https://ancientrome.org/tags/circus-maximus/ Recent content in Circus Maximus on Ancient Rome Hugo en-us Tue, 05 May 2026 00:00:00 +0000 https://ancientrome.org/the-circus-maximus-and-the-politics-of-speed/ Tue, 05 May 2026 00:00:00 +0000 https://ancientrome.org/the-circus-maximus-and-the-politics-of-speed/ <p>The Circus Maximus was the largest sports venue the ancient world ever built, capable of holding somewhere between 150,000 and 250,000 spectators — the ancient sources give figures that seem implausibly large but are not entirely implausible given the site&rsquo;s archaeology. For comparison, the Colosseum held perhaps 50,000 to 80,000. The Circus was Rome&rsquo;s dominant entertainment venue, chariot racing was Rome&rsquo;s dominant spectator sport, and the passion Romans invested in the circus factions — the Blues, Greens, Reds, and Whites — was of an intensity that modern sports tribalism only partially approximates. In Constantinople, a dispute between circus factions contributed to a riot that killed tens of thousands of people and nearly ended Justinian&rsquo;s reign. This is the world that chariot racing inhabited.</p>