Quote:
Originally Posted by Clever_Iggy
Let me save you the time and money: don't. I went to my first Raiders game (1st NFL game) in 2004. Tailgated like crazy, had a blast at the game and went down to the Black Hole for the 4th quarter and was welcomed. When I moved to the Bay Area I got season tickets for the first season I was there. I cancelled them after a year. I went to 2 more games in the next 5 years and will never go back.
Aside from the stadium (which I don't think a civilized brain can wrap itself around - the Saddledome is a comfort and convenience mecca comparatively), the fans themselves are simply awful. I bought one of the best tickets in the house the last two times I went - 45 yard line behind the Raiders bench, second row above the walkway (about 20-25 rows up). You go to the bathroom or go to grab a beer and after you deal with the calamity of trying to accomplish those feats in under 20 minutes, you return to your seats to find two "fans", complete with facial tattoos applied with a Bic pen, sitting in your seats. You advise them of their mistake thinking that they'll move on - instead they tell you what they think of you, your mother and the color of your skin. Now you have to track down either a 75 year old usher who after getting rejected has to go find security (radio security? Ha. That organization doesn't have that level of technology). Just when security starts to make its way over, the two ex-cons vacate the seats and go and find somewhere else to camp out, starting the whole process over again. The whole time (30+ minutes) I'm thinking to myself, "I know it sounds lame, but my couch, cheap beer, personal safety and that first down line sure sounds appealing right now".
I've been to other stadiums to watch other teams and the experience is much better (including watching the Raiders play in other stadiums - I felt safer there than in my team's own stadium). I'll go and watch a Raiders home game when (1) it's held in London; (2) the team moves to a new stadium in LA and ticket prices are jacked to weed out the thugs that currently attend games; or (3) see (2) only in Oakland.
Take this FWIW. If you're a fan of vacationing in Iran or Taliban controlled Afghanistan, then maybe you'd enjoy a Raiders game at the Coliseum.
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I went to the Raiders / Redskins game this fall and I fully agree. I will never go back. The Saddledome and the fans who occupy it (Even on Canucks, Oilers, Leafs, and Canadiens nights) are an absolute treat compared to the absolute crappiest stadium in professional sports (Like seriously Foothills Stadium for Calgary Cannons games had more amenities than O.Co Colesium currently does) and the absolute scum of the Earth I encountered in Oakland that day. My gf thought that somehow we were going to get robbed, maimed, or both the whole time we were there (And we were sitting in the 'club seats' with special security check-ins).