Long before Lambeau Field became the Green Bay Packers’ legendary home, the team played its games in a modest wooden-bleacher venue called City Stadium, built in 1925 on the grounds of Green Bay East High School. What started as a roughly 5,000-seat facility for high school football grew into the backdrop for one of the NFL’s most storied early dynasties.
Over 32 seasons, the Packers won six NFL championships while calling City Stadium home, expanding its capacity to about 25,000 before outgrowing the aging structure in the mid-1950s. The team departed after the 1956 season for a new stadium across town, later renamed Lambeau Field, and the Packers-era grandstands at the original site were torn down in 1966.
Stats at a Glance
- Team(s): Green Bay Packers (1925-1956); Green Bay East High School (1925-present)
- Location: Green Bay, Wisconsin
- Opened: 1925
- Closed/Demolished: Packers-era structure demolished in 1966; current bleachers date to 2008
- Capacity: About 2,200 today (peaked near 25,000 during the Packers era)
- Current Name: City Stadium (renamed East Stadium 1962-2002, then restored)
- Notable Fact: Hosted six NFL championship-era Packers teams (1929, 1930, 1931, 1936, 1939, 1944)
From Wooden Bleachers to Championship Grounds
City Stadium began as a horseshoe-shaped, all-wood facility behind Green Bay East High School, built without even basic amenities like restrooms. Despite its humble construction, it drew massive crowds for the era — the fierce East-West high school rivalry actually outdrew some early Packers-Bears matchups in the stadium’s first seasons.
As the Packers grew into an NFL powerhouse under coach Curly Lambeau, the stadium expanded piecemeal to accommodate demand, eventually reaching a capacity of around 25,000. But by the early 1950s, the lack of modern conveniences made it clear the Packers needed a true successor, prompting construction of New City Stadium (Lambeau Field), which opened for the 1957 season.
A Second Life as East Stadium
After the Packers left, the city tore down the old Packers-era grandstands in 1966 and rebuilt the site at a much smaller scale — about 2,200 seats — to suit Green Bay East High School’s needs. The venue was renamed East Stadium in 1962 and, following a $330,000 renovation in 2002, reclaimed its historic City Stadium name.
East High School replaced the aging bleachers and added a new press box in 2008, and the field switched from grass to artificial turf in 2017. In 2011, the Green Bay Packers Heritage Trail placed a historical marker at the site, cementing its place as the birthplace of the franchise’s championship tradition even as it continues hosting East High School football games today.
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Bleachers for three hours, but with back support. Folds flat and clips to the bench.
For upper-deck seats. Watch line play at the stadium, or the far side of the park from the top of a lift hill.
Sherpa-lined and windproof, with a waterproof back for wet bleachers. Folds into its own pouch.
City Stadium FAQs
Is City Stadium still standing in Green Bay?
The site is still in use by Green Bay East High School, but the original Packers-era wooden structure was torn down in 1966. The current bleachers date to a 2008 renovation.
How long did the Green Bay Packers play at City Stadium?
The Packers called City Stadium home from 1925 through the 1956 season, a span of 32 years, before moving to a new stadium later renamed Lambeau Field.
Why was City Stadium briefly called East Stadium?
After the Packers departed and the old grandstands were demolished in 1966, the venue reverted to serving Green Bay East High School and was renamed East Stadium in 1962. It regained its original City Stadium name in 2002.
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Photo: Unknown authorUnknown author / Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.