Thirteen head coaches have served the Texans/Chiefs franchise since their first season in 1960. Hank Stram, the team's first head coach, led the Chiefs to three AFL championship victories and two appearances in the Super Bowl. Stram was the team's longest-tenured head coach, holding the position from 1960 to 1974. Marty Schottenheimer was hired in 1989 and led Kansas City to seven playoff appearances in his ten seasons as head coach. Schottenheimer had the best winning percentage (.634) of all Chiefs coaches. Gunther Cunningham was on the Chiefs' coaching staff in various positions from 1995 to 2008, serving as the team's head coach in between stints as the team's defensive coordinator.
Dick Vermeil coached the team to a franchise-best 9–0 start in the 2003 season. Of the ten Chiefs coaches, Hank Stram and Marv Levy have been elected into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, Levy, however, is more well known for his time with the Buffalo Bills. Herm Edwards served as the team's head coach from 2006 to 2008, compiling a 15–33 record and a franchise worst 6–26 record over a two-year span.
Todd Haley compiled a 19–26 record with the team from 2009 to 2011, including an AFC West division title in 2010. Romeo Crennel was named interim coach, and was promoted to full-time coach in January 2012. Crennel was fired on Monday, December 31, 2012, after finishing the 2012 season with a 2–14 record. On January 5, 2013, the Chiefs hired Andy Reid to be their next head coach. In Reid's tenure, the Chiefs have been consistent contenders, making the playoffs in 6 of his 7 seasons as head coach, winning the division four times, and winning Super Bowl LIV. Home of the beloved Chiefs, Arrowhead has seen more than its share of great NFL players, including Joe Montana, Marcus Allen, Derrick Thomas, Len Dawson, and colorful head coach Hank Stram.
For more than 25 years, crowds of rabid, red-clad fans have crowded into Arrowhead each fall to cheer and holler for the Chiefs. In fact, their noisy support once reached a recorded'142.2 decibels' - Kansas City's second Guinness World Record for loudest crowd in an outdoor pro football stadium. If you have a chance, buy tickets to a Raiders game on Chiefs home turf, since no other team brings out their emotions like this inter-divisional rival. Arrowhead Stadium is located just outside of Kansas City, Missouri and is home to the Kansas City Chiefs of the National Football League.
The stadium is actually located near the intersections of Interstate 70 and Interstate 435 in Jackson County, Missouri, giving fans who commute to games a real advantage on game day. Which is a combination of Kaufman Stadium for the Kansas City Royals of the Major League Baseball American League along with Arrowhead Stadium for the local professional football team. Construction on both stadiums began after the National Football League merged with the American Football League to form the current pro football league alignment. Hunt's own team, the Dallas Texans, was located in his hometown where he would face direct competition from the NFL's newest expansion team, the Dallas Cowboys. In spite of this opposition from the established NFL, the Texans quickly made their mark as one of the new league's strongest teams.
In their third season in 1962, they won the AFL championship with a win over the Houston Oilers in a 77-minute, 54-second, two-overtime game, the longest pro football game ever played up to that time. In August 2007, the Chiefs unveiled a massive renovation plan, keeping Arrowhead Stadium up to par with the newest stadiums in the NFL. This project also included the construction of the Horizons Level atop the upper deck on the south side of the stadium that included a new pressbox, luxury suites and premium seats.
Located on the lower-level concourse, the 28,000 square-foot Chiefs Hall of Honor, highlights great teams and players, and exhibits artifacts from the Chiefs' history. New HD video/scoreboards replaced the existing scoreboards located above the stands in both endzones. In 1970, the Chiefs won only seven games in their first season in the NFL and missed the playoffs. The following season, the Chiefs tallied a 10–3–1 record and won the AFC West Division. Head coach Hank Stram considered his 1971 Chiefs team as his best, but they failed to capture their championship dominance from 1969.
Most of the pieces of the team which won Super Bowl IV two years earlier were still in place for the 1971 season. The Chiefs tied with the Miami Dolphins for the best record in the AFC, and both teams met in a Christmas Day playoff game which the Chiefs lost 27–24 in double overtime. The game surpassed the 1962 AFL Championship Game as the longest ever at 82 minutes and 40 seconds. The game was also the final football game at Kansas City's Municipal Stadium.
The Texans shared the Cotton Bowl with the NFL's Dallas Cowboys for three seasons. The Texans were to have exclusive access to the stadium until the NFL put an expansion team, the Dallas Cowboys, there. While the team averaged a league-best 24,500 at the Cotton Bowl, the Texans gained less attention due to the AFL's relatively lower profile compared to the NFL. In the franchise's first two seasons, the team managed only an 8–6 and 6–8 record, respectively. In their third season, the Texans strolled to an 11–3 record and a berth in the team's first American Football League Championship Game, against the Houston Oilers.
The game was broadcast nationally on ABC and the Texans defeated the Oilers 20–17 in double overtime. The game lasted 77 minutes and 54 seconds, which still stands as the longest championship game in professional football history. The Chiefs were also the second team, after the Green Bay Packers, to appear in more than one Super Bowl as well as the first to appear in the championship game in two different decades. Since then, the Chiefs have won five of their last six playoff games, including Super Bowl LIV in 2020 over the San Francisco 49ers, which earned the franchise their first championship in fifty years. In February 2021, the team made it to Super Bowl LV, but lost to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The franchise became one of the strongest teams in the now thriving American Football League, with the most playoff appearances for an AFL team , and the most AFL Championships .
The team's dominance helped Lamar Hunt become a central figure in negotiations with NFL Commissioner Pete Rozelle to agree on an AFL–NFL merger. In the meetings between the two leagues, a merged league championship game was agreed to be played in January 1967 following the conclusion of the leagues' respective 1966 seasons. Hunt insisted on calling the game the "Super Bowl" after seeing his children playing with a popular toy at the time, a Super Ball. While the first few games were designated the "AFL–NFL World Championship Game", the Super Bowl name became its officially licensed title in years to come. Despite being one of the oldest stadiums in the NFL, Arrowhead has withstood the test of time, what with its unique shape and its propensity for noise. Today, after nearly five decades of existence, Arrowhead Stadium remains one of the most popular stadiums in the NFL.
The history of the club began in Dallas when they were known as the Texans. Owner Lamar Hunt moved the team to Kansas City in 1963, renaming them the Chiefs. For nearly a decade, the Chiefs shared an aging Municipal Stadium with the Athletics and Royals . Original plans were for a multipurpose stadium, but were scrapped because of design and seating capacity issues. Unlike many other cities that built multipurpose stadiums during this time, the county decided to build two new stadiums, one for baseball and one for football. In June 1967, a $102 million bond was issued for construction of two sports stadiums.
Are Kansas City Chiefs In Kansas Or Missouri A rolling roof was part of the original design for both stadiums, but did not materialize because of cost overruns and of potential project delays. Dating back to the Chiefs' home opener in 1991 to mid-2009, the Chiefs had 155 consecutive sellout games. The streak ended with the final home game of the 2009 season against the Cleveland Browns, resulting in the first local TV blackout in over 19 years. Arrowhead has been called one of the world's finest stadiums and has long held a reputation for being one of the toughest and loudest outdoor stadiums for opposing players to play in. All noise is directly attributed to its fans and was once measured at 116 decibels by the Acoustical Design Group of Mission, Kansas.
By way of comparison, take-off of aircraft may lead to a sound level of 106 decibels at the ground. Sports Illustrated named Arrowhead Stadium the "toughest place to play" for opposing teams in 2005. The tailgate party environment outside the stadium on gameday has been compared to a "college football" atmosphere. Arrowhead Stadium features frequent fly-overs from a B-2 Spirit stealth bomber from nearby Whiteman Air Force Base. Since the 1994 NFL season, the stadium has had a natural grass playing surface.
For their first pick in the 2011 NFL draft, and 26th overall, the team selected Jonathan Baldwin, Wide Receiver from Pitt. After a poor start, Haley was relieved of duties as head coach on December 12. Clark Hunt made note of "bright spots at different points this season," but felt that overall the Chiefs were not progressing. The highest point of the 2011 season was an upset win against the Packers, who at that time, were undefeated with a 13–0 record. Defensive coordinator Romeo Crennel would be named the team's interim head coach for the remaining three games of the season, including the aforementioned Packers game. On January 9, 2012, Crennel was named the 11th full-time head coach in Chiefs history.
The team recorded a 101–58–1 record, and clinched seven playoff berths. The Chiefs' 1993 season was the franchise's most successful in 22 years. With newly acquired quarterback Joe Montana and running back Marcus Allen, two former Super Bowl champions and MVPs, the Chiefs further strengthened their position in the NFL. The 11–5 Chiefs defeated the Pittsburgh Steelers and Houston Oilers on their way to the franchise's first AFC Championship Game appearance against the Buffalo Bills.
The Chiefs were overwhelmed by the Bills and lost the game by a score of 30–13. The Chiefs' victory on January 16, 1994, against the Oilers remained the franchise's last post-season victory for 22 years until their 30–0 victory over the Houston Texans on January 9, 2016. John Mackovic took over head coaching duties for the 1983 season after Marv Levy was fired.
Over the next four seasons, Mackovic coached the Chiefs to a 30–34 record, but took the team to its first postseason appearance in 15 years in the 1986 NFL playoffs. Despite leading the Chiefs to only their third winning season and second playoff appearance since the merger, Mackovic was fired for what Hunt described as a lack of chemistry. Frank Gansz served as head coach for the next two seasons, but won only eight of 31 games. The Chiefs would not return to the post-season for the remainder of the 1970s, and the 1973 season was the team's last winning season for seven years. Hank Stram was fired following a 5–9 season in 1974, and many of the Chiefs' future Hall of Fame players would depart by the middle of the decade. From 1975 to 1988, the Chiefs had become a team that rarely won which provided Chiefs fans with nothing but futility.
Five head coaches struggled to achieve the same success as Stram, compiling an 81–121–1 record. In 1959, Lamar Hunt began discussions with other businessmen to establish a professional football league that would rival the National Football League. Hunt's desire to secure a football team was heightened after watching the 1958 NFL Championship Game between the New York Giants and Baltimore Colts. After unsuccessful attempts to purchase and relocate the NFL's Chicago Cardinals to his hometown of Dallas, Texas, Hunt went to the NFL and asked to create an expansion franchise in Dallas. The NFL turned him down, so Hunt then established the American Football League and started his own team, the Dallas Texans, to begin play in 1960. Hunt hired a little-known assistant coach from the University of Miami football team, Hank Stram, to be the team's head coach after the job offer was declined by Bud Wilkinson and Tom Landry.
From the day Arrowhead Stadium opened in 1972, it's been one of the premier stadiums in the NFL. It set the standard with its modern sight lines and single-purpose design. The sweeping 2010 renovations to Arrowhead preserved its revered seating bowl, while forward-looking architectural forms and modern materials added meat to the original structure's concrete bones.
The addition added 500,000 square feet of space for fan amenities and comfort, including expanded and open concourses, increased restrooms and concessions, a fully-enclosed club level and a broad array of premium seats. Arrowhead Stadium has a seating capacity of over 76,000 and includes 80 executive suites. While it was built during the days of AstroTurf, today the playing surface is real grass with a high-tech drainage system that allows for great field conditions during inclement Missouri weather.
The name of the stadium actually comes from the shape of the structure, which is open on one end. The Arrowhead name is used as a traditional tribute to the team's native American namesake. Although it is only the 28th largest events facility in the United States, it is the fifth largest in terms of seating capacity among current NFL stadiums. Our guide to Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City includes information on events, tickets, parking, public transportation, nearby hotels and restaurants, seating and more.
Read on to find out how to get the most out of your gameday experience. From various periods between 1963 and the 2008 season, trumpeter Tony DiPardo and The T.D. Pack Band played live music at every Chiefs home game. The band was known as The Zing Band when the team was located at Municipal Stadium.
DiPardo was honored by head coach Hank Stram in 1969 with a Super Bowl ring for the team's victory in Super Bowl IV. When his health was declining, DiPardo took a leave of absence from the band from 1983 to 1988. DiPardo's daughter took over as bandleader in 1989, by which time DiPardo returned to the band by popular demand. For the 2009 season, due to renovations at Arrowhead Stadium, the band did not return to perform at the stadium. The Chiefs began their playoff slate with a win against the Pittsburgh Steelers in the Wild Card round, and advanced to play the Buffalo Bills in the Divisional Round. Their victory over Buffalo came in a game sports commentators and analysts dubbed as one of the greatest modern day NFL playoff games.
Despite being the first team to host the AFC Championship game for four consecutive seasons, the team finished the season losing 24–27 in overtime to the Cincinnati Bengals. The streak achieved by the Chiefs broke a franchise record for nine straight and second nine plus game win streak under Reid. After a Week 17 win over Oakland 23–17, the Chiefs achieved their longest winning streak in franchise history at ten games.
They qualified for the playoffs, playing in the 2015 AFC Wild-Card playoff game, held at NRG Stadium in Houston, Texas on January 9, 2016. The Chiefs defeated the Houston Texans 30–0 to earn their first NFL playoff win in 23 seasons, dating back to the 1993–94 NFL playoffs, a win that also came in Houston. The Chiefs' Wild-Card playoff victory ended what was at the time the third-longest drought in the NFL, and it also ended a then NFL record eight-game playoff losing streak. Riddled with injuries, they were defeated by the New England Patriots 27–20 in the AFC Divisional Round.
In the 1995 NFL playoffs, the 13–3 Chiefs hosted the Indianapolis Colts in a cold, damp late afternoon game at Arrowhead Stadium. Kansas City lost the game 10–7 against the underdog Colts, after kicker Lin Elliot missed three field-goal attempts and quarterback Steve Bono threw three interceptions. The Chiefs selected tight end Tony Gonzalez with the 13th overall selection in the 1997 NFL Draft, a move which some considered to be a gamble being that Gonzalez was primarily a basketball player at California. During a 1997 season full of injuries to starting quarterback Elvis Grbac, backup quarterback Rich Gannon took the reins of the Chiefs' offense as the team headed to another 13–3 season.
Head coach Marty Schottenheimer chose Grbac to start the playoff game against the Denver Broncos despite Gannon's successes in previous weeks. Grbac's production in the game was lacking, and the Chiefs lost to the Broncos 14–10. Denver went on to capture their fifth AFC Championship by defeating Pittsburgh, and then defeated the Green Bay Packers in Super Bowl XXXII. Coach Schottenheimer announced his resignation from the Chiefs following the 1998 season. It turned out to be the last game the team would play as the Dallas Texans.
Despite competing against a Cowboys team that managed only a 9–28–3 record in their first three seasons, Hunt decided that the Dallas–Fort Worth media market could not sustain two professional football franchises. He considered moving the Texans to either Atlanta or Miami for the 1963 season. However, he was ultimately swayed by an offer from Kansas City Mayor Harold Roe Bartle.
Bartle promised to triple the franchise's season ticket sales and expand the seating capacity of Municipal Stadium to accommodate the team. Priest Holmes and tight end Tony Gonzalez—again won 13 games and a division crown in 2003. Once again, a stellar regular season was followed by playoff disappointment as the Chiefs were again upset at home by the Colts. However, that turnaround was short-lived, and the team underwent another coaching change late in Kansas City's disappointing 2011 season, which was followed by yet one more after the 2012 campaign. Joe Montana, the Chiefs advanced to the AFC championship game, which they lost to the Buffalo Bills. With Thomas and defensive end Neil Smith anchoring a stout defense, the Chiefs won an NFL-best 13 games in 1995, but they were upset in their opening playoff contest by the Indianapolis Colts.
