The 2025 season for South Carolina Football is officially over, and the repair and rebuild has begun, for the team and the stadium. Just a day after the Gamecocks closed out the year with a loss against Clemson, construction crews began the first phase of the multi-year renovations at Williams-Brice Stadium. As of Monday, demolition workers were on site, putting up temporary fencing around the stadium. The ambitious project is scheduled to finish in time for the 2027 football season. While the construction will not completely halt during the 2026 season, the University has stated that it will not force any seat relocations or reduce capacity until the work is complete. Once finished, however, the stadium will shrink by roughly 4,100 seats.
A central focus of the renovations is to expand premium seating, with South Carolina looking to nearly triple its suit count from 18 to 42. But the upgrades go beyond luxury seating. Fans will also see two new video boards in the south end zone, wider concourses, additional restrooms, a club-like student area, an in-course kitchen that will replace off-site food prep, and a loading dock that is designed to attract major concerts to Columbia.
Still, not all fans are celebrating the changes. As a part of the project, over 14,000 season ticket holders in the west-lower stands will have to go back through the seat-selection process for 2027. Their seats will not be guaranteed.
In a changing landscape of college athletics, South Carolina is looking for new revenue streams to keep up with programs, especially considering the ability to pay players following the NCAA's NIL and House settlement agreements. Renovations and upgrades such as these are seen as key path forward.
But for many long-time Gamecock supporters, the prospect of losing their familiar seats leaves a sour taste even as the stadium itself gets a facelift. The tension between progress and tradition is playing out in real-time, right in the heart of Williams-Brice Stadium.