Pratt & Whitney Stadium at Rentschler Field

Pratt & Whitney Stadium

Rentschler Field, The Rent
The stadium during a football game in 2017
Pratt & Whitney Stadium Location in Connecticut Show map of Connecticut Pratt & Whitney Stadium Location in the United States Show map of the United States
Former names	Rentschler Field (2003–2015)
Location	615 Silver Lane, East Hartford, CT 06118
Coordinates	41°45′35″N72°37′8″W / 41.75972°N 72.61889°W / 41.75972; -72.61889
Public transit	120, 121
Owner	State of Connecticut
Operator	Spectra [1]
Capacity	38,066 (standing room to 40,000, expandable to at least 42,704)
Record attendance	42,704 (Sept. 2013)
Surface	Kentucky Bluegrass
Construction
Broke ground	October 21, 2000 [2]
Opened	August 30, 2003;20 years ago (August 30, 2003)
Construction cost	$91.2 million ($151 million in 2023 dollars [3] )
Architect	Ellerbe Becket
Structural engineer	BVH Integrated Services [4]
Services engineer	Diversified Technology Consultants [5]
General contractor	Hunt-Gilbane Joint Venture [6]
Tenants
UConn Huskies (NCAA) (2003–present) Hartford Colonials (UFL) (2010) Hartford Athletic (USLC) (2019) Toronto FC (MLS) (2020)
Website
rentschlerfield.com

Pratt & Whitney Stadium at Rentschler Field is a stadium in East Hartford, Connecticut. It is primarily used for football and soccer, and is the home field of the University of Connecticut (UConn) Huskies. In 2010, it was home to the Hartford Colonials of the United Football League. The stadium, which opened in 2003, was the first stadium used primarily by an NCAA Division I-A (now FBS) team to open in the 21st century. The permanent stadium capacity is 40,000, consisting of 38,066 permanent seats with a standing-room area in the scoreboard plaza that can accommodate up to 1,934 people. It also has a game day capability to add approximately 3,000 temporary seats as it did for UConn football vs. Michigan in 2013. Connecticut played on campus at Memorial Stadium in Storrs, before 2003.

Rentschler Field was originally the name of the company airfield for Pratt & Whitney that formerly occupied the site. The airfield, which began operations in 1931, was named after Frederick Rentschler, who founded Pratt & Whitney in 1925 and also founded its parent company, United Technologies. It was originally used for test flights and maintenance operations, and later for corporate aviation. The 75-acre (30 ha) site was decommissioned as an airport in the 1990s, and donated to the state of Connecticut by United Technologies in 1999. A subsequent 65-acre donation by United Technologies in 2009 allowed for the construction of additional grass parking lots adjacent to the Stadium.

Pursuant to a lease agreement with the State, UConn plays all its home football games at Rentschler Field.

History

The New England Patriots considered moving to Connecticut and sharing a stadium with the UConn football team in the mid-1990s. The new stadium was supposed to be built on the Connecticut Convention Center site in downtown Hartford. However, when the Patriots completed the deal for Gillette Stadium in Foxboro, Massachusetts, the Hartford stadium plan was scaled down and the location was moved to East Hartford. The current capacity of 40,000 can expand to 50,000 with limited rehabilitation and has the layout and design for expansion of up to 60,000 seats in the future. ^[7]

The stadium is owned by the State of Connecticut, Office of Policy and Management, while operations are overseen by the quasi-public Capital Region Development Authority (CRDA). Global Spectrum, L.P. has managed the building on behalf of CRDA since 2013. Previously, the Stadium was managed by Bushnell Management Services (2011–2013), Anschutz Entertainment Group (AEG)(2007–2011) and Madison Square Garden L.P. (2003–2007).

Prior to the 2013 season, a new 28 feet high by 73 feet wide and a 15HD pixel video display was installed replacing the stadiums original scoreboard. ^[8]

On July 16, 2015, it was announced that the stadium had been named Pratt & Whitney Stadium in a deal between Pratt & Whitney and UConn. The playing surface is still named Rentschler Field. ^[9] In return, Pratt and Whitney donated additional land that will be used for game day parking.

Connecticut Huskies

The UConn Huskies football team has an all time 68–59 record at Rentschler Field.

Aerial view during a game in 2006

Rentschler Field during the North Carolina at UConn football game, 2009

Year	Record
2003	5–1
2004	6–1
2005	4–2
2006	3–4
2007	7–0
2008	4–2
2009	4–2
2010	6–0
2011	4–3
2012	3–3
2013	2–5
2014	2–5
2015	4–2
2016	3–4
2017	2–4
2018	1–5
2019	1–5
2021	1–5
2022	5–1
2023	1–5

Sellouts

Date	Opponent	Result	Seats
September 13, 2003	Boston College	L 14–24	40,000
November 8, 2003	Rutgers	W 38–31	40,000
September 11, 2004	Duke	W 22–20	40,000
September 25, 2004	Army	W 40–3	40,000
September 30, 2004	Pittsburgh	W 29–17	40,000
October 13, 2004	#17 West Virginia	L 19–31	40,000
October 23, 2004	Temple	W 45–31	40,000
November 20, 2004	Buffalo	W 29–0	40,000
September 1, 2005	Buffalo	W 38–0	40,000
September 10, 2005	Liberty	W 59–0	40,000
October 7, 2005	Syracuse	W 26–7	40,000
October 22, 2005	Rutgers	L 24–26	40,000
November 26, 2005	South Florida	W 15–10	40,000
December 3, 2005	#16 Louisville	L 20–30	40,000
September 16, 2006	Wake Forest	L 13–24	40,000
September 30, 2006	Navy	L 17–41	40,000
October 20, 2006	#4 West Virginia	L 11–37	40,000
November 11, 2006	Pittsburgh	W 46–453OT	40,000
October 19, 2007	Louisville	W 21–17	40,000
October 27, 2007	#11 South Florida	W 22–15	40,000
November 3, 2007	Rutgers	W 38–19	40,000
November 17, 2007	Syracuse	W 30–7	40,000
September 13, 2008	Virginia	W 45–10	40,000
October 25, 2008	Cincinnati	W 40–16	40,000
November 1, 2008	West Virginia	L 35–13	40,000
October 17, 2009	Louisville	W 38–25	40,000
November 28, 2009	Syracuse	W 56–31	40,000
October 2, 2010	Vanderbilt	W 40–21	40,000
October 29, 2010	West Virginia	W 16–13OT	40,000
November 27, 2010	Cincinnati	W 38–17	40,000
September 21, 2013	#15 Michigan	L 24–21	42,704

^[10]

Soccer

Hartford Athletic

On March 11, 2019, it was announced that the renovations at Dillon Stadium would not be completed on time for Hartford Athletic's home opener on May 4 against Charlotte Independence. ^[11] Hartford Athletic played seven games at Pratt & Whitney Stadium.

Date	Opponent	Score	Attendance
May 4, 2019	Charlotte Independence	1–1	11,346
May 10, 2019	Memphis 901	1–2	5,045
May 25, 2019	Ottawa Fury	1–1	5,346
June 1, 2019	North Carolina	1–1	5,003
June 8, 2019	Saint Louis	2–1	5,132
June 16, 2019	Nashville	2–3	4,489
June 29, 2019	Bethlehem Steel	0–3	5,012

Major League Soccer

On September 23, 2017, New York City FC played a home match at Pratt & Whitney Stadium, against the Houston Dynamo, in the stadium's first Major League Soccer game. The game was relocated from Yankee Stadium in New York City due to a schedule conflict with the New York Yankees. ^[12]

On September 11, 2020, Governor Ned Lamont announced that Toronto FC would finish their season's home matches at Pratt & Whitney Stadium due to travel restrictions during the COVID-19 pandemic. ^[13]

Date	Teams	Score	Opponent	Competition	Attendance
September 23, 2017	New York City	1–1	Houston Dynamo	MLS	10,165
September 27, 2020	Toronto	3–1	Columbus Crew	MLS Trillium Cup	–
October 3, 2020	Toronto	2–1	Philadelphia Union	MLS	–
October 14, 2020	Toronto	1–1	New York Red Bulls	MLS	–
October 18, 2020	Toronto	1–0	Atlanta United	MLS	–
October 28, 2020	Toronto	0–1	New York City	MLS	–
November 1, 2020	Toronto	2–1	Inter Miami	MLS	1,394
November 24, 2020	Toronto	0–1	Nashville	MLS Cup Playoff	–

United States men's national soccer team

Rentschler Field has hosted several United States men's national soccer team's home games, including Landon Donovan's last game for the National Team on October 10, 2014. ^[14]

Date	Opponent	Score	Competition	Attendance
August 17, 2005	Trinidad and Tobago	1–0	2006 FIFA World Cup qualification CONCACAF fourth round	25,488
May 30, 2006	Latvia	1–0	Friendly	22,455
May 25, 2010	Czech Republic	2–4	Friendly	36,000
July 16, 2013	Costa Rica	1–0	2013 CONCACAF Gold Cup	25,432
October 10, 2014	Ecuador	1–1	Friendly	36,265
July 1, 2017	Ghana	2–1	Friendly	28,754
October 16, 2018	Peru	1–1	Friendly	24,959
October 14, 2023	Germany	1–3	Friendly	37,743

United States women's national soccer team

Rentschler Field has also hosted several United States women's national soccer team's home games.

Date	Opponent	Score	Competition	Attendance
August 1, 2004	China	3–1	Friendly	15,093
July 14, 2007	Norway	1–0	Friendly	9,957
July 17, 2010	Sweden	3–0	Friendly	5,570
October 23, 2012	Germany	2–2	Friendly	18,870
June 19, 2014	France	2–2	Friendly	14,695
April 6, 2016	Colombia	7–0	Friendly	21,792
July 29, 2018	Australia	1–1	2018 Tournament of Nations	21,570
July 1, 2021	Mexico	4–0	Friendly	21,637
July 5, 2021	Mexico	4–0	Friendly	27,758

Other soccer matches

Japan v Brazil women's soccer match, 2018

Date	Winner	Score	Opponent	Competition	Attendance
July 27, 2004	Liverpool	5–1	Celtic	Champions World Soccer Series Two 2004	24,271
July 16, 2013	Cuba	4–0	Belize	2013 CONCACAF Gold Cup	25,432
July 29, 2018	Brazil	2–1	Japan	2018 Tournament of Nations	13,027
March 8, 2022	New York City	3–1	Comunicaciones	2022 CONCACAF Champions League [15]	15,642
June 18, 2023	Venezuela	1–0	Guatemala	International Friendly	8,568
June 15, 2024	Colombia		Bolivia	International Friendly
June 16, 2024	Ecuador		Honduras	International Friendly

Hartford Colonials

The Hartford Colonials were a United Football League team that played their home games at Rentschler Field. During their (2010 UFL season), the Colonials played all four home games at Rentschler, after having played one there the previous season while they were known as the New York Sentinels. Attendance at Colonials games averaged a consistent 15,000 people, third place in the five-team league behind Omaha and Sacramento. The UFL suspended the Colonials franchise in 2011 and the franchise was officially terminated when the team's former owner (Bill Mayer) was named as the new owner of the Virginia Destroyers. ^[16]

Date	Opponent	Result	Score	Attendance
Thursday, November 12, 2009	Florida Tuskers	L	6–24	5,201
Saturday, September 18, 2010	Sacramento Mountain Lions	W	27–10	14,384
Saturday, October 9, 2010	Florida Tuskers	L	20–33	14,468
Saturday, October 16, 2010	Omaha Nighthawks	L	14–19	14,056
Saturday, November 20, 2010	Las Vegas Locomotives	W	27–14	14,554

Lacrosse

On May 19, 2019, Rentschler Field hosted the Quarterfinals for the 2019 NCAA Men's Lacrosse Championship. ^[17] In 2021 and 2022, Rentschler Field will host the NCAA Men's Lacrosse Championship for Divisions I, II, and III.

Date	Tournament	Result	Spectators
April 24, 2010	2010 ESPNU Warrior Classic	Denver 9–8 Fairfield	6,415
		Georgetown 12–13 UMass
May 19, 2019	2019 NCAA Division I Men's Quarterfinals	Penn State 21–14 Loyola	8,568
		Yale 19–18 (OT) Penn
May 29, 2021	2021 NCAA Division I Men's Semifinals	North Carolina 11–12 Virginia	13,707
		Maryland 14–5 Duke
May 30, 2021	2021 NCAA Division III Men's Finals	RIT 15–14 (2OT) Salisbury	5,815
	2021 NCAA Division II Men's Finals	Le Moyne 12–6 Lenoir–Rhyne
May 31, 2021	2021 NCAA Division I Men's Finals	Virginia 17–16 Maryland	14,816
May 28, 2022	2022 NCAA Division I Men's Semifinals	Cornell 17–10 Rutgers	21,688
		Maryland 13–8 Princeton
May 29, 2022	2022 NCAA Division III Men's Finals	Union 10–12 RIT	14,650
	2022 NCAA Division II Men's Finals	Mercy 7–11 Tampa
May 30, 2022	2022 NCAA Division I Men's Finals	Maryland 9–7 Cornell	22,184

Rugby union

On June 4, 2005, Rentschler Field hosted two rugby union matches; Wales vs USA Rugby and the 2005 U.S. Rugby Super League Championship game, between New York Athletic Club Rugby Football Club and Belmont Shore RFC in front of 8,027. Wales would defeat the US 77–3 and NYAC would defeat Belmont Shore 23–19. In 2008 Rentschler Field hosted a match between Irish provincial side Munster and the USA Eagles, with Munster winning 46–22. ^[18]

Date	Winner	Score	Opponent	League	Competition	Attendance
June 4, 2005	Wales	77–3	United States	IRB	Friendly	8,027 [19]
	NYAC	23–19	Belmont Shore	USRSL	Championship
August 31, 2008	Munster	46–22	United States	IRB	2008 Setanta Challenge Cup	8,350 [18]

Whalers Hockey Fest

On August 24, 2010, a fan event, called Whalers Fan Fest, occurred, featuring many of the former players, draws were close to 5,000 people on a Saturday afternoon.

From February 11 to the 20th, 2011, the stadium hosted the Whalers Hockey Fest 2011. A hockey rink was constructed on the field much like is done for the annual NHL Winter Classic. Events included a Hartford Whalers Alumni vs. Boston Bruins Alumni game, with an appearance from the Hanson Brothers, from the film Slap Shot, a double-header featuring both UConn men's and women's hockey teams, a Hockey Legends team faced off against the Mystery, Alaska Hollywood team, along with the Hanson Brothers from the movie Slap Shot, ^[20] and the second edition of the American Hockey League Outdoor Classic between the host Connecticut Whale and the Providence Bruins. Over 15,000 fans came out to watch the so-called "Whale Bowl", while over 1,700 attended the UConn men's game.

"Whale Bowl" at Rentschler Field, 19 Feb 2011

Date	League	Away Team	Home Team	Score	Attendance
February 13, 2011	Atlantic Hockey	Sacred Heart Pioneers (M)	UConn Huskies (M)	3–1	1,911
	Hockey East	Providence Friars (W)	UConn Huskies (W)	4–3	153
February 15, 2011	NESCAC	Wesleyan Cardinals (W)	Trinity Bantams (W)	5–1	100
	NESCAC	Wesleyan Cardinals (M)	Trinity Bantams (M)	3–1	820
February 19, 2011	Atlantic Hockey	Army Black Knights (M)	AIC Yellow Jackets (M)	4–1	1,142
	NHL Alumni	Boston Bruins Alumni	Hartford Whalers Alumni	4–4	10,000
	AHL	Providence Bruins	Connecticut Whale	5–4 (SO)	21,673

Concerts

Date	Artist	Opening act(s)	Tour / Concert name	Attendance	Gross	Notes
September 16, 2003	Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band		The Rising Tour	51,569	$3,788,325	[21]
September 18, 2003				66,000		[22]
August 26, 2005	The Rolling Stones	Maroon 5	A Bigger Bang Tour			[23]
July 31, 2007	The Police	Fiction Plane	The Police Reunion Tour	32,450	$3,318,015	[24]
September 15, 2018	A Will Away		UConn Fan Fest			[25]
May 28, 2022	Kenny Mehler					[26]

Gallery

• 
  Football & basketball facilities, 2008
• 
  Grandstands and boxes, 2008
• 
  Scoreboard in 2010
• 
  End zone view, 2011
• 
  Luxury box, 2011
• 
  Jasper Howard monument

See also

• List of NCAA Division I FBS football stadiums

References

1. Doyle, Paul (July 17, 2013). "Global Spectrum Pleased With Its First Event At Rentschler". Hartford Courant . Retrieved July 18, 2013.
2. "Ground Broken on UConn Stadium". Record-Journal . Meriden, CT. Associated Press. October 21, 2000. Retrieved October 1, 2011.
3. 1634–1699: McCusker, J. J. (1997). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States: Addenda et Corrigenda (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1700–1799: McCusker, J. J. (1992). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States (PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1800–present: Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. "Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–" . Retrieved February 29, 2024.
4. "Rentschler Field Division I Football Stadium". BVH Integrated Services. Archived from the original on July 18, 2012. Retrieved August 25, 2013.
5. "Rentschler Stadium". Diversified Technology Consultants. Archived from the original on September 5, 2004. Retrieved January 4, 2014.
6. Sedlak, Melissa (September 1, 2003). "Sales Records Fall at UConn Stadium". SportsBusiness Journal. Retrieved October 1, 2011.
7. |Blakeslee Building Solutions
8. "Scoreboard Unveiled at Rentschler Field". NBC 30. Retrieved October 3, 2020.
9. Rent Being Renamed Pratt & Whitney Stadium At Rentschler Field
10. 2015 UConn Football Media Guide (PDF). UConn Huskies. p. 121. Retrieved February 20, 2016.
11. "Hartford Athletics to start home schedule at Rentschler Field due to ongoing renovations at Dillon Stadium". Hartford Courant. Retrieved October 3, 2020.
12. "NYCFC's Home Game vs Houston Dynamo Relocated to Pratt & Whitney Stadium". New York City FC. August 22, 2017. Retrieved August 22, 2017.
13. "Governor Lamont Announces Toronto FC Reaches Agreement With State To Play Home Matches at Pratt & Whitney Stadium". State of Connecticut. September 11, 2020. Retrieved September 16, 2020.
14. Drehs, Wayne (December 22, 2014). "The Bitter End". ESPN The Magazine . Boone, Iowa: ESPN The Magazine.
15. "NYCFC announces date, time and venue for Scotiaband CONCACAF match". www.nycfc.com. Retrieved February 25, 2022.
16. "Omaha And Sacramento To Host Opening Games Of Four-Team 2011 United Football League Season In September" (Press release). UFL Press. August 10, 2011. Archived from the original on September 12, 2011. Retrieved August 21, 2011. The UFL has suspended operations in Hartford, Connecticut, where the Hartford Colonials played the 2010 season at the city's Rentschler Field stadium. Colonials players will join the other four UFL teams through an allocation draft to be held on Monday, August 15, while head coach Jerry Glanville will assume a new role as a consultant to the league.
17. "NCAA Division I Men's Lacrosse Quarterfinals | Rentschler Field".
18. "Munster Retain The Setanta Cup". Munster Rugby. August 31, 2008. Retrieved August 25, 2021.
19. "Wales tour in Canada/United States of America 2005 2005". espnscrum. Retrieved May 1, 2021.
20. "Radcliffe to run in Berlin Marathon - AP News Wire, Associated Press News - Salon.com". Archived from the original on June 25, 2011. Retrieved June 4, 2010.
21. "Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band – Sept 16, 2003".
22. "Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band – Sept 18, 2003".
23. "The Rolling Stones / Maroon 5 – Aug 26, 2005".
24. "The Police / Fiction Plane – Jul 31, 2007".
25. "UCONN Fan Fest – Sept 15, 2018".
26. "Kenny Mehler – May 28, 2022".

External links

• Official website
• Profile from official UConn athletics site (archived)