Empire Polo Club is the 1,000-acre former polo grounds in Indio, California that became the permanent home of the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival and the Stagecoach country festival. What started in 1987 as a working polo facility with a dozen fields is now one of the most recognized event sites in the country, drawing hundreds of thousands of fans to the Coachella Valley desert every spring.
This guide covers exactly where Empire Polo Club sits in Indio, how big it is, how many people it can hold, and how a private polo club ended up hosting two of America’s biggest music festivals.
Quick Answer
Empire Polo Club is a 1,000-acre former polo facility at 81-800 Avenue 51 in Indio, California, in the Coachella Valley about 25 miles southeast of Palm Springs. It’s best known today as the site of the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival (since 1999) and the Stagecoach country festival (since 2007), with a capacity of about 125,000 attendees per day spread across its dozen former polo fields.
Where Is Empire Polo Club? (Indio, CA Location)
Empire Polo Club sits at 81-800 Avenue 51, Indio, CA 92201, in Riverside County’s Coachella Valley. It’s roughly 25 miles, or about a 30-minute drive, southeast of Palm Springs, and around two to two and a half hours from Los Angeles or San Diego.
The grounds aren’t a walk-up attraction. Outside of ticketed Coachella and Stagecoach weekends, access is limited to private events booked directly through the venue, so there’s no general public admission on a typical day.
Empire Polo Club and the Coachella Polo Fields
When people search for “Coachella polo fields,” they mean this property. Entrepreneur Alex Haagen III founded Empire Polo Club in 1987, and it grew into one of the largest polo clubs on the West Coast, with a dozen fields hosting international tournaments through the 1990s and 2000s. The Coachella festival takes its name from the valley the club sits in, not the other way around.
The link to music started almost by accident. In November 1993, Pearl Jam played to nearly 25,000 fans at the club while boycotting Ticketmaster-controlled venues, proving the polo fields could handle a major concert crowd. That show helped convince promoter Goldenvoice to stage the first Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival on the same grounds in 1999.
How Big Is Empire Polo Club? Capacity Explained
The property spans about 1,000 acres in total, including the dozen fields originally built for polo. Each spring, Coachella’s footprint expands well beyond the core fields to cover camping and parking across a large share of that acreage.
For the festival itself, capacity runs at about 125,000 attendees per day, with both Coachella weekends now routinely selling out at that level. That’s the figure most people mean by “Empire Polo Club capacity.” Outside of festival season, the venue’s own events division books everything from small private gatherings of around 15 guests up to large-scale productions exceeding 90,000, according to Empire Polo Club’s official events site.
From Polo Fields to Festival Grounds
For its first several years, Empire Polo Club functioned as intended: a working polo club with a dozen fields hosting matches and tournaments in the desert outside Palm Springs. Pearl Jam’s 1993 concert changed that trajectory, and Goldenvoice’s 1999 Coachella debut set the site on a new path.
After a shaky start, Coachella returned annually and grew steadily, eventually reaching its current daily capacity of around 125,000 fans across two sold-out weekends each spring.
A Home for Coachella, Stagecoach, and More
In 2007, Goldenvoice added the Stagecoach country music festival the weekend after Coachella, which first sold out in 2012 with about 55,000 attendees. The grounds have also hosted one-off events, including Phish’s Festival 8 in 2009 and 2016’s Desert Trip, featuring the Rolling Stones, Paul McCartney, and Bob Dylan.
The club’s traditional polo operations wound down as festival business grew; the polo fields closed in November 2021 after Goldenvoice secured a 28-year lease for full operational control of the grounds. Since 2022, the site has also hosted the Coachella Valley Invitational, a preseason soccer tournament for MLS and NWSL clubs that had grown to crowds cited at around 30,000 by 2024 — proof the grounds now do far more than music.
What’s Next for Empire Polo Club
In June 2025, the club’s ownership unveiled plans for a mixed-use development on roughly 218 acres near the polo grounds, potentially adding homes, retail, dining, and a new sports venue to the surrounding area. Because Goldenvoice holds a 28-year lease for the festival grounds themselves, Coachella and Stagecoach are expected to keep operating on the same site throughout any nearby development.
Planning a Visit to Empire Polo Club
Because the grounds only open for ticketed festivals and private bookings, your entry point depends on why you’re visiting. For Coachella or Stagecoach dates, camping options, and ticket tiers, check the official Coachella site, run by Goldenvoice, which also produces Stagecoach.
If you’re planning a wedding, corporate event, or private party on the grounds instead, book through the official Empire Polo Club Events site, which lists the property’s dedicated event spaces and booking process.
Empire Polo Club FAQs
Is Empire Polo Club still used for polo matches?
No. The polo fields were closed in November 2021 after Goldenvoice took full operational control of the grounds under a 28-year lease.
How many people can Empire Polo Club hold during Coachella?
The venue accommodates about 125,000 attendees per day during Coachella, spread across two sold-out weekends each spring.
Where exactly is Empire Polo Club located?
It’s at 81-800 Avenue 51, Indio, CA 92201, in the Coachella Valley, roughly 25 miles (about a 30-minute drive) southeast of Palm Springs.
What festivals and events are held at Empire Polo Club?
It hosts Coachella (annually since 1999) and Stagecoach (since 2007), plus past one-off events like Desert Trip and Phish’s Festival 8, and the annual Coachella Valley Invitational soccer tournament since 2022.
Can the public visit Empire Polo Club any time?
No. The grounds aren’t a walk-up attraction — access is limited to ticketed Coachella and Stagecoach weekends or private events booked directly with the venue.
How big is Empire Polo Club?
The property spans about 1,000 acres, including the dozen fields originally built for polo, with the Coachella festival footprint expanding across much of that acreage each spring.
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