Home Field
For most of their history, they played in Mile High Stadium. The AFL Broncos played at the University of Denver's Hilltop Stadium from time to time, including the first-ever victory of an AFL team over an NFL team: The Broncos beat the Detroit Lions on August 5, 1967, in a preseason game. The team has sold out every home game (including post-season games) since the NFL merger in 1970, with the exception of 2 replacement games during the 1987 strike (but both were sold out before the strike).
During home games, the attendance is announced to the crowd, along with the number of no-shows (the fans subsequently boo the no-shows). The fans are also known to chant "IN-COM-PLETE" every time the visiting team throws an incomplete pass. The stadium's legendary home-field advantage is regarded as one of the best in the NFL, especially during the playoffs. The Broncos have had the best home record in pro football over the past 32 years (1974–2006, 191–65–1). Mile High Stadium was one of the NFL's loudest stadiums, with steel flooring instead of concrete, which may have given the Broncos an advantage over opponents. In 2001, the team moved into INVESCO Field at Mile High, built next to the former site of the since demolished old Mile High Stadium. Sportswriter Woody Paige, along with many of Denver's fans, however, often refuse to call the new stadium by its full name, preferring to use "Mile High Stadium" because of its storied history and sentimental import. Additionally the Denver Post had an official policy of referring to the stadium as simply "Mile High Stadium" in protest, but dropped this policy in 2004.
On August 16, 2011, Colorado-based sporting goods retailer Sports Authority claimed the naming rights of Invesco Field, which became known as Sports Authority Field at Mile High.
The Colorado altitude has also been attributed as part of the team's home success. The stadium displays multiple references to the stadium's location of 5,280 feet (1.00 mi) above sea level, including a prominent mural just outside the visiting team's locker room. The team training facility, Paul D. Bowlen Memorial Broncos Centre, is a state-of-the-art facility located in the Dove Valley business area in Englewood, Colorado. With 13.5 acres of property, the facility hosts three full-size fields, a complete weight and training facility, and a cafeteria.
In their more than half-century of existence, the Broncos have never been shut out at home, a streak of nearly 400 games as of the 2012 season.
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Famous quotes containing the words home and/or field:
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—Henrik Ibsen (1828–1906)
“And they wonder, as waiting the long years through
In the dust of that little chair,
What has become of our Little Boy Blue,
Since he kissed them and put them there.”
—Eugene Field (1850–1895)