Scott M.

Such a cool historic site! Was a little cold but easy to bear while my nephews team won! Go Bears!! Glad I was able to witness such a cool stadium.

Seth A.

I attended my first ever California Golden Bears football game for Week 3 of the 2024 college football season and it was a lot of fun. It's crazy to think that Cal is now part of the ACC conference considering the ACC consists of a bunch of east coast teams located on the other side of the United States. Cal will definitely be earning their frequent flier miles from here on forward. But for this game, the Golden Bears were playing San Diego State. It was a 7:30pm game. I bought a ticket on TickPick which was a $31 flat fee. So here at California Memorial Stadium, it's located right on campus. I parked 1 mile away at the Oxford Garage which is situated in downtown Berkeley. It was $22 for parking. The outside of Memorial Stadium reminded me of a vintage European style mausoleum. It's a classic venue, opened in 1923. Now a century later, it's still in decent condition. It was hard to judge actually where the front entrance to the stadium was. And there was no signs saying Welcome to California Memorial Stadium. I would have liked that. Instead, the giant exterior of the coliseum is paved in milky white and sits perched above the heart of Cal's campus. A few cool aspects that I noticed outside... - The Golden Bear Statue - great for a picture. - "The Play" Shrine - back in 1982, Cal and Stanford had one of the most unforgettable endings to a game, ever. The Stanford band ran onto the field anticipating Stanford had won and Cal wasn't finished and ran the ball for a touchdown to win. They recognize this moment in history. - Aaron Rodgers Athletic Center - hall of fame NFL quarterback was a Cal alumni and so they dedicated the football center and weight room to him. For this 7:30pm game, they allowed fans inside Memorial Stadium at 5:30pm, a good 2 full hours for me to explore the stands and observe the field. Memorial Stadium consists of 64,000 capacity, yet for this game, it was maybe half full. Entering onto the stands and looking down at the 50 yard line, it was very noticeable how the perimeter is shaped into the ground in one giant bowl. It's similar to the foundation at the Rose Bowl. Not sure if people will agree with that comparison, but the stadium spans 360 degrees. It's colored in Cal's beautiful navy blue and gold colors . You can grab great photos from the visiting side of the field. There, the stands extend higher up off the ground. With that navy blue/gold painted around the stadium, it's a cool setting from my POV. The visiting side also offers plenty of concessions from the top deck. And interestingly, students sit (or actually they stand the whole game, lol) on the visiting sideline to stay loud and distract opponents. For this game, the students were certainly a factor. The remaining sections had fans sitting sporadically. I didn't know this prior to attending, but Cal appears very proud of their band which had a 10 minute introduction prior to kickoff and was featured again during halftime. Introductions were exciting with players running onto the field beside blazing fire bolts. As an exclamation to getting kickoff started, some brief fireworks exploded from the press box where coaches and media were sitting. For a late September evening game, weather was 58 degrees and of course I didn't bring a jacket to stay bundled up. Should have known that being near San Francisco. They sold hot chocolates for $6. Lately now at college football stadiums, they have hype music getting fans involved at the end of the 3rd quarter, yet there was nothing of significance for this game. It was a gradual continuation into the 4th quarter. I was hoping for something energetic but never got it. Last thing, the scoreboards are really small and I barely even looked up at them throughout the game. There are scoreboards located above each end zone. Overall, even though California Memorial Stadium is a throwback in time, it's still rich in heritage and tradition. I appreciated that. I would have liked more attendance at the game, but then again, Cal wasn't exactly playing a conference rival, so it's understandable. But regardless, I'm a fan of college football and arriving in Berkeley and being able to see this game was thrilling. Thank you for having me Golden Bears and hope to return sometime in the future.

Vish E.

Great game and fun with the family! We will be back next season ! Kids enjoyed and the food options was great as well !

Super F.

I do recommend coming here and we met some good people especially the tickets boot lady named Ari. She was so helpful. You're so kind. Was so synthetic people customer that would come in that needed help, keep up the good job and thank you. Julio is one of the nicest guys we became across with even shared some goodies Burger and some Hunt link thank you Julio. Keep up the good job.

Rudy M.

I attended my first Cal game since'91 and I bad a wonderful time! I will definitely be Attending more games This season!!

Dennis V.

This stadium has terrible access/parking. They have half the stadium still using outhouses. And the seats are terrible and uncomfortable bench style for most the stadium! And the vision boards are too small!

Juan V.

This is a fun place to watch some Cal Football. I enjoyed the atmosphere which is refreshing for football in general. FTX Field is very clean almost any seat has a good view. The concessions have good drink and food options.

Kim B.

How can I give memorial stadium anything but 5 stars? All seats offer good views of the field. The score board is bright and easy to read. The wooden benches from my college days have been replaced with aluminum bench's. They have decreased the number of seats in a row from 25-20. Cushions with back rests are available for rent. Go Bears!

Erik H.

Sitting on the fault line high above Berkeley, Cal Memorial's renovated digs has a little bit of old school feel on the Eastern side of the field with long benches and port-o-potties on the outer rim with just two hot dog carts and two alcohol stands while the luxury boxes on the western side of the field has a new school feel with sheltered padded seating, all you can eat sushi and hot dogs , Cal sugar cookies Ben & Jerry's ice cream and nice bathrooms as well as access to the school legends who come back to visit and see the carnage of what was once a great football program. On the Eastern side of the field you can sit up on Tight Wad Hill and watch the game for free while enjoying a grand view of the Bay through the trees. On the Western side of the field you can sit out on the observation deck with a totally unobstructed 180 degree view of the campus and Bay that is only rivaled by the California Observatory. These days Cal is deeply entrenched at the bottom of the Pac-12 standings. Their high economic standards, limited athletic budget, and not as famous recent performances make it hard to recruit enough talent and coaching to compete with more gifted teams. But if you close your eyes you might still be able to hear Joe Starkey call "The Play" which this reviewer observed from the Northern end zone before joining the mayhem on the field. You might still imagine Aaron Rodgers, Marshawn Lynvch, Chuck Muncie, Desean Jackson, Ron Rivera, Matt Bouza, Jeremy Newberry, Ray Wershing, Herm Edwards, Tony Gonzalez, Cam Jordan, Joe Kapp, Alex Mack, Wesley Walker, Steve Bartkowski and the legendary Joe Roth during the glory days. "Roll on You Bears"!

Christine R.

This stadium is remarkable, and the views are breathtaking! I've had the pleasure of cheering on the Bears with my fellow Yelpers...going on our 3rd year. We love this annual tradition thanks to Yelp. For many of my Yelite friends, it's their Alma Mater. I'm excited just to see them so excited! It's nice to see my East Bay family around this time of year. Our son loves the football games; he's happy to attend any football game (Pac-12 or SEC). Although, he did have an awesome time at LSU, one he will never forget. Can't even compare when it comes to football in the South, it's their religion! https://www.yelp.com/biz/yelps-game-day-special-go-bears-berkeley The evening games at Cal Memorial Stadium can get quite chilly like any other stadium around the Bay, so bring layers just in case. We enjoy the day games, as the sun is out in October (most beautiful time of year in the Bay Area), makes it a nice day with friends and family at the football game. Although, homecoming weekend is challenging with parking. Overall, they did a stellar job renovating this stadium. https://www.yelp.com/biz/yelps-game-day-special-this-is-bear-territory-part-deux-berkeley FYI, if you're planning your next event i.e., wedding, celebration, meetings, corporate event, this venue does it all with spectacular views of the SF Bay and Berkeley hills. What a unique setting to impress your guests! 'Til next time ~ goooooooooo BEARS!!! https://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/yelps-game-day-special-go-bears-berkeley?select=Jht3Mh3dvlr2J1F6pe35qw&userid=5UDpc2CMOgbf3GePS6SGVA https://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/yelps-game-day-special-go-bears-berkeley?select=eqOTPcgAHRF-XzLL8qA53g&userid=5UDpc2CMOgbf3GePS6SGVA https://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/yelps-game-day-special-go-bears-berkeley?select=dQ6DkVz65FrQE36ha317cg&userid=5UDpc2CMOgbf3GePS6SGVA https://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/yelps-game-day-special-this-is-bear-territory-part-deux-berkeley?select=toWAZPzC6IwmDWTHewmyHQ&reviewid=npzWkWmt3EXyw8vlqVKX2g https://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/yelps-game-day-special-this-is-bear-territory-part-deux-berkeley?select=jf04QsryBQ2C0S45STofvw&reviewid=npzWkWmt3EXyw8vlqVKX2g

Ron M.

Cal Memorial Stadium is definitely your quintessential on-campus facility that is steeped in tradition. I've been to Memorial Stadium a few times over the years to cheer for the Huskies, but my last visit back in October was the first time since the remodel. An aside: I was quite bummed that we lost! I like that it is basically the same - some things should not change! Sightlines to the field is really good no matter where you are at. I've only sat in the visitors section, but you won't get any complaints for me! I didn't partake in stadium concessions, but there was a really great variety available - especially on the concourse behind the student section! Parking is problematic here, so public transportation to campus is the way to go!

Al L.

The Big Game! Cal vs Stanford! North Bay vs South Bay. It's the Bay Area college football rivalry that has spanned over 120 years. Having never witnessed this rivalry in person, I was thrilled that my two Cal alumni friends invited me to Memorial Stadium to the 121st Big Game. Due to the traffic and parking on game day, my friends recommended taking BART. We met and walked into campus to the Stadium. We followed the crowd and arrived in about 15 minutes. My friends said the Stadium recently had a major renovation. Having our tickets scanned, we were in the Stadium. No metal detectors like in pro-sporting events. We were seated on the 10th row on the home end zone section of the stadium. It appears that all seats in the stadium offered a good view of the field. It was exciting and spirted as the cheerleaders fired up the crowd with Cal cheers. At the end, it was not to be as Stanford won again and maintained possession of "The Axe". Until next year, Go Bears!