottom line: The state of Florida is home to 11 Division I football programs and three NFL teams, but Ben Hill Griffin Stadium is the largest in the state.

Known as The Swamp, the stadium was built in a sinkhole with its playing surface below ground level. So the fans are literally on top of the action.

That gives the Gators a great home-field advantage.

64. Belmont Park (Tied)

TheNYRA / Twitter

Capacity: 90,000

Location: Elmont, New York

Sports played: Horse racing

Tenants: Belmont Stakes

Bottom line: Best known as home to the Belmont Stakes, Belmont Park is about five miles east of Queens. It was built in 1905 and also hosts numerous other horse races, including the Belmont Derby each July.

In the early 20th century, this park also hosted aviation shows where many pilots, including the Wright Brothers, staged aerial tournaments showing off their aircrafts.

64. Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps (Tied)

Wikimedia Commons

Capacity: 90,000

Location: Spa, Belgium

Sports played: Motor racing

Tenants: Belgian Grand Prix, MotoGP, Spa 24 Hours

Bottom line: Formula One has been holding Grand Prix races here for over 90 years with the most notable being the Belgian Grand Prix.

This venue has also been chosen to host individual stages of the Tour de France, including in 2017.

But in 2019, Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps was the site of a tragedy as Frenchman Anthoine Hubert died after an accident during a Formula 2 race.

64. Donington Park (Tied)

Visit Derby

Capacity: 90,000

Location: Castle Donington, England

Sports played: Motor racing

Tenants: F3, British motorcycle Grand Prix

Bottom line: Outside of hosting motorsports events, Donington Park also hosted a Grand Prix exhibition, which was essentially a museum of motor racing cars. The exhibition closed in 2018 after the famed Monsters of Rock festival ended in 1996.

But one event which is still active inside the Park is the Download Festival, which has featured such bands as Def Leppard and Guns N’ Roses in recent years.

64. Wembley Stadium (Tied)

Unsplash

Capacity: 90,000

Location: London, England

Sports played: Soccer, rugby

Tenants: England national team, FA Cup Final, FA Community Shield

Bottom line: Just as there are several Madison Square Gardens or Yankee Stadiums, there are several Wembley Stadiums. This one opened in 2007 on the same site as the original, which opened in 1923.

It’s the home stadium for English soccer and also has hosted several other sporting events, including Wladimir Klitschko’s final boxing bout when he lost to Anthony Joshua in 2017.

63. Auto Club Speedway

Wikimedia Commons

Capacity: 91,200

Location: Fontana, California

Sports played: Motor racing

Tenants: Auto Club 400

Bottom line: Located just east of Los Angeles, Auto Club Speedway has a maximum capacity of 122,000 when infield seating is taken into account.

Unfortunately, the track has seen numerous fatalities – both in competition and out of it. In 2010, a young woman died after hitting a wall in the track while participating in a driving school in a replica Indycar.

62. Memorial Stadium

Wikimedia Commons

Capacity: 91,585

Location: Lincoln, Nebraska

Sports played: Football

Tenants: Nebraska Cornhuskers

Bottom line: Entering the 2020 season, Memorial Stadium had 375 straight sellouts, which is the longest streak in college football. The sellout streak will continue past the 2020 season, which will have an asterisk since fans were not allowed to attend games because of a health crisis. “If you can’t sell, you can’t sell out,” said Nebraska athletic director Bill Moos.

Nebraska has sold out every game since the 1962 season, and the Cornhuskers fans have seen five national championships in that span.

That means that for 375 games, Memorial Stadium has had more people in it than all but two cities in the state of Nebraska (Omaha and Lincoln).

61. FedExField

Populous

Capacity: 91,704

Location: Landover, Maryland

Sports played: Football

Tenants: Washington Football Team

Bottom line: Formerly known as Jack Cooke Stadium, FedExField has been open since 1997 but has never had a single sellout.

The fact that the Washington Football Team has the fourth-most home losses over that span is a big reason why the venue is still searching for its first sellout.

What also doesn’t help is that the closest public transportation is a mile away from the stadium, and many fans would rather not make the walk from there to the venue.

60. Cotton Bowl

Wikimedia Commons

Capacity: 92,200

Location: Dallas, Texas

Sports played: Football

Tenants: Cotton Bowl Game, Red River Rivalry

Bottom line: The former home of both the Cotton Bowl Game and the Dallas Cowboys, both of those have since moved to AT&T Stadium.

The venue still holds the annual Oklahoma-Texas game, and it added a new sport to its resume in 2020.

The Cotton Bowl hosted the NHL Winter Classic, which made it the first outdoor NHL game to be held in a Southern state.

59. Rose Bowl

Rose Bowl Stadium / Facebook

Capacity: 92,542

Location: Pasadena, California

Sports played: Football

Tenants: UCLA Bruins, Rose Bowl Game

Bottom line: Outside of the Rose Bowl Game, the Rose Bowl Stadium has hosted numerous postseason college football games.

This includes four BCS National Championship Games, and it’s also in the rotation for the College Football Playoff.

The Rose Bowl is also the only venue west of the Mississippi River to host the Army-Navy Game as it did in 1983.

58. Sanford Stadium

University of Georgia

Capacity: 92,746

Location: Athens, Georgia

Sports played: Football

Tenants: Georgia Bulldogs

Bottom line: Most college football stadiums run north-south but Sanford Stadium is oriented differently so the field is east-west.

That throws off opponents as the sun hits them differently through the open west end zone and creates an on-field advantage for the Bulldogs.

Kentucky’s Kroger Field is the only other SEC stadium with an east-west orientation.

57. Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum

DLR Group

Capacity: 93,607

Location: Los Angeles, California

Sports played: Football

Tenants: USC Trojans, Los Angeles Rams

Bottom line: Just about every major sports team in Los Angeles has played in the Coliseum at some point in their history.

This includes the Raiders, Chargers (AFL), Dodgers, UCLA football, and the venue even hosted the Pro Bowl for over 20 years.

It was the NFL’s largest stadium until 2020. With the Rams moving into SoFi Stadium, the Coliseum is no longer an NFL venue.

56. FNB Stadium

Wikimedia Commons

Capacity: 94,700

Location: Johannesburg, South Africa

Sports played: Soccer

Tenants: South African national team

Bottom line: Twenty years before FNB Stadium hosted the 2010 FIFA World Cup, the venue hosted Nelson Mandela’s first speech after his release from prison. It also served as the venue for his 2013 memorial service since it is the biggest stadium in all of Africa.

In 2018, FNB had 100,000 fans for the Global Citizen Festival with featured acts such as Ed Sheeran, Usher, Jay-Z and Beyonce.

55. Dover International Speedway

Visit Delaware

Capacity: 95,500

Location: Dover, Delaware

Sports played: Motor racing

Tenants: Gander RV 400, Drydene 400

Bottom line: As with most racetracks, the listed capacity isn’t close to the maximum capacity of a venue. Dover has 95,500 seats, but with the infield patrons, it can hold up to 135,000 spectators.

Nearly that many people watched in 2001 as this racetrack was the first to hold a NASCAR Cup Series event following the attacks on 9/11.

54. Pimlico Race Course

Horses racing in the Preakness Stakes at Pimlico Race Course

Steve Helber / AP Photo

Capacity: 98,983

Location: Baltimore, Maryland

Sports played: Horse racing

Tenants: Preakness Stakes

Bottom line: Since 1873, the Preakness Stakes has taken place in Baltimore at Pimlico.

Despite having the second-largest capacity out of the three Triple Crown races, Pimlico has the smallest racecourse of the three since the Preakness is run at a shorter distance than both the Kentucky Derby and Belmont Stakes.

53. Camp Nou

UEFA Champions League / Facebook

Capacity: 99,354

Location: Barcelona, Spain

Sports played: Soccer

Tenants: FC Barcelona

Bottom line: The home of FC Barcelona is the largest stadium in all of Europe and is the third-largest soccer-specific stadium in the world.

Those two distinctions could change fairly soon as there are plans for the renovation and expansion of Camp Nou.

The stadium’s board of directors plan on increasing the capacity to 105,000 after a remodeling project expected to be completed by 2025.

47. Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez (Tied)

Mercedes-AMG Petronas Formula One Team / Facebook

Capacity: 100,000

Location: Mexico City, Mexico

Sports played: Motor racing

Tenants: Mexican Grand Prix, Gran Premio de México, A1 Grand Prix

Bottom line: A unique feature of this racetrack is that a baseball stadium resides inside turn 14. The stadium is named Foro Sol and included two Mexican Baseball League teams as tenants.

Foro Sol has a capacity of 26,000 for baseball but can expand to 65,000 for concerts and other events. Select racing events for the Autodromo even include parts of the track, and turns include the baseball stadium.

47. Algarve International Circuit (Tied)

The Grand Tour / Amazon

Capacity: 100,000

Location: Portimao, Portugal

Sports played: Motor racing

Tenants: Superleague Formula, GP2 Series, A1 Grand Prix

Bottom line: With so many different types of events ranging from Formula One to FIM Superbike to Le Mans, this venue needed to be created with lots of variations in mind. Thus, there are 64 unique variants of the layout depending on the events being run.

Additionally, the nearly three-mile circuit includes a go-kart track, five-star hotel and technology park inside of it.

47. Azadi Stadium (Tied)

Wikimedia Commons

Capacity: 100,000

Location: Tehran, Iran

Sports played: Football

Tenants: Iran national team, Persepolis, Esteghlal

Bottom line: The Azadi Stadium is just part of the Azadi Sports Complex, which is the national sports complex of Iran.

Located nearby are a 12,000-seat indoor stadium, a 6,000-seat velodrome, a rowing river, weightlifting centers, swimming facilities and a host of other amenities.

Also, something unique about Azadi Stadium is that it has both internal and external parking lots with the one inside accommodating up to 400 cars.

47. Circuit Gilles Villeneuve (Tied)

Tripadvisor

Capacity: 100,000

Location: Montreal, Canada

Sports played: Motor racing

Tenants: Canadian Grand Prix

Bottom line: Located on a man-made island, Circuit Gilles Villeneuve offers some of the best views – both when on the track and when viewing it from afar.

While the track hosts the Formula One, and formerly hosted NASCAR events, when those aren’t going on, it’s open for the general public.

Joggers, cyclists and skaters are known to frequent the circuit and experience the same twists and turns as the Formula One drivers.

47. Goodwood Circuit (Tied)

Wikimedia Commons

Capacity: 100,000

Location: Chichester, England

Sports played: Motor racing

Tenants: Goodwood Revival

Bottom line: Constructed in the 1940s as a relief airfield for the British Air Force, Goodwood hosted races for 19 years until 1966.

Today, it hosts racing festivals such as the Goodwood Revival, which is akin to a museum for the types of racing cars that competed until 1966.

The circuit also has been used as a filming location for the British series Downtown Abbey.

47. Hipódromo de San Isidro (Tied)

Hipódromo de San Isidro

Capacity: 100,000

Location: San Isidro, Argentina

Sports played: Horse racing

Tenants: Gran Premio Carlos Pellegrini

Bottom line: The Hipodromo is the largest horse racing track in South America and is the second-largest in the Western Hemisphere, trailing only the Kentucky Derby.

It is essentially two racetracks. The long track is 1.7 miles, and there is another inner sand track that measures 1.6 miles.

46. Melbourne Cricket Ground

Getty Images

Capacity: 100,018

Location: Melbourne, Australia

Sports played: Soccer, Cricket, Australian rules football

Tenants: Australia national cricket team, Melbourne Demons, Richmond Tigers, Collingwood Magpies, Hawthorn Hawks

Bottom line: This venue is the largest in the Southern Hemisphere and is home to four teams in the Australian Football League.

It was built way back in 1853, and 90 years later, it served as housing quarters for over 200,000 soldiers – including both Australian and American – during World War II.

The highest attendance for a sporting event inside Melbourne Cricket Ground was 121,696 for the 1970 AFL Final.

45. Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium

Wikimedia Commons

Capacity: 100,119

Location: Austin, Texas

Sports played: Football

Tenants: Texas Longhorns

Bottom line: Many people don’t realize that the Texas Longhorns’ football stadium was named after an Oklahoma man and former Sooner.

Darrell K Royal played under Bud Wilkinson at Oklahoma before later becoming Texas’ head coach and athletic director.

After being known as Texas Memorial Stadium and many other names since construction in 1924, the venue was renamed after Royal in 1996. The “K” is in honor of his mother, Katy, who died when he was an infant.

44. Daytona International Speedway

Daytona Beach

Capacity: 101,000

Location: Daytona Beach, Florida

Sports played: Motor racing

Tenants: Daytona 500, 24 Hours of Daytona, Daytona 200

Bottom line: Designed by NASCAR founder Bill France Sr., he planned the racetrack to have the highest banking possible to give fans a better view of the track.

After two years of construction, the racetrack opened in 1959, and it has hosted the Daytona 500 ever since.

Also that year, Daytona International Speedway hosted several high school football games and later hosted some college football games featuring Bethune Cookman of Daytona Beach.

43. Sachsenring

Wikimedia Commons

Capacity: 101,309

Location: Hohenstein-Ernstthal, Germany

Sports played: Motor racing

Tenants: MotoGP

Bottom line: The MotoGP is Sachsenring’s highest-profile event, but the number of spectators for that far exceeds what the venue holds.

That’s because attendance for the MotoGP is counted over three days, which allows the event to tout over 200,000 fans over the course of a weekend.

The highest-ever attendance for the MotoGP is 230,133 in 2011.

42. Bryant–Denny Stadium

tCFBCountry / Twitter

Capacity: 101,821

Location: Tuscaloosa, Alabama

Sports played: Football

Tenants: Alabama Crimson Tide

Bottom line: How good a home-field advantage is Bryant-Denny to the Crimson Tide?

Well, having a great coach is also an advantage as Bear Bryant and Nick Saban have gone a combined 156-7 (.975 winning percentage) at the stadium.

It wouldn’t be a surprise if former school president George Denny has his name dropped from the stadium in the future and it’s renamed Bryant-Saban Stadium.

41. Sonoma Raceway

RaceSonoma / Twitter

Capacity: 102,000

Location: Sonoma, California

Sports played: Motor racing

Tenants: Toyota 350, Toyota Sonoma Nationals

Bottom line: Located in California’s wine country, Sonoma Raceway is home to one of three NASCAR Cup Series races that don’t take place on road courses.

This racetrack is in the Sonoma Mountains, so there is hilly terrain throughout, which makes for interesting racing.

The winner of the Toyota/Save Mart 350 race gets a trophy in the form of a wine bottle holder, paying homage to the race taking place in wine country.

40. Tiger Stadium

CFBKings / Twitter

Capacity: 102,321

Location: Baton Rouge, Louisiana

Sports played: Football

Tenants: LSU Tigers

Bottom line: Tiger Stadium, aka Death Valley, is known for having one of the best atmospheres in all of sports and gives LSU a great home-field advantage. Former Alabama coach Bear Bryant said the noise in the stadium “is like being in a drum,” and ESPN’s Chris Fowler calls it his favorite game day experience.

A unique feature of Tiger Stadium is that there are actually dorms inside the venue. They were installed on the east and west sidelines in the 1930s, and students actually lived in Tiger Stadium until they were converted into storage rooms in the 1980s.

39. Neyland Stadium

BracketBattles1 / Twitter

Capacity: 102,455

Location: Knoxville, Tennessee

Sports played: Football

Tenants: Tennessee Volunteers

Bottom line: Neyland Stadium took just six months to build back in 1921 as students and faculty even chipped in to help out.

The capacity was 3,200 back then, and it’s been expanded 13 times since to reach its current capacity.

In 1990, it reached its peak capacity of 104,037, but replacing regular seats with club seats a few years later brought that number down a few thousand.

38. Kyle Field

Texas A&M

Capacity: 102,733

Location: College Station, Texas

Sports played: Football

Tenants: Texas A&M Aggies

Bottom line: Texas loves its football, and there’s no stadium in the state larger than Kyle Field.

It was named after Edwin Jackson Kyle, who was the director of the General Athletics Association at A&M and used his own money to help construct the venue.

Located in the shadows of Kyle Field is Reveille Cemetery, which is where all Aggie dog mascots – named Reveille – are buried.

37. Ohio Stadium

UCPrezDrake / Twitter

Capacity: 104,944

Location: Columbus, Ohio

Sports played: Football

Tenants: Ohio State Buckeyes

Bottom line: Also known as The Horseshoe, Ohio State’s football stadium is on the National Register of Historic Places.

Whereas many stadiums built in the early 20th century held only a few thousand before expansion, Ohio Stadium’s initial capacity was 66,210.

Many university officials were actually worried that the stadium would never be filled to capacity, but even as the stadium has expanded to over 100,000 seats, attendance has never been a problem.

36. New Hampshire Motor Speedway

NHMS / Twitter

Capacity: 105,491

Location: Loudon, New Hampshire

Sports played: Motor racing

Tenants: Foxwoods Resort Casino 301, Loudon Classic

Bottom line: New Hampshire Motor Speedway’s capacity is roughly 20 times the population of the city it resides in. The venue also could house nearly 8 percent of the entire population of New Hampshire.

The track has been used for NASCAR events since opening in 1990, and it is home to the longest-running motorcycle race in North America, the Loudon Classic.

35. Beaver Stadium

Populous

Capacity: 106,572

Location: State College, Pennsylvania

Sports played: Football

Tenants: Penn State Nittany Lions

Bottom line: During the 2002 season, Beaver Stadium set a record for the most fans to watch a college football team at home. In Penn State’s eight home games, they averaged 107,239 fans for a total of 857,911.

The largest-ever single-game attendance was 110,889 when the Nittany Lions fell to Ohio State in 2018.

34. Circuit de Catalunya

Circuitcat_eng / Twitter

Capacity: 107,000

Location: Barcelona, Spain

Sports played: Motor racing

Tenants: Spanish Grand Prix, Catalan motorcycle Grand Prix

Bottom line: The Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya was constructed in 1991 as Barcelona geared up to host the 1992 Summer Olympics.

The first event it hosted was Formula One’s Spanish Grand Prix, and then it was used for cycling time trials at the Olympics.

Nearly 25 years later, the track was home to a tragedy as Spanish motorcycle racer Luis Salom died after a crash in the Catalan motorcycle Grand Prix.

33. Michigan Stadium

Wikimedia Commons

Capacity: 107,601

Location: Ann Arbor, Michigan

Sports played: Football

Tenants: Michigan Wolverines

Bottom line: The Big House certainly lives up to its nickname. It is the largest stadium in the United States and in the Western Hemisphere.

It originally had a capacity of 72,000 when it was built in 1927, and then it expanded to over 100,000 in 1956.

Since 1975, Michigan Stadium drew a crowd of at least 100,000 fans in every game for 293 games. The streak ended in 2020 due to the pandemic.

32. Richmond International Raceway

RichmondRaceway / Twitter

Capacity: 112,029

Location: Richmond, Virginia

Sports played: Motor racing

Tenants: Toyota Owners 400, Federated Auto Parts 400

Bottom line: Five different NASCAR events take place at this track, including two in the Cup Series.

The racetrack is shaped like a “D,” and the long straightway allows drivers to reach high speeds, which makes it one of the most popular venues for racing fans.

Due to the popularity of Richmond, in 2019, it was added as one of the tracks used in the NASCAR playoffs.

31. May Day Stadium

CFTV Stadiums / YouTube

Capacity: 114,000

Location: Pyongyang, North Korea

Sports played: Soccer, athletics

Tenants: North Korea national team

Bottom line: Officially known as the Rungrado 1st of May Stadium, this venue received its name from opening on May 1, 1989.

It was constructed after North Korea was awarded the 1988 Summer Olympics, but obviously was not used for those Games.

May Day Stadium hosted the first-ever PPV from a North American wrestling promotion held in North Korea with Collision in Korea in 1995. The event consisted of wrestlers from WCW and New Japan, and the two-day event attracted over 150,000 fans.

30. Autodromo Nazionale Monza

ScuderiaFerrari / Twitter

Capacity: 115,000

Location: Monza, Italy

Sports played: Motor racing

Tenants: Italian Grand Prix

Bottom line: In addition to hosting motor racing events, this track also hosts select running events.

One of those was Breaking2, which was a Nike project in 2017 where three runners attempted to break the two-hour barrier for the marathon.

Kenyan Olympic gold medalist Eliud Kipchoge just missed the mark but posted the best time at 2:00:25.

29. Las Vegas Motor Speedway

LVMotorSpeedway / Twitter

Capacity: 116,000

Location: Las Vegas, Nevada

Sports played: Motor racing

Tenants: Pennzoil 400, South Point 400

Bottom line: Not far from the Las Vegas strip, this speedway also has hosted numerous sporting events outside of racing.

In 2013, it held the World Long Drive Championship, which determined the longest golf drivers in the world.

A year later, it was used as the Finish Line for the 24th season of “The Amazing Race.”

28. Circuit of the Americas

COTA / Twitter

Capacity: 117,439

Location: Austin, Texas

Sports played: Motor racing

Tenants: United States Grand Prix, Motorcycle Grand Prix of the Americas

Bottom line: The Circuit of the Americas offers some cool landmarks located on the campus of the racetrack, including a 251-foot observation tower.

It allows a great view of the track as well as all of Austin and features a glass floor for those interested in that sort of thing.

The racetrack also has a soccer stadium in the area as Austin Bold FC of the USL plays in the 5,000-seat Bold Stadium.

27. Autódromo José Carlos Pace

Mercedes-AMG Petronas Formula One Team / Facebook

Capacity: 119,000

Location: Sao Paulo, Brazil

Sports played: Motor racing

Tenants: Brazilian Grand Prix

Bottom line: This circuit is locally known as Interlagos, which translates to “between lakes.”

As the nickname suggests, the track is located between the Billings Lake and Guarapiranga Lakes but was named after Brazilian Formula One driver Jose Carlos Pace, who won the Brazilian Grand Prix in 1975.

That was the first and only race that Pace ever won before dying in a plane crash in 1977.

21. Churchill Downs (Tied)

Churchill Downs

Capacity: 120,000

Location: Louisville, Kentucky

Sports played: Horse racing

Tenants: Kentucky Derby

Bottom line: The largest horse racing track in the Western Hemisphere, Churchill Downs has hosted every Kentucky Derby since both racetrack and race inaugurated in 1875.

In 2013, a new hi-def video board was installed in the venue and weighed 1,200,000 pounds, which is the exact same weight as the video board at the Cowboys’ AT&T Stadium.

However, the one at Churchill Downs measured slightly bigger than the one at AT&T Stadium making it the largest hi-def video board ever constructed.

21. Circuit de Nevers Magny-Cours (Tied)

Circuit de Nevers Magny-Cours / Facebook

Capacity: 120,000

Location: Magny-Cours, France

Sports played: Motor racing

Tenants: French Grand Prix, Bol d’Or

Bottom line: This circuit stretches 1.668 miles long and has hosted several Formula One and cycling events.

But it also hosts several students as well because the University of Burgundy’s engineering college is located on the outskirts.

The Higher Institute of Automobile and Transport is the name of the college and is the only public engineering college in France that specializes in the automotive industry.

21. EuroSpeedway Lausitz (Tied)

Lausitzring / Facebook

Capacity: 120,000

Location: Klettwitz, Germany

Sports played: Motor racing

Tenants: A1 Grand Prix, Superbike World Championship

Bottom line: This racecourse has a feature that is unique to European tracks but certainly welcomed by fans.

It is oval-shaped like most NASCAR tracks, and that allows the entire circuit to be seen from the main grandstand.

That oval lies inside a bigger triangular oval to give the total length of the track 2.023 miles.

21. Hockenheimring (Tied)

Hockenheimring / Facebook

Capacity: 120,000

Location: Hockenheim, Germany

Sports played: Motor racing

Tenants: Formula One

Bottom line: In addition to the German Grand Prix, this venue has hosted many musical acts ranging from Michael Jackson to The Rolling Stones to AC/DC.

Jackson passed through Hockenheimring on two separate world tours – one in 1988 and one in 1997. The latter was sold out with 85,000 fans.

The circuit was redesigned in 2002 to put it at its current capacity.

21. Hungaroring (Tied)

F1 / Twitter

Capacity: 120,000

Location: Mogyorod, Hungary

Sports played: Motor racing

Tenants: Hungarian Grand Prix

Bottom line: There are over 70 Formula One circuits, and Hungaroring was built faster than any of those tracks.

It took just eight months to construct from 1985 to 1986 and has held the Hungarian Grand Prix every year since opening.

The track was built in a valley in Mogyorod, and the low elevation allows roughly 80 percent of the circuit to be seen from any point.

21. Kyoto Racecourse (Tied)

WHR / Twitter

Capacity: 120,000

Location: Kyoto, Japan

Sports played: Horse racing

Tenants: Kikuka Sho, Tenno Sho, Shuka Sho

Bottom line: Part of the appeal of horse racing tracks is the great view you get from the grandstand. It’s hard to top Kyoto’s scenery.

In addition to a circular parade ring that allows the view of the horses before each race, there is also a lake in the middle of the track.

Swans are known to frequent the lake, and they may be the only ones with a better view than the patrons.

20. Atlanta Motor Speedway

Visit Henry County

Capacity: 125,000

Location: Hampton, Georgia

Sports played: Motor racing

Tenants: Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500

Bottom line: Located in Hampton, which is about 20 miles south of Atlanta, this track has been featured in several movies over the years.

It was used in the 1982 Kenny Rogers film “Six Pack” as well as the sequel to “Smokey and the Bandit.”

In 2017, it was used in the movie “Logan Lucky” as a stand-in for Charlotte Motor Speedway, with outside barriers of the track repainted yellow to match those of the Charlotte circuit.

18. Flemington Racecourse (Tied)

Wikimedia Commons

Capacity: 130,000

Location: Melbourne, Australia

Sports played: Horse racing

Tenants: Melbourne Cup

Bottom line: Flemington hosts nearly 40 races each year, but the most notable is the Melbourne Cup, which is the richest handicap race in the world.

The 2019 purse of the Melbourne Cup was $8 million in Australian currency, or just over $5 million in U.S. dollars.

18. Sepang International Circuit (Tied)

Driver61

Capacity: 130,000

Location: Sepang, Malaysia

Sports played: Motor racing

Tenants: Formula One, MotoGP, Super GT

Bottom line: This circuit is just under 3.5 miles long and features a tight hairpin turn in the middle of the track. It’s called a hairpin turn because the acute angle resembles that of a hairpin as vehicles essentially have to make a 180-degree pivot.

Fortunately, no fatalities have ever occurred at this turn, but the track has seen two deaths from accidents on the south part of the circuit.

17. Korea International Circuit

Capacity: 135,000

Location: Yeongam, South Korea

Sports played: Motor racing

Tenants: Formula One

Bottom line: After this circuit hosted the Korean Grand Prix from 2010 to 2013, Formula One then dropped the event from their calendar.

That left this $375 million venue with only local races to host, and none of those come close to attracting the 135,000 fans that the circuit holds.

A South Korean official who was also a Formula One director now refers to this circuit as a “spectacular flop” for squandering tax revenue to construct it.

16. Michigan International Speedway

Wikimedia Commons

Capacity: 137,243

Location: Brooklyn, Michigan

Sports played: Motor racing

Tenants: FireKeepers Casino 400, Consumers Energy 400

Bottom line: Located about 70 miles west of Detroit, this circuit is the fastest track in NASCAR thanks to a variety of factors.

One is the lack of restrictor-plate requirements, which don’t limit engine power of vehicles, and another factor is the long straightaways on both sides of the oval-shaped track.

Maximum speeds reach anywhere from 215 miles per hour (mph) to 220 mph, and Jeff Gordon’s qualifying record time had an average speed of 206.5 mph in 2015.

15. Hanshin Racecourse

WHR / Twitter

Capacity: 139,877

Location: Hyogo, Japan

Sports played: Horse racing

Tenants: Takarazuka Kinen, Japan Cup Dirt, Oka Sho

Bottom line: The area this racecourse was built on was previously used during World War II for combat planes.

Once the war ended and Japan stopped building combat planes, it was then converted into a racing course and opened in 1949.

Like many other horse racing courses, Hanshin has multiple courses within it, including two turf courses, one dirt course and a jump course.

14. Fuji Speedway

RyanH579 / Twitter

Capacity: 140,000

Location: Oyama, Japan

Sports played: Motor racing

Tenants: Super GT, 6 Hours of Fuji, Super Formula

Bottom line: The Fuji Speedway provides one of the best scenic views in the world with the track at the base of Mount Fuji.

It hosted the first Formula One race in Japan with the Japanese Grand Prix in 1976. The speedway hosted the event again in 1977 before being taken off the Formula One calendar.

Then, the race was again hosted at Fuji Speedway in 2007.

11. Nürburgring (Tied)

Nürburgring / Facebook

Capacity: 150,000

Location: Nürburg, Germany

Sports played: Motor racing

Tenants: German Grand Prix

Bottom line: Besides being Germany’s biggest sports venue, Nürburgring is best known for being where Niki Lauda was almost killed in 1976.

During the German Grand Prix, Lauda’s Ferrari burst into flames, and he almost died after inhaling the toxic fumes.

Miraculously, he was able to quickly recover and raced again just six weeks later.

11. Buddh International Circuit (Tied)

Buddh International Circuit / Facebook

Capacity: 150,000

Location: Delhi, India

Sports played: Motor racing

Tenants: Formula One, FIM Superbike World Championship

Bottom line: India’s first Formula One Grand Prix was hosted in 2011 at Buddh, which is part of a planned 5,000-acre sports complex.

Also planned for the complex – named Jaypee Sports City – is a 40,000-seat cricket stadium, an 18-hole golf course, a 25,000 field hockey stadium and a sports training academy.

Jaypee Sports City began construction in 2009 but still hasn’t completed although the cricket stadium is expected to open in 2022.

11. Silverstone Circuit (Tied)

Silverstone Circuit / Facebook

Capacity: 150,000

Location: Silverstone, England

Sports played: Motor racing

Tenants: British Grand Prix, British motorcycle Grand Prix

Bottom line: The United Kingdom’s largest sports venue is on the site of a World War II air force bomber station, RAF Silverstone.

After the war, a group of friends held an impromptu race in the deserted area where one of the members accidentally ran over a sheep and killed it.

A year later in 1948, the Royal Automobile Club took a lease on the airfield and created a more formal racing circuit that became the Silverstone Circuit.

9. Istanbul Park (Tied)

FormulaTurkiye / Twitter

Capacity: 155,000

Location: Istanbul, Turkey

Sports played: Motor racing

Tenants: Formula One

Bottom line: Former Formula One CEO Bernie Ecclestone called this circuit the best racetrack in the world.

It was designed by German engineer Hermann Tilke, who also designed half a dozen other circuits on this list, including ones all over the world.

The grandstand seats 25,000 spectators while there are hospitality areas that allow for 5,000 seats as well as two seven-story VIP towers.

9. Suzuka Circuit (Tied)

japanguidecom / Twitter

Capacity: 155,000

Location: Suzuka, Japan

Sports played: Motor racing

Tenants: Japanese Grand Prix, Suzuka 8 Hours, 1000 km Suzuka

Bottom line: Suzuka is one of two Grade 1 licensed tracks to have a figure-eight layout.

While that is exciting for spectators – and some drivers – this configuration is also dangerous.

Since opening in 1962, 19 different drivers have died from accidents on the track, despite the circuit being modified four times to increase safety.

8. Bristol Motor Speedway

Bristol Motor Speedway / Facebook

Capacity: 162,000

Location: Bristol, Tennessee

Sports played: Motor racing

Tenants: Food City 500, Bass Pro Shops NRA Night Race

Bottom line: The Bristol Motor Speedway is a legendary auto racetrack.

But after years of Bristol showing interest in a neutral-site football game between the University of Tennessee and Virginia Tech, the Battle at Bristol was finally held in 2016.

The grass on the infield of the circuit was grown to accommodate a football game, and 156,990 fans piled in to watch the Vols win 45-24. That attendance is the largest ever to watch an NCAA football game.

7. Nakayama Racecourse

HorseRacing_JPN / Twitter

Capacity: 165,676

Location: Chiba, Japan

Sports played: Horse racing

Tenants: Arima Kinen, Satsuki Sho, Sprinters Stakes

Bottom line: Like most modern racecourses, Nakayama contains multiple tracks: some for horse races and some for steeplechase events.

The racing courses consist of two grass courses, one dirt course, and can be run at any distance between 1,000 meters and 4,000 meters.

The jump course for the steeplechase consists of steep embankments that the horses have to navigate, or if they prefer, they can try to just go through them.

6. Charlotte Motor Speedway

CLTMotorSpdwy / Twitter

Capacity: 167,000

Location: Concord, North Carolina

Sports played: Motor racing

Tenants: Coca-Cola 600, Bank of America Roval 400

Bottom line: This venue hosts the longest race on NASCAR’s schedule with the Coca-Cola 600.

With so many drivers and crews located in North Carolina, this circuit is also the unofficial home track for many in NASCAR.

Outside of racing, Charlotte Motor Speedway has been used in filming for many movies, including “Days of Thunder” and “Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby.”

5. Texas Motor Speedway

Visit Fort Worth

Capacity: 181,655

Location: Fort Worth, Texas

Sports played: Motor racing

Tenants: O’Reilly Auto Parts 500, AAA Texas 500

Bottom line: Texas Motor Speedway is the biggest venue used by NASCAR on a regular basis, and it also has hosted several country music and rock concerts.

One event they wanted to host was the Red River Rivalry Game between Oklahoma and Texas. In 2004, the owners of Texas Motor Speedway tried to relocate the game from the Cotton Bowl to their venue but came up short in their request.

4. Shanghai International Circuit

FIAWEC / Twitter

Capacity: 200,000

Location: Shanghai, China

Sports played: Motor racing

Tenants: Formula One

Bottom line: China’s largest venue took $450 million to build and needed 3,000 daily workers for 18 months before completion.

But the time and money put into it were worth it, and the Shanghai International Circuit is a world-class facility.

Formula One teams specifically enjoy it because each of their F1 teams has its own building inside the venue, which provides privacy and as much quiet as a racing track can allow for.

3. Tokyo Racecourse

Life in Tokyo

Capacity: 223,000

Location: Tokyo, Japan

Sports played: Horse racing

Tenants: Japan Cup, Tokyo Yushun, Yushun Himba

Bottom line: The biggest horse racing venue in the world seats just 13,750 but can hold over 200,000 more spectators than that.

Tokyo Racecourse holds 30 horse racing events annually between October and June, with no events from July through September.

It formerly held the honor of having the world’s largest HD screen at over 8,000 square feet before being overtaken by a number of newer venues.

2. Circuit de la Sarthe

MichelinRaceUSA / Twitter

Capacity: 234,800

Location: Le Mans, France

Sports played: Motor racing

Tenants: 24 Hours of Le Mans

Bottom line: The biggest sports venue in Europe can hold the entire population of Santa Clara and Green Bay combined.

Circuit de la Sarthe hosts 24 Hours of Le Mans, which is the world’s oldest endurance sports car race.

But the circuit also has another track within its confines, and the Bugatti Circuit is its own track, and that alone has a capacity of 100,000.

1. Indianapolis Motor Speedway

IMS / Twitter

Capacity: 257,325

Location: Indianapolis, Indiana

Sports played: Motor racing

Tenants: Indianapolis 500, Brickyard 500

Bottom line: While many racetracks on this list have a seating capacity that takes into account standing room only, Indianapolis Motor Speedway has a permanent seating capacity of 257,325.

It took five months to construct in 1909 and opened with just 12,000 seats. Things have changed since then. Not only can the venue host events like the Indianapolis 500, but it also hosted a PGA Tour event for eight years.

The 500 Festival Open Invitation was played here in the 1960s with most holes surrounding the venue but a couple of them within the infield.