FIU Community Stadium FIU Community Stadium was the first dedicated sports facility at the school, replacing
Tamiami Field. Construction officially began on July 24, 1994, and the facility opened on September 24, 1995, as a 7,500-seat football and track stadium. It was built as a joint venture between FIU,
Miami-Dade County Public Schools,
Miami-Dade Parks, and the Miami-Dade County Youth Fair. During construction, the
2007 FIU Golden Panthers football team played its home games in the
Miami Orange Bowl. The new facility opened for the first home game of the
2008 football season against the
South Florida Bulls on September 20. The Golden Panthers lost 17–9 in front of a crowd of 16,717. The team won its first game in the new stadium on October 11, 2008, against
Sun Belt Conference rival the
Middle Tennessee State Blue Raiders, 31–21. The team finished its first season in the new stadium 5-7. In 2009, the university began the second phase of the stadium expansion, which included the construction of a new football
field house. Renovations were completed in 2012 and the capacity increased to 20,000 seats. In 2017, the university agreed to a five-year deal to rename the stadium after
Riccardo Silva, part owner of
Miami FC. Before the deal, Silva had donated $3.76 million for various improvements to the stadium including a new playing surface and
Jumbotron video scoreboard.
Attendance The stadium hosted the Gold Cup in its 2009 and 2011 editions. On October 1, 2011, FIU Stadium drew its largest attendance in school history. A crowd of 22,268 came to watch the Panthers play the Duke Blue Devils football team for the team's 2011 homecoming game. During the game, the
Goodyear Blimp made its first appearance at FIU Stadium. The
Miami Tower in
Downtown Miami was also lit in blue and gold from September 26 to October 1, 2011, in honor of the game. On April 19, Miami FC set a club record for attendance at the stadium. The match against
Major League Soccer team
Inter Miami CF in the Third Round of the
2022 U.S. Open Cup drew 11,158 fans.
Renaming On April 3, 2017, FIU Stadium was renamed Riccardo Silva Stadium. Maluma returned to the stadium in April 2018 to record the video for the Spanish-language version of
Jason Derulo's World Cup 2018 anthem for Coca-Cola. On August 6, 2024, it was reported that American rapper and singer and Miami native
Pitbull would be purchasing the naming rights to FIU Stadium, paying $1.2 million annually to rename the stadium to Pitbull Stadium. == Structure and facilities ==