The stadium was constructed by CANA Construction on the then University of Alberta campus using pre-cast concrete over 100 days in 1960 for $1.05 million. It was built as a replacement for the Mewata Park Stadium. It is named after Calgary residents Frank McMahon and his brother, George McMahon. They donated C$300,000 to the university and the citizens of Calgary, and guaranteed the balance of money for the stadium's construction. The university acquired complete ownership of the stadium and land in 1985 after the original financing was retired and a land exchange agreement was signed with the City of Calgary. DT Don Luzzi scored the first TD on a fumble recovery.
McMahon Stadium Society
The stadium is operated by the McMahon Stadium Society. The society was incorporated as a non-profit society in Alberta in 1960 with its objectives to operate, improve and manage the stadium and its facilities, for sports, recreation and other useful purposes. Its membership consists of: two persons appointed by the University of Calgary; from the City of Calgary, the Commissioner of Finance and the Commissioner of Planning and Community Services; and two other persons appointed by the four other members. The two other members were appointed by the McMahon brothers until the financing guaranteed by the McMahons was retired in 1973. The society operates the stadium under two leases and a four-year, three-month agreement with the City of Calgary, approved on January 7, 2007.
Seating
With permanent seating totalling 35,650, the stadium is the fifth-largest stadium in Canada. It was expanded in several stages from its original 22,000-seat capacity in 1960 to 38,205 in 1988. More recent renovations in 2001 and 2005, in which luxury boxes replaced bleacher seating in the higher rows of the grandstands, reduced the capacity to 37,317 in 2001, and to its current 35,650 in 2005. In 2007, Calgary Stampeders president Ted Hellard proposed a further reduction of the stadium's capacity by approximately 4,200 seats to accommodate further luxury boxes, with renovations to be underwritten with personal seat licenses. For special events such as Grey Cup games, temporary bleachers have been built in the facility's end zones. These seats accounted for a stadium attendance record 46,020 spectators at the 97th Grey Cup, between the Montreal Alouettes and Saskatchewan Roughriders on November 29, 2009.
Field
The stadium features an infilled artificial FieldTurf field installed in 2006. Previously, the stadium installed its first AstroTurf artificial playing surface in 1975 amid concerns the original grass field would not withstand an intended increase in use of the stadium facilities by professional, amateur and recreational teams.
