The "Eighth Wonder of the World" is looking pretty bad these days. The first domed stadium in the world has been without a team since 1999, and it's really been on the decline. Built in 1965, it was the first stadium in the world with a roof. With no natural sunlight, the invention of astroturf also came along. This was really the first big money stadium, a Cowboy Stadium of it's day. The scoreboard cost a million dollars, and 35 million overall. The thing is, to tear it down would cost almost 100 million dollars. So the city of Houston would rather keep the eyesore open.
All of Houston's teams have new buildings. The dome hosted the Astros and Oilers from 1965 until both teams moved in their own way. The Astros, Texans, and Rockets opened new digs in 2000, 2002, and 2003 respectively. The Houston Cougars and Dynamo played at the Cougars' Robertson Stadium on the campus of the University of Houston. But the Dynamo built their new BBVA Stadium for this year, and the Cougars plan on razing Robertson Stadium, and build a new stadium in it's place.
The last time the Astrodome was really used was for Hurricane Katrina victims. But it looks like a tornado went through the dome. Here are some more sad pictures of the old dome.
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