The Buffalo Bills have enthralled and enraged fans on this playing field for 53 years, first when it was called Rich Stadium, then from 1998 to 2015 as Ralph Wilson Stadium, followed by New Era Field from 2016 to 2020. After New Era lost the naming rights, it was called Bills Stadium until it became known as Highmark Stadium in 2021.
From Rich Stadium to the Ralph
The Buffalo Bills have enthralled and enraged fans on this playing field for more than 40 years, first when it was called Rich Stadium and since 1998 as Ralph Wilson Stadium.
From Rich Stadium to the Ralph
But there was a time when the stadium existed only on a drawing board.
From Rich Stadium to the Ralph
There was a time when people could only imagine what it would look like to watch their team play there.
From Rich Stadium to the Ralph
From Rich Stadium to the Ralph
Once the plan was approved, earth-moving machines had to be brought in to make the land in Orchard Park ready for what was to come.
From Rich Stadium to the Ralph
This is one of the first images in which the land that would become the stadium came into focus.
From Rich Stadium to the Ralph
When both the name of the team and the name of the stadium were not what they were supposed to be.
Rich Stadium, which became ...
From Rich Stadium to the Ralph
A shot of the parking lots, Aug. 18, 1973.
From Rich Stadium to the Ralph
The scoreboard was not quite ready for prime time, in this photo taken four days before the stadium opened.
From Rich Stadium to the Ralph
A "state-of-the-art" scoreboard, which would be unlike anything fans had ever seen, was placed at one end of the stadium.
From Rich Stadium to the Ralph
Speaking of state of the art ... The broadcast booth was made ready.
From Rich Stadium to the Ralph
If you had enough money, you could buy seats that did not leave you exposed to the elements.
From Rich Stadium to the Ralph
Everything but the yard markers and the end zones - and the people.
From Rich Stadium to the Ralph
The light standards that eventually would be visible from miles away had to be erected.
From Rich Stadium to the Ralph
Here is one of the seats in its natural habitat. The caption below this photo, which ran in The News six months before the stadium opened, said: "STADIUM SEAT - High living will be these 'club level' seats with armrests. Showing off one is Robert Lustig, Bills vice president and general manager, whose hard hat sports the team's decal. They'll sell for $12 per game or $120 for a season of seven league and three exhibition games."
From Rich Stadium to the Ralph
This photo ran in The Buffalo Evening News on July 6, 1973, a month before the stadium opened. The caption said: "FIELD DONS ITS PADDING - Playing field of Erie County's new Rich Stadium started going down Thursday as workers for Monsanto Co. of St. Charles, Mo., began unrolling 4 miles of what is called 'energy pad.' It is glued to the asphalt surface as a base for strips of Astro Turf, which are rolled out later."
From Rich Stadium to the Ralph
On Aug. 7, 1973, the stadium was ready for its first game, a preseason tilt with the Super Bowl runner-up Washington Redskins. This is how it looked before fans were let in for the first time.
From Rich Stadium to the Ralph
After more than a decade at War Memorial Stadium, it took fans time to figure out where their new seats - and the new restrooms - would be.
From Rich Stadium to the Ralph
The tunnel end zone, before the first player had emerged.
From Rich Stadium to the Ralph
Fans needed these signs to find their way around the new facility.
From Rich Stadium to the Ralph
Ever wonder what it feels like to sit on the 50-yard line? This is pretty close. Imagine what it must have felt like the first time.
From Rich Stadium to the Ralph
This was the scene from what would soon be called the scoreboard end of the stadium, before the familiar green turf was in place.
From Rich Stadium to the Ralph
The News did a feature a year after the stadium opened on how workers kept the stadium clean. (The better feature might have been "Have Bills fans ever heard of a garbage can?")
From Rich Stadium to the Ralph
This photo was taken Aug. 27, 1973, with a caption that said fans had solved "at least for one game" - traffic congestion problems.
From Rich Stadium to the Ralph
Maintenance supervisor Al Hojnowski kept the field free of snow. In this Dec. 8, 1973, photo, he was clearing the field for the final home game against the Patriots, which the Bills won, 37-13. (It was a long time ago.)
From Rich Stadium to the Ralph
Nov. 9, 1974: "As the last spectators trickle from the stands, a 130-150 man cleanup force will begin clearing the paper cups, peanut shells and sandwich wrappers from Rich Stadium and putting it back in shape for the next game."
From Rich Stadium to the Ralph
The Rolling Stones played four shows at the stadium, the first one on Aug. 8, 1975.
From Rich Stadium to the Ralph
By 1975, Rich Stadium was well-established as a stadium rock concert venue. In this July 10, 1975, photo, crews are preparing the stage for a show two days later that would feature YES and the J. Geils Band.
From Rich Stadium to the Ralph
On Sept. 14, 1980, work crews had an unexpected job: erecting new goal posts. The reason was one that fans had been waiting for: The old ones were torn down and damaged in celebration a week earlier after the Bills beat the Dolphins, ending a 20-game losing streak.
From Rich Stadium to the Ralph
It took a lot of work to keep the turf in good shape. In this photo from July 17, 1981, the stitched turf is rolled back, glue is sprayed on the padding and then the turf is stuck back down.
From Rich Stadium to the Ralph
Not every Bills-Oilers game at the stadium had a happy result. On Nov. 10, 1974, Houston defeated Buffalo, 21-9.
From Rich Stadium to the Ralph
The Bills opened the 1974 season on Monday Night Football. Maintenance Supervisor Al Hojnowski painted the 25-yard line while Pat Jozak worked on the 30.
From Rich Stadium to the Ralph
The 1980 season was one of the most memorable in the team's history. On Sept. 28, the Bills defeated the Oakland Raiders at Rich Stadium, 24-7, to start the season 4-0.
From Rich Stadium to the Ralph
The Pittsburgh Steelers were coming off their fourth Super Bowl victory when the 1980 season started and when they came to Rich Stadium in November, they brought a lot of their fans with them. They didn't go home happy: The Bills won 28-13.
From Rich Stadium to the Ralph
Sometimes you come across a photo and it doesn't have enough information to explain why it was taken. The caption for this one, taken Aug. 19, 1986, said "Fans line up outside the Rich Stadium ticket windows this morning." Why? That was the day the Bills signed Jim Kelly.
From Rich Stadium to the Ralph
It's a fact of life for an outdoor stadium in Orchard Park: Sometimes, it's going to fill up with snow. Carl Reuss of Hamburg was one of the people who helped shovel it out after a December 1986 snowstorm.
From Rich Stadium to the Ralph
New artificial turf was installed before the start of the 1991 season, along with a new drainage system. The new field was flatter than the old one with its crown reduced from 19 to 9 inches.
From Rich Stadium to the Ralph
These turnstiles eventually would turn millions of times.
From Rich Stadium to the Ralph
From Rich Stadium to the Ralph and beyond
Ralph Wilson Stadium.Â
From Rich Stadium to the Ralph and beyond
Ralph Wilson Stadium.
From Rich Stadium to the Ralph and beyond
Snow-filled Ralph Wilson Stadium on Friday, Nov. 21, 2014.
From Rich Stadium to the Ralph and beyond
New Era Field in Orchard Park on Tuesday, July 14, 2020.Â
From Rich Stadium to the Ralph and beyond
Scenes around New Era Field in Orchard Park on Tuesday, July 14, 2020.Â
From Rich Stadium to the Ralph and beyond
Crews from B3 Marketing removed the New Era signage from Bills Stadium in Orchard Park.
From Rich Stadium to the Ralph and beyond
Ron Raccuia, then-Pegula Sports and Entertainment executive vice president, talks about the new stadium rights naming deal on the field at Highmark Stadium in Orchard Park, Tuesday, March 30, 2021.
From Rich Stadium to the Ralph and beyond
Highmark Stadium.
From Rich Stadium to the Ralph and beyond
The crowd as Billy Joel performs at Highmark Stadium on Aug. 14, 2021.Â
From Rich Stadium to the Ralph and beyond
The sun sets before the AFCÂ wild-card game at Highmark Stadium in Orchard Park, Saturday, Jan. 15, 2022.
From Rich Stadium to the Ralph and beyond
The sun rises on Highmark Stadium in Orchard Park, Sunday, Oct. 9, 2022.
From Rich Stadium to the Ralph and beyond
A flag marks where the 50-yard-line of the new stadium will be when it is completed in 2026 in what is now a parking lot across the street from Highmark Stadium.
From Rich Stadium to the Ralph and beyond
Fans cheer at the end of the final regular season home game at Highmark Stadium, Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026.
From Rich Stadium to the Ralph and beyond
Buffalo Bills fans take a selfie after the Buffalo Bills 35-8 victory over the New York Jets during the final regular season home game at Highmark Stadium, Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026.
From Rich Stadium to the Ralph and beyond
Buffalo Bills head coach Sean McDermott takes in a quiet moment to himself in the tunnel of Highmark Stadium on the night before the final regular season home game, Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026.
From Rich Stadium to the Ralph and beyond
Buffalo Bills fans make their way to the exit after final regular season game at Highmark Stadium, Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026.
From Rich Stadium to the Ralph and beyond
A Buffalo Bills fan leaves their seat after the final regular season game at Highmark Stadium Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026.
From Rich Stadium to the Ralph and beyond
Buffalo Bills fans sit in their seats after the final regular season game at Highmark Stadium, Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026.
New signs for what will officially be called Highmark BlueCross BlueShield Stadium – but sure to be known by the shorter version – will be installed in time for the start of the regular season in September.
Pegula Sports and Entertainment, the team’s owners, have pitched a $1.5 billion proposal for a new stadium in Orchard Park and to help cover some renovation costs at KeyBank Center downtown.
The deal kept the Bills in Western New York, but put off the more difficult, expensive and controversial decision on building a new stadium.
What is an NFL stadium and team worth to a municipality and a state? That’s a question the Bills are attempting to answer as part of their negotiating strategy with Erie County and New York State.
California-based AECOM projects it will cost $1.354 billion to construct a new stadium on adjoining county-owned property in Orchard Park next to the team’s existing stadium, versus $862 million to renovate Highmark Stadium.
Highmark Stadium, which began its life as Rich Stadium, turns 50 this week.
Herb Mul-Key earned his 15 minutes of fame in 15 seconds. He’s the Washington kick returner who found the end zone before most Bills fans had found their seats on the mid-August night when Rich Stadium opened 50 years ago Thursday.
New Era, the Buffalo-based headwear and apparel company, asked the team to release it from its naming rights agreement last month. "New Era Field" signs started coming down shortly after.
Stadium name changes have forced Bills fans to make a decision: Call it what they've learned to love, or readapt to what's current. Whether it…
